EQ- Anger

Humans have various emotions and Anger is one of them which, if it’s not managed well, can ruin one’s life, be it personal or professional.  Anger is something that just happens naturally to all human beings, though the degree could differ. Is it really possible to control our Anger?  Is there anyone who has mastered how to control their Anger. The most probable answer would be No only.

However, what is within our control is how we channelize and express our anger in an appropriate and acceptable manner.

Before we get angry, we should ask ourselves ( Saying by Aristotle)

If we are angry for the right reason

If we are angry with the right person

If we are angry at the right time

If we are angry to the right extent.

If we are angry in the right way

If the answer is yes to the above questions, we are reacting appropriately. Many times, the answer would not be Yes and that’s why all the frictions in relationship happen and it’s a sure recipe to one’s disaster.

As psychologists say, when we get angry, it’s better to express it then and there rather than not reacting at all. Because, it would lead to bottled up feelings which is not healthy and when we react later, we will react for all those instances that made us angry for which we did not react in the past. It will be like an emotional Tsunami and it’s difficult to handle.

When there is a stimuli that makes us angry, we can choose to react after some time.  It’s essentially leaving sometime between stimuli and response instead of reacting immediately. This will help us mellow down our strong emotions and we will be able to apply our rationale.  For example, when you get a stinker mail, you can choose to reply the next day without emotions and with rationale rather than replying immediately with emotions and without or with less rationale. When someone shouts at you while driving on the road, you can choose to ignore rather than reacting back or engaging in any conversation immediately.

Anger is something that happens; it may happen in different degree to different individual and what provokes someone very much could be very much within the acceptable anger threshold for someone else. However, everyone is bound to get angry and there is no escape.  Hence, it’s all about being self-aware and managing this emotion very effectively. Any mismanagement would spell a disaster for sure. 

This is required at personal front and at workplace too and it’s highly important for those who are in and who want to get into people management role since the risk is not limited to the individuals but to all the team members that you manage. Beyond certain level in the Hierarchy, the domain competency is given (a minimum expected skill) and what differentiates a high performer from all the others is how you lead and manage your people.  Unless we manage our Anger effectively, it will spell a doom in our career. 

diD yOU enJOY ReADinG ThIS ArTIcLE? 

                                  If yES, 

yOU maY sHAre it wiTH Your FriENds tOO.