German theologian Martin Luther once said,
“I never work better than when I am inspired by anger; when I am angry, I can write, pray, and preach well, for then my whole temperament is quickened, my understanding sharpened, and all mundane vexations and temptations depart.”
Anger is powerful stuff, all right!
Think about the last time you got really angry about something. Didn’t you feel an unequaled strength within yourself? Weren’t you filled with fire and passion and ready to take action?
While anger is often used in a destructive way, you can also learn to use anger to motivate yourself to higher and higher achievements.
How do you do this? First, you obviously need to get angry about the right things, and then you need to direct that anger in the right direction.
Look at your life the way it is right now. Are you satisfied with your career path, your financial situation, the state of your relationships, and the state of your health? If not, get mad about it! Let yourself get angry about your bad habits, your tendency to procrastinate, and the many missed opportunities your behavior has caused. Get mad about your inability to get and stay motivated long enough to make positive changes. Get mad about ignoring the problem until it became a chronic condition!
As Martin Luther described above, let your anger clear all confusion and mundane thoughts from your mind. Let it focus your thoughts to a laser point, and then turn that point onto any situation in your life that displeases you.
Use your anger to propel you into action. Decide that you’re “mad as hell” and you’re not going to take it any longer! Let your anger serve as a fire under your rear end to propel you into doing that which must be done to change your life once and for all.
Go on a rampage and clear out your bad habits. Eliminate your unproductive tendencies and replace them with empowering ones. Evaluate every aspect of your life carefully, and be willing to let go of anything that isn’t working for you.
If done correctly, this works like a charm.
Once you can reach a point of intolerance about your existing circumstances, you will find yourself feeling really angry, and really ready to make changes. THAT is the moment when you hold a powerful force for change right in the palm of your hand. Just remember to get angry about the situations and habits that detract from who you want to be, and be sure to direct your anger in constructive ways.
You may not be able to change everything overnight, but you can at least take the first steps today and then keep up with the process over time. You’ll also probably have to keep rekindling your anger from time to time because it tends to be short lived, but this is a good thing because it allows you to use it in a very precise and focused way.