Digvijay and Ridhima's blog

Serena Williams : Anger Management and Mapping Emotions

After watching the following US Open 2009Semi-Final video I felt bad for Serena Williams and the lines woman.  It is a shame that the match had to end on such a note.  Perhaps it is important to incorporate a few personal lessons on anger management.

1. It is very easy to get angry and far more difficult to manage anger. In a moment Serena was disqualified and all it took was a brief outburst. Managing her anger would have been a saving grace for her.
2. It is also easy to say that anger management is an important goal that must be strived for.  Is it really doable? Yes it is.  There is no doubt about it.  Serena should have kept her composure and just waited for a decision instead of cursing the lines woman.

Wrong body language

As one looks at the video there is much to chew on and many conclusions can be drawn on the body language of Serena Williams during the episode.

• When the linesman called a foot fault on Williams in the second round, she stared at her.  That was enough and perhaps, she should have stopped there.  A verbal assault was not called for at all.
• Serena charged towards the lines woman, shouted at her with her racket pointed in her direction. This implies that given a chance she would have flung the racket on the face of the foot fault caller. She was so angry.
• Serena placed her hand on her waist and argued with the match referee. Once again, her body language showed that she was angry.
• She threw her racket before shaking hand with Clijisters.  Allegedly, she also broke her racket after the first set.

What is Anger?

According to Kaufmann, anger “is an emotion that involves a physiological arousal state coexisting with fantasized or intended act culminating in harmful effects on another person”.  There is no control over anger.  There is also no control over the effects of anger.

Managing anger

Perhaps the right course of action is to ‘manage’ anger in a way that it does not culminate into harmful effects on self and another person.  Had Serena calmed herself after hearing the foot fault call, she would not have been disqualified.  An otherwise calm and composed sportswoman, Serena made a mistake by venting her anger.  She is not the first to do so neither is she the first to get a point penalty on match point.  She was angry and she displayed unsportsmanlike conduct. Unfortunately she had to pay a price for it.

‘Emotions Map’

For the remaining part of this opinion page I will use the term ‘Emotions Map’.

If you want to manage your emotions, it is important to study your ‘emotions map’. What makes you angry? What makes you happy? Why are you angry? How long are you angry? Has your anger resulted in a physical or verbal outburst? How many times have you felt angry but controlled it by different personal strategies?

Managing your anger will not come overnight.  It is important to understand your ‘emotions map’ and take control of it.  You must control your emotions and not let your emotions control you.  In a world witnessing growth of high pressure job places and unpredictable economic scenarios, it is important to manage your emotions, especially, your anger.  Let us learn from the mistake Serena Williams made. Let us create an anger – free world.

Other cases:

Wozniacki was defaulted in the US Open junior tournament in 2006 in the first round against Panova for verbal abuse at an official. She allegedly used the F word. Later she said the swearing wasn’t directed at him, but admitted she had also told him to take off his sunglasses.

Mahatma Gandhi’s principle of kindness and patience during the freedom struggle of India also relies on ‘managing anger’. He always advocated that tolerance and kindness are essential human qualities.  Looking back at his ideologies there is room for extending his philosophy into the ‘Emotions Map’ proposed above.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

• No Related Post

Tags: foot fault, Kim Clijsters, serena williams, U.S. Open Semi Final