If you make someone so angry, what do you do to make it up to them?
It’s important to know how to deal with angry people for a number of reasons.
Firstly, you can calm them down, so that they don’t take any action that harms you or others – either physically or emotionally. In doing this, you can break the emotional “spirals of escalation” that can cause so much harm, and you can solve the underlying problems that have caused the anger.
Secondly, if you respond angrily to someone else’s anger, you can easily end up being seen as the aggressor yourself. This is disastrous if you’re in a customer-facing role.
Thirdly, by responding well to angry people, you can build positive relationships with them, and you’ll experience less stress and unhappiness as a result of dealing with them.
Finally, when you respond calmly to angry episodes, you set a good example for others. Your behavior can inspire the people around you, which can transform a team’s ability to deal with anger.
It is very important that we hold others responsible for their anger and not take responsibility for it. That said, it is good to approach the person in a humble manner and apologize for the behaviour that might have triggered his response. If you were wrong, it is good to ask the person what you can do to make him feel better. It would be better to get the person’s opinion more than frustrating him further by possibly insulting him by trying to buy his forgiveness.
