Anger

Have you ever had someone blow up at you with little or no provocation? That has been my experience from time to time and I don't think I am unique. Now, what do you do when someone "goes postal?" I suppose the first response is to fight back. After all, who are they to treat you that way! But now think about for a minute, will it really do any good to respond to fire with more fire? A less heated response (pun intended) may well be to try to reason with the individual. Of course, if their anger really is irrational, then what good will reasoning do? Finally, I suppose you might just apologize for whatever you did to set them off but there is a good possibility that will be thrown back in your teeth as well. After all, how sincere can you be when you don't have a clue why they are so mad?

Were I to stop here it would seem that there might be no resolution. It may well be that there is no immediate solution to such a problem. In other words, it will take time. When people have blown up at me I have usually gone through the steps above and predictably reached an impasse. It is only on reflection that I begin to think, "maybe there is some other issue at play here that I know nothing about. I was just the final straw."

Air Force pilots, in theaters of combat, often speak of "targets of opportunity." They are supposed to attack a given target but somewhere along the way a "target of opportunity" presents itself and they take their shot. Who knows maybe that irate person sees you as that target. Maybe that explains their over the top anger. Be understanding, give them time, and move on.