Do you easily get frustrated? Do you get frustrated with people who are slow and who don’t know how to follow instructions? Or do you get frustrated with yourself because you find yourself always easily frustrated?
We all have different reasons for being frustrated. We can be frustrated because something that we weren’t expecting just suddenly happened. We can be frustrated with the attitude and behavior of the people around us (family members, friends, officemates, neighbors, etc.). We can be frustrated by events or by our environment like heavy traffic, long lines, a messy house, noisy and rowdy kids, and whatever else.
We have all experienced being frustrated. I don’t think anyone can ever say that he or she has never experienced this emotion in his or her entire life. This only means that frustration is normal.
But always being easily frustrated is not. Why? Because at the end of the day, we have a choice on what to do about our frustrations. We can nurse it until it blows out of proportion, or we can choose to get over it and set it aside.
The decision is ours.
If we don’t do anything about our frustrations, it can result to stress, anger, insecurity, and bitterness. This is why it’s important for us to know how we can prevent ourselves from always being frustrated.
Here are a few things that we can do.
MAINTAIN A POSITIVE OUTLOOK
Learn to look at things from a different perspective. Before we allow ourselves to really blow it, let’s try to look at the brighter side of things. For example, maybe you’re frustrated because your boss is so demanding, always asking you to do many things all at the same time.
Think about it this way: Even if your boss behaves that way, you’re still blessed because you have a job. There are millions of Filipinos who are trying so hard to get a job.
Let’s always look for the bright side in any situation, even if we feel like everything is just so negative. If we always choose to think positively, frustration will have no place in our hearts, and the frustration will just easily go away.
TAKE A BREAK
We all need a break or a breather. Sometimes, we need to just pause and take a deep breath.
Before we allow our frustrations to explode, let’s first try to breathe in, and think of the possible long-term effects of letting our frustrations get the better of us. Let’s do our best to not react so quickly and hastily.
Calm yourself down, distract yourself for a little while, or even entertain yourself if you need to (play your favorite video game first or watch your favorite TV episodes). Once you’ve given yourself some time to cool off from all the heat of frustration, that’s when you can react, speak, and make decisions.
SURROUND YOURSELF WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE
We have a saying that goes, “Tell me who your friends are and I’ll tell you who you are.” If the people we’re with are negative, critical, ungrateful, heavy complainers, and always so easily frustrated, it’s likely that we too will be these things. Negativity is highly contagious.
On the other hand, if we choose to surround ourselves with people with self-control, joy, gratefulness, calmness, positivity, then chances are, we will be these very same things too. Positivity is also highly contagious. That’s why instead of spreading bad vibes, let’s choose to spread good vibes!
We will be the ones on the losing end if we always allow ourselves to be frustrated. Instead of enjoying our lives, we’re just wasting it by getting frustrated over things that are not even worth it.
THINK. REFLECT. APPLY.
What are the usual reasons why you feel frustrated? What are your struggles when it comes to holding back or resolving your frustration? What have you done to keep you from being always easily frustrated, annoyed, or irritated? (Chinkee Tan)