Strategies for Controlling Aggression

Getting Your Anger Under Control

All of us experience anger from time to time. It's a normal, commonly experienced emotion. However, anger can be incredibly destructive if we don't know how to control it. Frequent or misplaced anger can hurt our reputations, destroy our relationships, limit our opportunities and even damage our health. We manage anger when we learn to defuse it before it becomes destructive. Below are 12 strategies that you can use to control anger when you experience it:

1. Acknowledge That You Have a Problem

If you find it difficult to manage your anger, the first thing you need to do is to be honest with yourself and acknowledge that you have a problem. You can then make a plan to deal with it.

2. Keep a Hostility Log

Do you know what causes your anger? Chances are, you don't understand why you react angrily to some people or events. Monitor the triggers and the frequency of your anger. When you know what makes you angry, you can develop strategies to channel it effectively.

3. Use Your Support Network

Let the important people in your life know about the changes that you're trying to make. They can motivate and support you if you lapse into old behaviours. Put some time aside every day to invest in these relationships, especially with close friends and family. You need to be there for them, just as they're willing to be there for you. You can alleviate stress when you spend time with people you care about. This also helps you control your anger.

4. Interrupt the Anger Cycle

When you start to feel angry, try the following techniques:

• Yell "Stop!" loudly in your thoughts. This can interrupt the anger cycle.
• Use physical relaxation techniques like deep breathing.
• Count to 20 before you respond.
• Manage your negative thoughts with imagery or positive thinking.
• Close your office door or find a quiet space and meditate for a few minutes.
• Distract yourself from your anger – visit your favourite website, play a song that you like, daydream about a hobby that you enjoy or take a walk.

Another approach is to consider the facts of the situation, so that you can talk yourself out of being angry. To use this strategy, look at what you can observe about the person or situation, not what you're inferring about someone's motivations or intentions. Does this situation deserve your attention? And is your anger justified here? When you look only at the facts, you'll likely determine that it's unproductive to respond with anger.

5. Use Empathy

If another person is the source of your anger, use empathy to see the situation from his or her perspective. Be objective here. Everyone makes mistakes, and it is through mistakes that people learn how to improve.

6. See the Humour in Your Anger

Learn to laugh at yourself and do not take everything seriously. The next time you feel tempted to lash out, try to see the humour in your expressions of anger. One way to do this is to "catastrophize" the situation. This is when you exaggerate a petty situation that you feel angry about, and then laugh at your self-importance.

For example, imagine that you're angry because a sick team member missed a day of work. As a result, a report you were depending on is now late. To catastrophize the situation, you think, "Wow, she must have been waiting months for the opportunity to mess up my schedule like this. She and everyone on the team probably planned this, and they're probably sending her updates about how angry I'm getting." Obviously, this grossly exaggerates the situation. When you imagine a ridiculous and overblown version of the story, you'll likely find yourself smiling by the end of it.

7. Relax

Angry people let little things bother them. If you learn to calm down, you'll realize that there is no real need to get upset, and you'll have fewer angry episodes. Regular exercise can help you relax in tense situations. When possible, go for a walk, or stretch and breathe deeply whenever you start to feel upset. You will also feel more relaxed when you get enough sleep and eat a healthy diet. Dehydration can often lead to irritability too, so keep hydrated throughout the day by drinking plenty of water.

8. Build Trust

Angry people can be cynical. They can believe that others do things on purpose to annoy or frustrate them, even before anything happens. However, people often focus less on you than you might think.

Build trust with friends and colleagues. That way, you'll be less likely to get angry with them when something goes wrong. You'll also be less likely to attribute the problem to malicious intent on their part. To build trust, be honest with people. Explain your actions or decisions when you need to, and always keep your word. If you do this consistently, people will learn that they can trust you. They'll also follow your lead, and you'll learn that you can trust them in return.

9. Listen Effectively

Miscommunication contributes to frustrating situations. The better you listen to what someone says, the easier it is to find a resolution that doesn't involve an angry response. So, try to improve your active listening skills. When others are speaking, focus on what they're saying, and don't get distracted by formulating your response before they've finished. When they're done speaking, show that you listened by reflecting back what they have just said.

10. Be Assertive

Remember, the word is "assertive," not "aggressive." When you're aggressive, you focus on winning. You care little for others' feelings, rights, and needs. When you're assertive, you focus on balance. You're honest about what you want, and you respect the needs of others.

If you're angry, it's often difficult to express yourself clearly. Learn to let other people know your expectations, boundaries and issues. When you do, you'll find that you develop self-confidence, gain respect and improve your relationships.

11. Live Each Day as If It's Your Last

Life is short. If you spend all of your time getting angry, you're going to miss the many joys and surprises that life offers. Think about how many times your anger has destroyed a relationship or caused you to miss a happy day with friends and family. That's time that you'll never get back.

12. Forgive and Forget

To ensure that you make long-term changes, you need to forgive people who have angered you. It's not easy to forget past resentments, but the only way to move on is to let go of these feelings. So, start today. Make amends with one person that you've hurt through your anger. It might be difficult, but you'll feel better afterwards. Plus, you'll be one step closer to healing the relationship.

Key Points

To manage anger, acknowledge that you have a problem, keep a hostility log and build a support network based on trust.

Use techniques to interrupt your anger, listen, empathize, be assertive with others, and learn to relax as well as laugh at yourself.

Finally, don't let anger get in the way of the joys in life, and learn to forgive people who make you angry.