Anger Antidotes: Optimism

Looking at what to discuss this week in our anger management classes this week I scanned through our workbook The 8 Tools Anger Management.   “Changing the Conversation with Yourself” is one tool that includes a discussion of  the concept of Optimism.  It is an interesting concept that most people do not really think about.  So what is optimism and how does it relate to anger management?

Optimism is your style of interpreting events that occur in your everyday life.  It is your personal theory on why things, both good and bad, happen to you.  Have you thought about your personal optimism?  For many, going inside their own mind and trying to discover what they are thinking, and why, is a new, and often times difficult concept.  Many people “just think things.”  When I ask the question of  why they believe in what they believe, they typically respond “because that is just how I think,” or, “because that is what happens in my family {or neighborhood}.” But truth is, we have theories and explanations of why things happen in our lives because of where we come from, and because we constantly have inner thoughts that direct how we think about ourselves, how we interpret our world and how we judge the events that happen to us.

When you are an optimist you believe that situations and/or stressors are controllable and situation specific.  An optimists feels when things that are positive happen it is because of specific traits he or she have. On the other side, a pessimist believes that situations are out of his or her control and that when a bad event is present in their life that it is permanent.  Learning how to become optimistic has many benefits.  If you can teach yourself how to think optimistically you tend to get angry less therefore have less “anger management issues.”

In our class we discuss tips on how to become more optimistic in our lives.  It is simply a  learned behavior .  And just like most new skills, optimisms might feel odd or uncomfortable but with some instruction, patience with yourself, and practice it gets easier.

The next time someone asks you if your glass is half full or half empty just tell them you are glad you have a glass.