Today has been a very Frustrating day for me.

Technology has not worked the way it is supposed to, and I'm now about 5 hours behind where I want to be.

On top of this, my mind hasn't wanted to work with me either.

Trying to come up with what to write about has been an issue.

These days are inevitable, I know, but it doesn't necessarily make them less Frustrating when they come.

I have found it both interesting and funny how reliant we have been on Technology recently.

When the Technology does not work how it's meant to, that frustration builds up to extreme levels at times.

In many ways, there is an air of arrogance and entitlement that seems to come with technology.

As if we believe that technology gives us some form of right to be "above" things going wrong.

It makes the Frustration Comical in some ways.

Do we really think we are "above" the harsh realities of life?

We don't like to admit it, but technology has made us act more privileged in so many ways.

The Frustration that comes out during tech misconduct is a side effect of that Privilege I guess.

They say that we are usually blind to our Privilege, and that may be most true with Technology.

However, there was also Frustration with myself today.

Oversights on my part that I should have caught.

For instance, trying to go to the store without my wallet.

A fantastic example of an oversight that I only have myself to blame for!

When you mix it with the car battery dying and getting stuck at the store, you have your recipe for Frustration!

Now, having that Frustration is good and all, gotta love it, but I think what most people wonder is how do you move past it?

None of us enjoy being Frustrated.

Surely, I don't!

So what do you do?

The first thing is not to add Frustration to the Frustration by being Frustrated about being Frustrated.

Yes, yes I did do that on Purpose.

I did it to make a point.

Often, we make emotions, like Frustration, significantly worse by avoiding them or disliking that they exist, and it just compounds the emotion.

So, instead of multiplying the problem, just accept it.

You are Frustrated, or in my case I am Frustrated!

Then, you must understand Why you are Frustrated.

Emotions, including Frustration, are indicator lights trying to tell us something.

When you Understand the Reason you are experiencing the Emotion, you can begin to approach it from different directions.

Are there other ways to look at the Emotion?

Could the Reasons you are experiencing the Emotion also allow for other, equally valid Emotions?

For instance, let's say you are me, and you drove 20 minutes to get to the store just to discover that you didn't have your wallet.

Frustrating is a completely Understandable Emotion.

But in the same stroke... isn't it a bit Comical to?

Kind of like something you would see on a Sitcom?

Of course, the Protagonist goes to the store only to discover that their wallet is at home!

Then, of course, the car battery dies making them stuck at a store where they can't actually buy anything they want or need.

Why do you need a comedy on TV when our own lives sometimes provide perfect material?

Or, if you struggle to find the Comedy in your own life, you can just laugh at mine!

I have plenty to go around!

Or, you could take it in a different direction.

Sure, you may be stuck at a store, but at least you can go inside the store and there is AC there.

You could have Gratitude that the car battery died in a parking lot instead of in the middle of the highway, potentially causing an accident.

There are much worse things that could happen in Life.

Looking at these situations, and seeing what other emotions may also apply is a way to fully explore what is happening in our lives.

You may still feel Frustrated, and there's nothing wrong with that, but the Gratitude and Humor and any other emotions you may add make it feel a lot easier to bear.

Days Of Frustration

Tech Privilege and Moving Through Frustration

What will you write today?