Using Anger as a Positive Motivator
Posted: Tuesday, March 10, 2009
by Terry Mitchell
http://commenterry.blogs.com
Anger is normally a negative emotion. We've all let anger get the best of us at various times in our lives. For some people, it can be very destructive. In extreme cases, it can even destroy their lives, along with those of others.
But anger doesn't have to be a bad thing. It can actually be constructive. We can use it to our advantage by allowing it to motivate us to excel. It order to use anger in this way, we must first consider the reasons we get angry.
I'm sure that most of the above are fairly common to members of western civilization. Now, once our reasons for getting angry have been identified, each can be examined to see how it can possibly be used as a motivator. Not everyone will be able to use all of them as motivators, but most people should be able to pick out at least one thing they can use.
I'll use item (3) above as the example. Whenever I come across someone who habitually puts me down and/or seems to believe that I do not amount to much, I add their name to what I call my "Motivation List." I do not add someone's name to this list because of one or two isolated incidents. It has to be a pattern of behavior.
I do not keep this list for the purpose of holding grudges or justifying an unforgiving attitude. Rather I use it at those times when I feel lethargic or lack motivation. That's when I will pull out this list and look at it so that it will motive me to keep striving for success and never give up – if for no other reason than to show those people how mistaken that have been. It's a way of telling them to "put that in their pipe and smoke it" or at least it gives me a chance to say, "I told you so" (which is something I get no greater thrill than saying).
Anger is almost inevitable. Those who simply try to avoid it will usually find themselves in a losing battle. And pent-up anger can result in health problems and even death. The key is to manage it properly and one of the best ways to do so is to use it as a motivating force in our lives.
This Article has been viewed 2,990 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)Hi Terry.Number 4 almost got me killed once. Shortly after I was married, I paid a visit to my mom. It was just before July 4th, so when I heard a loud bang from outside, I thought kids had blown up her mail box again and went outside to give them ... heck. Turned out if was a 16 year old boy, high on PCP and he had a shotgun. That was when I got good and angry. How dare he threaten to shoot me (told me I'd better run or he would). I stood my ground and he emptied both barrels over my head. I didn't think I could get any angrier, but I did and took off after him as he ran up the street, all the while reloading his shotgun. When he turned around and leveled it at my chest, I thought I had really screwed the pooch as they say. Why he did not shoot me I will never know (he did indeed shoot a boy that day). But I resolved to loose anger as a motivator of any sort on that day and have never regretted it. I think we disagree fundamentally with the role of anger in our lives. But I do agree with "Anger is almost inevitable. Those who simply try to avoid it will usually find themselves in a losing battle. And pent up anger can result in health problems and even death. The key is to manage it properly ..." But not so much the very last bit, "... and one of the best ways to do so is to use it as a motivating force in our lives."I think it best that when we experience anger, we immediately release it and think calmly about the situation and get on with living our lives rationally. I know you are not saying to act on your anger the moment you experience, but so many do. But you do seem to be saying to hold on to your anger in some form and use it in the future. I just think that there are better motivators: a personal desire to be the best that you can be and perform the best that you can perform for the sheer joy of it.Because I have written these things, does not mean that I do not think your article is not well written and your points are not well presented, because they are. It just means that I disagree with your particular point of view on this issue.Your writing frequently makes me take a hard look at my values and philosophies and anything that does that is good in my book. So thank you for writing this.With respect,DianneDianne, even though we obviously disgree on some of this, your point is well taken. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with me and the other SearchWarp readers.
We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.