不过,首先要说明的是:人们经历愤怒和表达愤怒有很多不同的方式。有些人会板起脸或拂袖而去,将愤怒情绪转为内部消化。有些人会咆哮、尖叫、咒骂、或者侮辱他人。显然,表达愤怒情绪的方式不同,回应愤怒的方法也不尽相同。写的这篇文章的目的就是应对我们口头上说的那种咄咄逼人的、冒犯型的、甚至是威胁型的愤怒者。
1. Ask Yourself if the Anger is Justified
问问自己生气是否合理
有时候生气是十分合理的,并且在与他人的交往中,体谅他人的感受是很聪明的做法,情商跟高。
You should ask yourself why the person is angry, what role you may have played, and if there is anything you can or should do to resolve the situation.
你应该问问自己,这个人为什么生气,你在其中可能扮演了什么样的角色,并且你是否可以做或应该做一些事情来解决问题。
It’s important to note that a person can be justifiably angry, yet express that anger in an unjustifiable way.
一个人可以很合理地生气,却会以不合理的方式表达愤怒,知道这一点很重要。
2. Stay Calm (at least on the outside)
保持冷静(至少在表面上看起来如此)
One of the most important things can do when someone is angry at us is to stay calm.
当别人对我们生气时,最重要的一件事情就是保持冷静。
By that, I mean to avoid yelling, swearing, or raising our voice. We may not feel calm in the situation, but we can still act calmly. By speaking slowly and directly, and keeping our voice calm and soft, we’re less likely to exacerbate a situation.
我的意思是避免吼叫、尖叫或者拔高声音。在那种情况下我们可能无法在感觉上做到冷静,但是我们依然可以采取冷静的行为。直接地、慢慢地说话,保持冷静的、柔软的声音,才不会加剧情形的恶化。
People tend to match each other’s volumes, pace, and general tone, so instead of meeting the angry person where he or she is at—and escalating the situation—try to de-escalate the situation by subtly encouraging them to lower their voice.
人们都倾向于配合彼此的音量、语速和整体语调,所以通过巧妙地鼓励他们降低声音来逐渐降低冲突,而不要迎合生气人的音量语调——这样会使冲突升级。
3. Avoid Character Assaults
避免人格攻击
A guaranteed way to escalate an angry situation is to attack the other person’s character. Insulting them, or even saying things like, “You always do this,” is likely to make things worse.
一个保证能使生气的情况恶化的方式就是攻击他人的人格。
侮辱他们,甚至这样说“你总是这样做”,这就会把事情搞得更糟。
Instead, focus on specific behaviors or feelings in the moment.
取而代之,要将精力集中在此时此刻的具体行为或感觉上。
Those may seem like subtle differences but you don’t want the person to feel attacked, as it will make them even more likely to lash out.
这些话似乎有微妙的差异,但是你不想让生气的那个人感觉到被攻击,因为前一种说法会让他们感觉像是被痛批。
If that’s what is going on, the best thing to do might be to say, “Let’s talk about this later when we’re calm,” and move on. Or, if it’s a stranger you’ll never see again, simply say, “I’m sorry for my part in this,” and walk away.
如果要继续的话,最好的可能就是说“当我们冷静下来,晚些时候再讨论”,然后翻篇。或者,这是一个你以后再也不会见到的陌生人呢,就简单地说“我很抱歉会这样”,然后走开。
5. Stay Safe
保持安全
Finally, but fundamentally, when you’re dealing with an angry person, you’ve got to make sure you’re safe.
最后,但是最基本的,当你在应对一个生气的人时,你必须确保自己的安全。
当然,在肢体上没有被侵犯时,人们也会生气。不是所有的生气者都是有暴力的人;远不止此。
However, we need to be aware of the fact that when people are angry, they can feel the urge to lash out, sometimes physically.
然而,我们必须清楚地认清事实,当人们生气的时候,他们会感觉到强烈的发泄冲动,有些时候是肢体上的。
If you don’t feel safe, get away from the person. Period. If you absolutely must interact with someone who you feel threatened by, make sure you aren’t alone with the individual, and enter the situation with a plan to get yourself out safely should it come to that.
如果你感觉不安全,远离这个人。暂时先这样。如果你必须跟感觉到有威胁的人交流,确保你不是独自一个跟这个人相处,并且你应该制定一个计划,能让能够你安全地全身而退。