My last boss was like this. He got put in charge when the previous boss left. He rode my ass to take greatest risks and then bitched me out publicly, not because they failed (cuz they usually didn't), but for taking them. And you could just yell, he hated me.

Does this sound familiar? Are you talking about your boss? No? Then who the fuck cares what they think?

I feel like this is a high school problem. Im in my mid 20s and dont have a 'circle' of friends anymore since I moved to another state for a job. This sounds like some highsschool bullshit. cut your losses and move on..if people dont like you...nothing will change.

Bernie Mac said it best

I would try to piss them off more and not laugh aloud

the worst thing you can do is to spend your life trying to make everybody like you.

You didn't answer an important question: do you like them?

What is the best path to take in dealing with these people

Deal with them as little as possible.

When you do have to deal with them "Be courteous yet curt." is my motto. You are polite and calm but never over compensating to try to sway their opinion.

Tell yourself the following and act as if the following were true till it get internaised:

1. You are a man who doesnt give a damn about other people's opinion of you.
2. you realise that your opinion of yourself is more important to you than their opinion of you.

A man once interviewed for a job with Winston Churchill. WC asked him, "Do you have any enemies? " The candidate responded that he did. Churchill responded, "Good, that means at some point in your life, you stood up for something."

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Ignore the haters, but do not ignore this symptom arising in your "mental landscape". This is you asking yourself "what would I do if people hate me?", how would you act to save the day in the case of this immense tragedy? It's a poisoned blue pill upsurge you're facing man.

To put it another way, your self-talk is doing a psy-ops number on you, causing fear where you need none. Pay attention to how that's being done, maybe even journal it out for yourself. Once you have observed what old unspoken beliefs your mind is using to construct this edifice of fear, it will become much clearer exactly which mental ballast you need to drop to lighten up and move yourself forward.

Ignore the shit out of them.

People often hate others that remind them of things they hate within themselves. Thats why their hate can be so immediate, without even knowing you.

If that helps to know that there's self-loathing going on, you dont have to take it personally. Maybe even grin at them sometimes.

This really depends on circumstances.

If you're sitting down in a bar with a guy and a girl, and you connect to the guy but get shit on by the girl, just continue talking to the guy like she doesn't exist. Your value raises and her value diminishes by every word. If he sides with her, he probably wants to fuck her for some reason, and you can help with that by being the villain and getting points for that later on.

If the setting is like a few day camp-in with several people who are unknown to you and one party in the group openly hates your guts, you're probably somehow setting on his social terrain, and it might be best to alleviate the pressure by befriending the idiot so that you can enjoy the upcoming days better. If not, ignore. If the person here knows others beforehand and you do not, it can ruin the whole experience; then you befriend others and let them do the conversion. Don't push it here.

If it's a larger social setting and there are some haters, just present yourself in good light and then find better company. Those who like you will seek you out later on.

Only if the idiots continue to harass you, should you escalate -- best way for this is to wait until he stumbles with his pokes, and crack a joke at his expense, dragging his value down and then after the laughs continue as if he doesn't exist.

The common thread here is that you should not give attention to that which is not worthy of it, and only escalate the reaction if there is no other way to do it.

He whose temper lapses first loses.

*Edit: When you have enough social proof in immediate vicinity or you are overwhelmingly superior to the adversary, you can just tell them to fuck off, and continue normally.

Thinking about the problem in reverse should give you an idea of precautions and behaviors to deal with the issue.

When I dislike someone my primary urge is to avoid them. If I really dislike someone, I am strongly compelled to put obstacles in their path, and make their life difficult. Such actions are transparent to the group, so I only act if I can maintain plausible deniability.

If someone were to deal with me disliking them, avoiding would be fine. They'd be wise to anticipate opportunities to guard against me getting in their way. I could be disarmed quickly with a joke. "Gonna throw me under the bus huh Framewalker"

At best if the animosity doesn't become a public event then ignoring them as best you can is the only real option.

If they start shit try and get them socially discredited so they feel awkward being around you and your group. Turn the tides.

If their hate for you is THAT irrational. Ignore them.

Their hate is their problem, not yours. So forget about it.

If someone starts talking shit or being condescending, I confront them right away and ask them if they have a problem with me; most people are pussies, so they'll change their mind about you pretty fast. It's the people who are willing to argue with you that you need to worry about; try not to hang around these people, but when you do make it clear that they don't intimidate you or change your behavior, just keep your frame strong

Ask them for a small favor. It plants the seedling of liking you. They'll rationalize that they must like you of they did you that favor when they were really just being courteous.