I'm certainly no saint when it comes to forgiving people as I was telling some of my colleagues over tea break. However, I do try to be a nice guy wherever possible and when it comes to dealing with difficult people, I usually employ the baseball rule. Put simply it goes:
Strike one!
Strike two!
Strike three, you're out!
Basically, I give difficult people 3 chances before I take action against them. Usually when such people do something nasty to you, the first time would probably be the easiest to forgive, as it could be a one-off incident to be let off with probably a gentle warning. However, a second time could indicate that it was deliberate and this time a stern warning should be given. The third time would be crossing the line of patience and such cases should be reported to the relevant authorities for action.
One old and wise colleague agreed and told me the local version of the rule:
Once bitten,
Twice Shy.
Twice bitten,
Better don't try.
Thrice bitten,
Go and die!
We are humans after all.
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