This Misunderstood Emotion Is A Powerful Change Agent. Here's How To Properly Harness It.

The human experience incorporates a broad spectrum of emotions that shape our lives. Some individuals are naturally wired to experience certain emotions more than others. These differences stem from unique biological and psychological factors that control how we perceive and interpret our experiences.

Most emotions are generally categorized as positive, neutral, or negative. However, some feelings are rooted in multiple categories due to their mix.

Positive emotions are instances that bring happiness and make us feel good. Naturally, we desire happy experiences to occur as often as possible. Joy, contentment, and love are among the range of emotions that we seek.

Neutral emotions appear to fill the void but don't sway the pendulum one way or the other. Feelings such as contentment, indifference, and calm are examples.

In contrast, negative emotions are feelings that challenge our comfort zone. As a result, we tend to want to alleviate them swiftly. While these emotions aren't inherently harmful, they can lead to adverse outcomes if left unaddressed. Common negative emotions encompass sadness, despair, and anger.

This article explores anger as a universal tool for change. When appropriately harnessed, anger compels us to act and make necessary changes. We will see how anger stems from our situations and unlocks the energy needed to correct them.

The Misconception About Anger

Anger serves as an emotional tool that drives change. It is not a singular emotion but a blend of frustration, hurt, disappointment, fear, and powerlessness. This emotional surge generates short bursts of energy and compels swift action to enhance our world.

Unfortunately, anger is associated with misplaced stigmas. Consequently, those who lack emotional mastery often offer misguided advice, particularly to children and young adults. One of the unhealthiest approaches to anger is to ignore or bottle it up.

Even religious scriptures guide their believers to manage anger appropriately. The Holy Bible reveals that God is slow to anger, not entirely devoid of it. The Qur'an states that the strongest person is the one who ultimately controls their anger. The Dhammapada provides its perspective on anger: the one who masters their rising anger is the charioteer.

Whether mortal or deity, there is a unifying theme in managing anger: it must be used responsibly.

If anger is not necessarily evil, what is it?  Anger is an amoral tool for change, and its presence isn't the problem.

How it is harnessed often determines the difference between creating constructive and destructive outcomes, winning and losing the game, and building trust versus breaking trust. Like most emotions in life, anger is inevitable.

Therefore, whether good or poor outcomes are experienced hinges on how it is directed. 

The most significant changes in the world resulted from the righteous and constructive use of anger. Martin Luther King Jr. channeled his anger and that of fellow Black Americans and allies through peaceful protests in the streets of America. Gandhi expressed his anger through nonviolent protests against British rule in India.

However, history depicts these two as benevolent civil rights heroes. So, what differentiates these two leaders from others who use anger for change?

Ultimately, they harnessed anger to manifest better outcomes. Both MLK and Gandhi showed that anger provides the energy for change. Leading by example, others followed suit, utilizing their rage for the better.

Therefore, it doesn’t make sense to be afraid of anger. Everyone can become angry. We must be aware of how anger is managed. In the right hands, it can lead to powerful change. However, in the wrong hands, it may result in destructive outcomes.

How Anger Is Vital For Change

It's worth another iteration: Anger is an amoral tool for change, not always a destructive force. It’s an integral part of our emotional package. However, left unchecked, its consequences can be more dire than other emotions in the toolbox. 

Therefore, it's essential to harness it responsibly as it arises. Here's what anger provides when channeled correctly:

Anger Provides A Burst of Energy

It's tough to enact change when feeling lethargic or powerless, which yields inaction. While it might not cause immediate suffering, doing nothing can lead to regret and resentment.

On the other hand, anger offers a surge of energy that enables swift change. We no longer need to dig deep or build momentum to access this energy–it is readily available.  We must harness it effectively to avoid unintentionally worsening the current situation or bottling it up, which can lead to long-term resentment.

The question becomes: how do we harness anger to manifest constructive changes to our situation? 

Anger Compels Us To Act

Have you ever noticed that things tend to move more quickly when people are angry?  That’s the lightning effect of anger.  People act on instinct and navigate problems as if they are TIE Fighter pilots.  If they blink, they may crash, so they lock into their issues head-on.

The energy unleashed reactively must be directed swiftly toward constructive purposes. Most people struggle with anger through inappropriate actions. When anger targets a person instead of the issue they caused, it leads to disaster and resentment.

Mastering our emotions is the only way to manage anger wisely. Coping methods and if-then statements are two techniques that can improve anger management. 

Anger Connects With Others

Everyone experiences anger at some point, with some feeling it more intensely than others.  In fact, some of us might be feeling angry while reading this article.

Our shared experiences of anger and the wish for change bring us together. Numerous motivational speakers and political leaders emphasize that feeling angry and upset about situations is a normal response. When people forge emotional connections, they are more inclined to collaborate in seeking solutions. Properly channeled, anger can drive profound change.

How we express our anger can evoke various responses, from respect to ridicule. Adults who shout and wave their arms are perceived as nothing more than overgrown children. In addition, many psychologists consider suppressing anger a red flag that can lead to disastrous consequences.

How To Harness The Anger of Others

Since anger is a common and universal emotion, leaders must strive to understand it thoroughly to connect with their followers. Identifying what provokes anger in others is not difficult. The real challenge is figuring out how to channel that anger effectively to generate constructive outcomes.

As leaders learn to harness the anger of others, they must take three important steps to better channel it:

Understand The Power of Anger

To utilize anger, we must first understand it.  As we’ve seen, anger is an amoral tool used to change our immediate circumstances through the energy that emerges in response to our situation.

As the energy rises, our bodies feel compelled to act swiftly in response to the sudden surge. One of two outcomes will follow: either anger is properly harnessed, allowing us to rectify the situation quickly, or we lose control and find ourselves at its mercy.

Many individuals lack sufficient training in emotional control, often resulting in negative outcomes. Examples of such detrimental effects include property damage, inflicting harm on others, and heightened conflicts.

Think of anger like electricity. Electrical power is neither good nor bad; it is just a phenomenon produced by both natural and man-made imbalances of electrical charge between two or more points.

When electricity is conducted correctly, it provides tremendous value. Engineers and physicists harness electricity through circuits and conductors.  These methods channel and regulate electricity to power electronics, send electricity across countless miles, and light up our homes.

However, when we lose control, it leads to destructive and potentially deadly consequences.  Some disastrous examples include dry lightning that starts forest fires, circuit overloads that cause fires, and industrial accidents.

Therefore, we need to engineer ways to harness anger properly. Once we understand its potential, what follows is critical to directing it.

Recognize What People Are Feeling

Now that we understand the mechanics of anger, we must recognize what triggers that emotion in others. While everyone is wired differently, we share common values and expectations for living civil lives. Anger emerges when these values and expectations are not met or when they become disrupted.

When misalignments occur, anger emerges from our awareness of the wrongdoing. However, because of societal norms surrounding the expression of anger, people feel conflicted. They are unsure if their anger is justified and–more importantly–how to express it appropriately.

This is where we, as leaders, come in.  Leaders coach people to harness their anger and improve their situations constructively.  We show them how to channel such a powerful emotion properly.  Most importantly, we remind them that feeling these emotions is okay.

When good examples of leadership are right before them, people feel comfortable replicating their characteristics.

Channel Anger For Constructive Purposes

Leaders must guide them through the process once people recognize that they can channel anger for positive purposes. Unfortunately, human nature shows that accepting change often takes longer than we would like to believe.

Depending on the situation, there are many effective ways to channel our anger. A typical example is elections. If we are dissatisfied with the politicians in power, we make our voices heard by voting.

The same principle applies to entrepreneurship. If we are dissatisfied with the economic solutions available, we can create a business around providing a better product or service.

Ultimately, properly channeled anger can help resolve conflicts between people.  This doesn’t mean that both parties should enter with iron fists, ready to fight. Instead, they need to harness their anger as a motivating force toward their desired outcome while remaining calm enough to communicate, listen to one another, and discover common ground in their disagreements.

As we coach individuals in their emerging skills, we must reward them when they excel and correct them when they veer off course. Ultimately, we need to serve as examples and encourage people as they learn to harness their anger constructively to enhance the world around them.

Embrace Anger As A Tool

Anger is a powerful tool, and learning to harness it constructively is a lifelong skill we must continually refine. Societal norms and misguided stigmas have hindered people's ability to channel their anger effectively. Consequently, many individuals suppress their anger, ultimately leading to destructive outbursts due to the tremendous pressure.

Leaders must exemplify wisdom in their use of anger. Moreover, anger should not be a default emotion; instead, it should emerge as a response to critical situations. Once we master anger as a powerful tool, we can manage it to achieve results more swiftly than by passively expecting the problem to resolve itself.

Now it’s your turn: What is one constructive way you’ll embrace anger and channel it toward improving your life or community? Share your thoughts below.