Frustration is an emotion that occurs in situations where a person is blocked from reaching the desired outcome. In general, whenever we reach one of our goals, we feel pleased and whenever we are prevented from reaching our goals, we may succumb to frustration and feel irritable, annoyed, and angry. Typically, the more important the goal, the greater the frustration and resultant anger or loss of confidence.
Causes
Frustration is experienced whenever the results (goals) you are expecting do not seem to fit the effort and action you are applying. Frustration will occur whenever your actions are producing less and fewer results than you think they should.
The frustration we experience can be seen as the result of two types of goal blockage, i.e. internal and external sources of frustration.
Internal sources of frustration usually involve the disappointment that gets when we cannot have what we want as a result of personal real or imagined deficiencies such as a lack of confidence or fear of social situations. Another type of internal frustration results when a person has competing goals that interfere with one another.
The second type of frustration results from external causes that involve conditions outside the person such as physical roadblocks we encounter in life including other people and things that get in the way of our goals. One of the biggest sources of frustration in today’s world is the frustration caused by the perception of wasting time. When you’re standing in line at a bank, or in traffic, or on the phone, watching your day go by when you have got so much to do, that’s one big frustration.
External frustration may be unavoidable. We can try to do something about it, like finding a different route if we are stuck in traffic, or choosing a different restaurant if our first choice is closed, but sometimes there is just nothing we can do about it. It is just the way life is. Our goal in dealing with external sources of frustration is to recognize the wisdom of the Serenity Prayer…”God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.”
One can learn that while the situation itself may be upsetting and frustrating, you do not have to be frustrated. Accepting life is one of the secrets of avoiding frustration.
To be continued…….
The Arbitrary Doctor.
