Do you have a hard time maintaining your cool when things go wrong? A lot of us do, but one psychiatrist is sharing his technique to remain calm when frustrating or upsetting things happen. Dr. Daniel Amen practices what he calls the “rule of 12” to help cope with these situations and he advises all of his patients to do it, too.
The doc says he stays calm when 12 things go wrong during an event, like moving or going on vacation, and only shows his anger after the 13th snafu. Amen explains that the rule of 12
honors the fact that s**t happens and you just have to be okay with it.” And the more you follow the rule, the easier it is to “roll with” problems in life and stay “mentally strong.”
Amen says he recently used the rule of 12 while traveling in Europe with his family for two weeks and admits he even makes a list on his phone to keep track of all the issues. “I went ‘12 things are going to go wrong and I’m not going to get angry or scream or yell or become a jerk until the 13th thing goes wrong,’” the psychiatrist says. “And indeed six things went wrong and I didn’t get upset at all.”
It may be challenging at first, but Amen says the more you do it, the better you get at it and the more “psychologically healthy” you’ll be.
Source: Daily Mail
Scott's Thoughts:
- It’s a great idea, but 12 things is a lot to have to try to remain calm during! Couldn’t we make it a rule of three instead?
- I try to have a high tolerance for adversity.
- I am good at work most of the time. I struggled with home life and kids.