The six tips suggested by this article will help you to overcome your anger.

They’re not definitive, but are nonetheless based on common sense and can be used by anybody anywhere whether the problem with anger is a persistent one, or just an occasional temper tantrum.

Withhold judgment

Other people can be infuriating! They drive their cars like maniacs, perform acts of violence, display gratuitous greed and selfishness, express bizarre opinions, and appear generally to lack any form of common decency at all toward their fellow man! However. You should remember that all people have the individual right to be as thoughtless and as disrespectful as they wish - no matter how difficult that might be for you to accept. Granted, the senseless misdeeds of others are always difficult to tolerate, but unless they affect you directly, try to refrain from shaking your fist at the TV every time the news channel is on and instead reserve any sense of moral outrage for those times when it might actually make a positive difference. That way, you’ll make better use of your energies, and prevent yourself from being such an easy target for anger.

Delete - ought to, must, should …

Anger is dependent on words such as ‘should,’ ‘must,’ ‘ought to,’ ‘need to,’ etc. These words restrict your viewpoint and leave you no room for negotiation, making it easy for anger to creep up unawares. So delete them from your vocabulary. You'll feel better for it afterwards.

Count backwards

As soon as your temper begins to rise, count backwards from 100 in 3s. This will distract your attention and nip your anger in the bud before it has a chance to blossom, giving you a better chance to remain in control. This is a deceptively simple technique, yet with regular practice, it is amazingly effective and stands the test of time. Try it. It might be all you need.

Accept reality

Life isn’t perfect -- it never has been, and it never will be. If you try to make it so, or believe it should be so, then anger will overcome you easily. Keep in mind that if we all worked together for a thousand years trying to create a utopian existence, we would still fail. That’s because our every solution would simply present a fresh problem. And that’s how it supposed to be. So go easy on yourself and try to accept life for what it is - diverse, challenging, and often flawed.

Be assertive

If you’ re an angry person, the people close to you may go out of their way to avoid your wrath, not because they respect you, but because they dread and fear you. Despite this, you may be reluctant to stop using anger as a weapon because you believe others will consider you a pushover. Overcome this dillema by replacing your anger with assertiveness; that is, instead of being aggressive, be firm but fair. This will earn you a more genuine respect.

Join a course

We all need additional help and support sometimes, especially when we get too close to our own problems and lose perspective. Why not contact your local college or community centre for a course on anger management? You’ ll meet people with similar objectives, and receive a great source of additional strength and motivation.

Staying calm can be often be difficult in today’s fast paced society where “dog eat dog” now seems commonplace. But if we're to enjoy a healthy relationship both with ourselves and with others, and increase our chances of lasting success throughout life, we need to master self-control.

So apply the six methods suggested in this article, along with any others you may have acquired, and calm your anger forever.