Understanding Your Emotions

If you want to understand your emotions, the first thing you will have to do is to be aware of them.

Awareness is for some of us a big thing. We tend to ignore things and feelings as the world is speeding up every day. We are being somewhat bombarded with attention grabbing images, signs, words etc. when we are out on the street, at work or surfing on the Internet. We develop a filtering system in order to “digest” all the information. We only take in what we are interested in or can relate to.

In my personal view, the same thing can happen with our emotions. They are being triggered by what we experience in different situations and due to the speed of the modern world has nowadays, it is hard to really take considerable note of our emotions.

It is easier to ignore them. Right?

If it is easier to ignore them, we do not process them. And if we do not process them, we will be unhappy in the long-run.

So, in order to process, we should start by being aware of them.

Types of Emotions

To be more aware of your emotions means to identify what kind of emotions you feel. To help you with that, here is a list of common negative types of emotions, the ones that we have most issues which. I made some suggestions on how to react to them.

1. Anger is being felt when a certain standard or rule you have has not been met by either yourself or another person. What steps could you take to meet this in future?
2. Disappointment is felt when an outcome you are after is not achievable. Is it possible to change the approach? Maybe your behavior?
3. Fear is felt by a person who needs to deal with something. Maybe avoid negative consequences?
4. Frustration is caused when things do not happen the way we want them to be. Be more flexible to achieve your objective.
5. Guilt or Regret are related to a violation of personal standards. What steps could you take to meet this in future?
6. Hurt is often related to an expectation you have which has not been met. What steps could you take to adapt?
7. Inadequacy. You feel that you need to do something better or different. Inform yourself to do better and go for it!
8. Loneliness is felt by someone who needs a connection. If you feel this way, call someone or simply go out and meet people.
9. Overloaded. When someone feels overwhelmed or maybe even depressed, priorities will need to be sorted out. What is most important to you? What actions will you take to get there?
10. Uncomfortable Emotions. An Example would be people who feel distressed or embarrassed. If you feel this way, is there any possibility to change your perception?

Your Turn

In order to „digest“ this list of emotions, I want you to do two things:

1. Watch the short video below by Paul Ekman.
2. Go out and share this list with someone you care about. That makes you reflect more and helps you to internalize possible way outs, too! It helps me, so hopefully, it will help you as well.

If you find this information useful, please share it with a friend you care about!

If you did not like it, please leave a comment below. I am ready for some emotions 🙂