Have you ever found yourself reacting in anger and regretting it later?
Do you often wonder why certain situations trigger such intense emotions?
Are you looking for effective ways to understand and manage your anger better?
In this article, I delve into the essential practice of building self-awareness, a crucial skill not just for personal growth but also for effective anger management. Join me as I explore three practical tips to enhance self-awareness and take control of your emotional responses.
In this article, I delve into the essential practice of building self-awareness, a crucial skill not just for personal growth but also for effective anger management.
Introduction
To control your anger before it gets out of control, you need to start by building self-awareness. Basically, self-awareness is the ability to recognise and understand your emotions, thoughts and behaviors.
When it comes to controlling your anger, self-awareness is critical. Without it, you won't be able to notice when you're getting angry and take action to stop it from escalating.
So, how can you become more self-aware? Here are three tips to get you started.
Self-awareness is the ability to recognise and understand your emotions, thoughts and behaviors.
Tip 1: Observe Your Early Warning Signs of Anger
The first tip to developing more self-awareness is to learn your Early Warning Signs of Anger.
Your Early Warning Signs of Anger are the signs you experience when you are becoming tense, frustrated or angry. The Early Warning signs of anger are different for everyone, but they often include things such as:
- your heart rate increasing
- feeling hot or sweaty
- raising your voice
- going quiet
- your body language changing
- your voice tone changing or
- having negative thoughts such as "I don't need this" or "Why is this happening to me?".
The sooner you become aware of your Early Warning Signs of Anger, the easier it will be to stop your anger from escalating.
In my comprehensive online anger management program The Complete Anger Management System I will teach you much more about the Early Warning Signs of Anger and what to do when you become aware of them.
Your Early Warning Signs of Anger are the signs you experience when you are becoming tense, frustrated or angry.
Tip 2: Slow Down
The second tip is to slow down.
When you become angry, your emotions take over, and you can act without thinking. This often results in you saying or doing things that you later regret.
Instead of doing this, it is more useful to train yourself to slow down, take a deep breath and give yourself time to think before you act.
For example, I worked with a client many years ago who trained himself to say the words "I think" or "I feel" every time before he said something when he was angry. He told me these simple phrases gave him precious time to think before responding, even if it was just one or two seconds.
Even this short amount of time helped him to choose more productive, respectful words and actions instead of anger.
It is more useful to train yourself to slow down, take a deep breath and give yourself time to think before you act.
Tip 3: Get To Know Your Anger Triggers
The third tip is to get to know your anger triggers.
Anger triggers are the events or situations that trigger your anger. Knowing what your anger triggers are is important for developing more self-awareness, because it allows you to spot them before you become angry and take appropriate action.
A simple way to learn more about your anger triggers is to think about situations that have made you angry in the past. Then ask yourself: "Why did this situation make me angry?".
Some common anger triggers include feeling disrespected, feeling like you're not being heard or when someone behaves in a completely different way to your expectations.
A simple way to learn more about your anger triggers is to think about situations that have made you angry in the past. Then ask yourself: "Why did this situation make me angry?".
By understanding your anger triggers, you can become more mindful of them and take action before they spiral out of control.
It can also be helpful to write down your anger triggers on paper. This can help you put these triggers into perspective, as well as help you plan what to do when these situations arise again.
For example, if one of your anger triggers is feeling disrespected, you could develop a plan to deal with feeling disrespected in the future. This could include taking time to cool off if you feel angry, communicating your feelings or walking away from the situation.
Summary
I hope these three tips have given you some useful ideas on how to build your self-awareness.
Remember that when it comes to anger management, becoming aware that you are getting angry is key. If you are not aware that you are getting angry, there is nothing you can do to control your anger.
However, if you are aware that you are getting angry, there are many things you can do to control your anger.
Remember that when it comes to anger management, becoming aware that you are getting angry is key.
Remember: For a free training on how to control your anger, click here.
And finally, remember: You can't control other people, but you can control yourself.
