A safe harbor where beliefs are respected and kindness prevails.

Agree or Agreeable?

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Regina BannerI do not believe it is possible for us to agree with everyone all of the time about everything. I do believe it is possible for us to stay agreeable people when disagreeing. – Regina Cates

One day at the gym I witnessed a full-blown ego-battle between two staff people. It began when I overheard the sales director arguing with someone on the phone. Suddenly he slammed the receiver down, hanging up on the caller. The person immediately called back to complain to the general manager.

Without regard to other employees or to the members of the gym, the general manager proceeded to scream at the sales director from across the room. He screamed back. Everyone in the gym overheard the bitter exchange that included steady streams of profanity from both sides.

One of my favorite quotes is that of Albert Einstein, “Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them.” No matter how other people behave it is always our choice to fall victim to our impulsive ego’s demands to be defended, or to be proven right, or to get someone to fall in line. We also have the choice to take a deep breath, count to five and lead with our responsible heart to stay calm, open, and focused on remaining agreeable in the midst of a disagreement.

The next time you find yourself disagreeing with someone, stop and take a deep breath. The goal is not to angrily force them to see your side. Anger does not result in clear communication. Anger does not solve disagreements. Anger does not lead to staying agreeable to find a peaceful, mutual solution to our disagreements. Remember, anger blinds us to any other view but our own.

Challenge your energy into listening to their point of view. Really hear what they are saying. Possibly their view will make sense. And, maybe their position is purely emotion without rational or factual substance. If there is merit to their comments then you can work to find common ground. If not, by staying open to hear them you will have brought the higher level of awareness necessary. Being the one who stays agreeable to listen, allows you to walk away without the stress that comes from butting your head against the wall of another person’s ego. It does not mean you agree with their point of view. You have simply chosen to take the higher road by not engaging with anyone who thinks it is productive to be disagreeable when disagreeing.

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It’s OK To Get Angry… But

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Regina BannerIt’s okay to get angry and frustrated at times, but it’s not okay to make these a lifestyle.

I smoked cigarettes for twenty two years. I spent over two decades harming myself rather than having the courage to express what I was so desperately keeping bottled up inside me. After a back surgery that left me with a limp, I ate without awareness or responsibility, and gained over 60 pounds. Again I was attempting to stuff my pain with abusing myself. So frustrated with my confusing childhood, I spent without responsibility, trying to put on a good show for the outside world that I was okay and happy. Inside I was miserable. I lived in fear of never being able to pay off the debt.

Beneath the self-abuse was anger. So many years of not being able to express myself, not setting boundaries, feeling resentful and blaming others for my screwed up life, left me with huge holes in my heart. Anger quickly moved in and took up residence. Anger became my lifestyle.

Repression of emotions is one of the major causes of addictions, abuse, depression, and disease in our culture. In many families, emotions are either repressed or expressed in abusive ways. As children and young adults we’re told too often that being angry is bad and we should just move on. When I got angry I was punished or shamed into repressing my emotions. I felt rejected and my emotions discounted. I’d express that I was angry, sad, fearful, disappointed, only to be told, “Oh no, you’re not feeling that.” As a child I learned to mistrust my own perceptions and deny what I felt. But, if we do not express anger in healthy ways we tend to turn that anger inward or outward.

Expressing anger by harming ourselves or others is actually being out of control. We get angry when we feel powerless. We feel frustrated not being able to control or change other people. We feel disappointed when someone betrays our trust, or gossips about us, or does not do what we think they should do when we think they should do it. Anger stems from feeling disapproved of, cornered or bullied. Anger arises when we feel cheated out of something we feel entitled to. We get upset when we do not feel others hear us, or speak to us with disdain, and when we feel unseen. Anger is a gut reaction to ineffective communication, not feeling understood, feeling taken advantage of, being abused, and not being able to express ourselves.

No matter how smooth and fulfilling your life is there will be times when you get angry. You are going to get frustrated, disappointed, be inconvenienced or experience pain as a result of other people’s behavior. It is healthy to acknowledge your upset, frustration, and disappointment. It is never healthy to take your anger out on others in the form of physical, emotional, verbal, or psychological abuse. That is never love and is not appropriate no matter what excuses you come up with, no matter how much you try to place blame on your spouse, child, pet, mother, etc.

Yes, other people’s behavior can be frustrating. And yes, it is okay to get angry but find healthy ways (run, walk fast, punch a punching bag, or yell into a pillow) to release your anger so anger does not become a lifestyle.

It’s okay to get angry and frustrated at times, but it’s not okay to make these a lifestyle.

I smoked cigarettes for twenty-two years. I spent over two decades harming myself rather than having the courage to express what I was so desperately keeping bottled up inside me. After a back surgery that left me with a limp, I ate without awareness or responsibility, and gained over 60 pounds. Again I was attempting to stuff my pain with abusing myself. So frustrated with my confusing childhood, I spent without responsibility, trying to put on a good show for the outside world that I was okay and happy. Inside I was miserable. I lived in fear of never being able to pay off the debt.

Beneath the self-abuse was anger. So many years of not being able to express myself, not setting boundaries, feeling resentful and blaming others for my screwed up life, left me with huge holes in my heart. Anger quickly moved in and took up residence. Anger became my lifestyle.

Repression of emotions is one of the major causes of addictions, abuse, depression, and disease in our culture. In many families, emotions are either repressed or expressed in abusive ways. As children and young adults we’re told too often that being angry is bad and we should just move on. When I got angry I was punished or shamed into repressing my emotions. I felt rejected and my emotions discounted. I’d express that I was angry, sad, fearful, disappointed, only to be told, “Oh no, you’re not feeling that.” As a child I learned to mistrust my own perceptions and deny what I felt. But, if we do not express anger in healthy ways we tend to turn that anger inward or outward.

Expressing anger by harming ourselves or others is actually being out of control. We get angry when we feel powerless. We feel frustrated not being able to control or change other people. We feel disappointed when someone betrays our trust, or gossips about us, or does not do what we think they should do when we think they should do it. Anger stems from feeling disapproved of, cornered or bullied. Anger arises when we feel cheated out of something we feel entitled to. We get upset when we do not feel others hear us, or speak to us with disdain, and when we feel unseen. Anger is a gut reaction to ineffective communication, not feeling understood, feeling taken advantage of, being abused, and not being able to express ourselves.

No matter how smooth and fulfilling your life is there will be times when you get angry. You are going to get frustrated, disappointed, be inconvenienced or experience pain as a result of other people’s behavior. It is healthy to acknowledge your upset, frustration, and disappointment. It is never healthy to take your anger out on others in the form of physical, emotional, verbal, or psychological abuse. That is never love and is not appropriate no matter what excuses you come up with, no matter how much you try to place blame on your spouse, child, pet, mother, etc.

Yes, other people’s behavior can be frustrating. And yes, it is okay to get angry but find healthy ways (run, walk fast, punch a punching bag, or yell into a pillow) to release your anger so anger does not become a lifestyle.

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5 Tips To Come To Grips When You Get Triggered & Angry

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Fotolia_33631304_Subscription_XLHave you ever known a person who seems to be angry or full of venom all of the time? This sort of ever-present dark energy can be really draining. I refer to these infuriated folks as energy vampires.

Sad to say, there are countless people in the world who are angry for all of the unpleasant incidents they’ve encountered throughout their lives. These energy vampires seem to carry all of their negative experiences with them wherever they go.

While we all have experienced heart breaking moments, we can learn to accept the situation and move on with our lives instead sucking the joy out of the present moment.

Anger can be a deeply destructive emotion if we let it get out of control and remain attached to our Ego’s expectations. Holding on to the venom of destructive feelings can trigger depression, bring on disease and contribute to a general sense of dissatisfaction. Getting angry is natural, how you handle anger is another animal all together.

Each of us has the capacity to learn how to let go of guilt, anger, and shame.

5 Tips to Come to Grips

1. Allow yourself to be pissed off for 15 minutes then take action.

Anger is natural and acceptable emotion for a short period of time. Allowing time to feel and express your anger is healthy. The key is to feel it, and then take a deep breath and address the situation. How can you deal with what happened. What steps can you take to make things right?

2. Reframe the situation as “a moment in time” and then let it go.

Have you ever looked back on an anger-filled emotional situation and laughed? I suspect you are nodding that you have. The point here is you will recover and life will get back on track.

Last week I was angry with a customer service person who forgot that “service” was a part of her title. After lots of uncomfortable hoop jumping, everything was resolved. At that point I had 2 choices. Let it go, or dump on everyone I know about my crappy experience.

3. Learn to Forgive: Forgiveness is healthy and all about YOU letting go of useless baggage.

Practice forgiveness whenever you can. You will feel better and lighter for having the courage to allow for human weakness. Let it go. Kids are great teachers of forgiveness. Notice how easily they forgive each other and move on.

4. Take stock in your relationships; words are irreversible and unrepeatable.

This quote explains this situation perfectly … Think before you speak.

Know that a word suddenly shot from the tongue is like an arrow shot from the bow. That arrow won’t turn back on its way; you must damn the torrent at its source.– Rumi

5. Walk away from Energy Vampires

Unless you have some sort of super protective energy force field, do yourself a favor and walk away from people who rant and rave and suck up all of your positive energy. If you can’t get away, add some humor to the encounter. Energy Vampires will be thrown off by your silliness and will move on to their next willing audience member.

Follow these simple tips and you will open yourself to a well-balanced, healthy way of living.

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