Anger: That quintessential Human Emotion

“I can feel your anger. It gives you focus. It makes you stronger.” – Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith

The above quote is obviously part of a larger dialogue and must not be interpreted out of context. Anger is largely seen as a negative emotion. One that supposedly stops you from thinking rationally, causes harm to you and your near and dear ones physically and mentally Time and again, we’ve been told by our scriptures, holy men, Gurus, and priests that Anger must be kept in control all the time. That we should never give in to it. Even the all-powerful Yoda of Star Wars says ‘Fear leads to Anger, Anger leads to Hate, Hate leads to Suffering’. Rhonda Bryne simplifies things further by categorizing negative and positive emotions in her rather generic table in The Secret. No prizes for guessing where Anger finds itself.

I beg to differ on this generalist and needless admonishment of this much-abused emotion that we call Anger. Anger is as important an emotion as any other. It has many synonyms such as Fury, Rage, Wrath, Indignation, Livid, Seethe all of which exemplify the degree of anger that an individual or a group may feel. But on the whole, it is one of the most necessary emotions a human being experiences. It is a perfectly healthy state of mind as it helps us cut through pretty easily across what works for us and what doesn’t. It helps in being taken seriously. On innumerable occasions, people are pushed to a point by various others in their lives where they just explode into an uncontrollable rage. Their tolerance levels are tested to the maximum and then guess what happens. They snap. So anger begins where tolerance ends.  For example, what triggered the mass movement against the perpetrators of Nirbhaya. Mass Anger and Public Outrage. Had everybody been tolerant about it, I doubt if justice would have prevailed. 

This morning’s newspaper screams with an article on the International outrage that has erupted over the hanging of two minor girls who were first raped and then hanged on a tree branch. Do you really believe that approaching such a heartless crime with candles and debates is going to work? Absolutely not. Anger is the key. It is what will give you the focus to stop whats going on. Whats more, it will instill fear in the hearts of such criminals. Also, what leads to Large scale Civil Wars and revolutions is Public Anger (Egypt for example). When the supressed will tolerate no more. When the downtrodden choose to rise. All of these are primarily driven by anger. The bottom-line is that the seed of rebellion and justice is sown by Anger and that it is a deep-rooted aversion for any of the seven sins and beyond.

In another context, Anger pumps you up to do your best in a given situation because you have reached a point where you are driven by a certain need to either get even (read revenge), or to ensure that this does not happen to you again. Anger pushes you into accepting challenges which normally you would not take if you were thinking rationally and more often than not, it fuels you to overcome that challenge. So there you go, Anger aint so bad after all. And mind you, if you don’t get angry, it means you are not human. Even the mostly highly evolved beings do get angry. What they do with their anger is another story altogether. Even the Gods get angry so why shouldnt human beings??? 

Let me end this article by telling you this. Don’t ever get angry on yourself for getting angry. Welcome the emotion just like you welcome all other emotions. Your anger is trying to tell you something that you wouldnt otherwise listen to. And yes, I do agree with Palpatine, anger makes you strong, it makes you focused and most importantly, it shows that you are human and you are not to be taken for granted all the time. 

Two Examples...

Two examples

This article is simple. I am going to give you two simple yet very powerful examples of how losers think and how winners think.

How Losers think: For all of you who watch/follow the IPL (Indian Premier League) this season, you would have noted a certain player named Glenn Maxwell. Maxwell has been unstoppable. He has systematically and almost single-handedly demolished opposition bowling attacks and taken Kings XI Punjab right to the top of the table. 

Now notice the hype that been created about ‘how to stop Glenn Maxwell’ by the Commentators, Cricket Experts, the pretty Anchors, and almost every journalist who writes. So, the next time you’re watching the ‘Extra Innings show’ just before a match featuring Kings XI Punjab, be prepared for inane yet lengthy discussions regarding Maxwell’s batting. There will be a lot of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ about his game and the way he plays. And mind you, all of this is well-deserved. Furthermore, everybody is going on and on about how Maxwell needs to be stopped. I’m also quite sure that using their good-for-nothing iPads, opposition coaches and strategic advisors must be spending more time in analyzing/identifying any weaknesses in Maxwell’s game than on their own team’s improvement. What kind of deliveries get him out, where are his weaknesses, etc etc. Now this is where the problem lies.

Rather than being obsessed with Glenn Maxwell, why can’t the focus be on improving the teams overall bowling/batting performance. Instead of planning his downfall or rather wishing for his downfall, why not psyche yourselves up to thinking that no matter what the opposition scores, we will overhaul it. Today, Maxwell is playing like a legend. Tomorrow, he is bound to have his share of failures. Are teams going to implement strategies based on a single batsman? Why not strengthen your own team that looks at an opposing force and says ‘bring it on’. That way you build a collective belief to take on anything that the opposition throws at you rather than hoping and praying that Maxwell has a bad day on the field. No team can have a 100 percent record of wins but a team can have 100 percent on the field.

How Winners think: Now in stark contrast, let me tell you another story from one of my all-time favourite movies, Rocky. Rocky is known to be the quintessential fighter with a never-say-die attitude. In his 6 movies, Rocky has taken on several opponents many of whom are much stronger and bigger than him.  What makes him succeed? Its sheer determination and will that makes him overcome one opponent after another. In the last of his movies, Rocky’s son confronts him when he finds out that Rocky has taken up the challenge to fight the reigning World Heavy Weight Champion Mason Dixon in a friendly exhibition match. His son loathes the decision accusing his father of overshadowing him all though his life. He despised being known as Rocky’s son and struggled to make a name for himself. He pleads ith Rocky not to take this up. This is Rocky’s response. I’m quoting the dialogue.

“Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done! Now, if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you. You’re better than that!

Rocky's old trainer analyses his body and tells him that since he's old and relatively less nimble on his feet, he has to take every opportunity to strike Dixon. He says 'So, what we'll be calling on is good ol' fashion blunt force trauma. Horsepower. Heavy-duty, cast-iron, piledriving punches that will have to hurt so much they'll rattle his ancestors. Every time you hit him with a shot, it's gotta feel like he tried kissing the express train. Yeah! Let's start building some hurtin' bombs!

Good ol' Rocky ends up losing the fight but not before Mason tells him he's a 'crazy old man'. He trains hard, he loses, but in his own eyes and in the eyes of the huge crowd that lands up to watch him, Rocky is a winner. All the way. 

So that's what the IPL teams should be thinking. How do we win despite Maxwell firing on all cylinders? Not, how do we stop him. That's how winning is done.That no matter how good the opposition may be, Ill put beat them.