Whether you’re 7 or 70, or anywhere in between, there’s a good chance you have to deal with frustration of a regular basis. It might be due to waiting in line, getting a flat tire, dealing with bills, or someone not behaving the way you’d like.
Frustration occurs when life isn’t going the way we’d like.
Considering how little control we have over
most of the things that frustrate us, it’s not surprising that we frequently
feel frustrated.
Use this process to overcome your frustration:
- See frustration with
yourself as a positive sign. If you’re frustrated
with yourself, it means that you believe you should be doing better. Be
glad that you’re frustrated. If you
weren’t frustrated at all, you’d be doomed to continue living your current
life.
● Think about the things you’ve
intentionally changed in your life. Odds are that you were frustrated before
you were motivated to change.
- Decide what you want to
happen. Frustration is just a signal that things
aren’t the way you want. There’s no reason to dwell on the frustration.
Decide on how you would prefer things to be. What is the outcome or
situation you prefer over the current situation?
- Notice whether or not the frustrating event is under your
control. Many of life’s irritations are outside
our control. Learn methods to deal with these and focus your actions on
what you can control.
● For example, if you’re frustrated
because you’re stuck in a traffic jam, there’s not much you can’t do if you
can’t fly. Take a few deep breaths and try to think about something funny or
that makes you happy. Realize that this is just part of life. Relax your neck
and shoulders and wait it out.
● If you can control it, there’s no
reason to be upset. What can you do to fix it?
- Ensure your view of the
situation is accurate. Be certain the situation
is as it appears to be. Maybe you’re missing something. Maybe you
misunderstood someone. How many assumptions are you making? Verify those
assumptions before you upset yourself further.
- List the possible
solutions. What can you do to make the situation
better and resolve your frustration? Consider all of your options and decide which is the
most viable. See what you can do to end or minimize your frustration.
- Put your solutions into
action. Now you can start resolving the issue
instead of just being annoyed by it. Make a plan and begin executing it.
● Just ensure that the solution
isn’t more hassle than it’s worth. Sometimes we get carried away and spend too
many resources on a solution. It might be easier to toughen up a little bit and
just deal with feeling frustrated.
- Look to the future. If this situation is something that’s likely to happen again, make a plan to prevent it from happening again.
● Ask yourself why the annoying situation happened and whether or not you can put preventative measures in place. It might be as simple as vowing to never go shopping again during rush hour.
Feeling frustrated? Life doesn’t always go exactly according to plan.
Find a solution to your frustration whenever possible and begin taking actions that will help to resolve the situation. Just starting those actions will help reduce your frustration.
If you can’t do anything to help resolve the situation, try to be as happy and relaxed as possible while you get through it. Find stress-relieving methods that work for you.
Remember: You may not be able to control the event, but you do have control over your frustration level!
Love to read your comments below or email me at alison@alisonandco.com.
