Ever feel like throttling someone?
Anger (sometimes we label it as being irritated, frustrated and/or annoyed) is a normal and healthy emotion but it’s important to deal with it in constructive ways. Uncontrolled anger can take a toll on both your health and your relationships. Everyone gets angry, and mild anger can even be useful to express strong feelings and deal with situations. However, if anger is expressed in harmful ways, or persists over a long period of time, it is then that it can lead to problems in relationships at home and at work and affect the overall quality of your life. A balanced approach that includes acknowledging anger and choosing how to act seems to work for many people. Let’s take Key Steps this week to manage your anger and…
Stay sane
- List the things that can trigger your anger: Perhaps you fume when someone cuts you off in traffic? Maybe it’s running late for an appointment, getting stuck in traffic, your teenager leaving dirty dishes in the sink or a customer or co-worker blaming you for something you didn’t do? Knowing what triggers you can help you either put preventative steps in place (leave early or take a different route) to avoid these things or help you to respond differently when they do happen.
- Notice the warning signs in your body: For example, heart pounding, face flushed, sweating, shortness of breath or gritting your teeth. The earlier you can recognise these warning signs, the more successful you can be at calming yourself down before your anger gets out of control and use your emotions constructively.
- Learn strategies for managing anger: There are a number of different ways of managing anger – distraction, relaxation techniques like breathing and ‘timeouts’ are just a few. Some strategies will suit you better than others. One of the best strategies is to learn assertiveness skills and constructive ways to manage conflict. These skills ensure that anger is channelled and expressed in clear and respectful ways. Being assertive means being clear about what your needs and wants are, feeling okay about asking for them, while respecting other’s needs and concerns and being prepared to negotiate. We know these skills are not always easy so we are here to support you…
To master the art of listening and gain a host of other communication skills that will catapult your success, contact Sharon and BOOK yourself on our upcoming Assertive Communication and Conflict Management workshop on 17 & 18 January 2017. You can’t afford not to BOOK NOW and take Key Steps to…
“be the difference that makes the difference”
