Masa here.

In the beginning of 2017, we conducted Anger Management training nationwide.

Anger Management isn’t about “not getting angry” or “suppressing anger”, but instead it is about “controlling anger and regret due to anger”. The main points we covered were, “The first six seconds of anger is the peak”, “Use the right words that show why you feel that way (hopes, desires)”, and “if it is not important, leave it alone”. I’ll detail it a little more below.

Also, the number of nulabers has greatly increased this year, this means that the number of nulabers who have not received this kind of training has also increased. Many people told me last year that the training was good, so this year at our General Meeting I wanted to do it again with everyone.

Two types of diversity

Recently I often hear "diversity" a lot, but there are also two types of diversity, "surface layer diversity" and "deep layer diversity". "Surface" mostly regarding sex, country, people with disabilities, etc. Or even "Let's accept minorities!" For this surface layer, I think many people are talking about it these days.

However, I would also like to speak about the deeper layer to diversity. It means the diversity of personality and identity such as thought, work view, and cultural background. Compared to “surface layer diversity”, it seems that there is a tendency to not recognize the deep layer in a world-wide manner.
From a management perspective, people who think the same and view work the same are likely to be of the same cultural background. But understanding the deeper layer of diversity is also important to maximize innovation in creative teams. Even if you are not conscious of it, everyone cannot think the same way as you do, and it follows that the way you view your work may not be the same either. Because of the different perspectives, it is possible that conflict occurs.

Let's not fight when ways of thinking and values ​​differ

When many people encounter a different way of thinking, they immediately deny the opposing view. They tell the other person the way they think things “should be”. If you act this way, you may get some attention, and also it looks like you are doing the right thing. The thing is though, that if you are indeed correct, you can show that without denying the opposing view. Furthermore, when you have these conflicts you may feel that diversity is not needed; there is no advantage.

Because of this, team work can suffer. This is when we need anger management.

The next area of diversity is “inclusion (acceptance)”, where we respect each opinion and do things that create a sense of unity by considering these diverse ideas. Diversity is ultimately a means to increase productivity and creativity. Just because someone’s view is different from yourself, there is no need to let it stifle your work. Try to expand your mind’s boundaries of what “should be”.

(In General Meeting)

We can work stress-free by having space in ourselves to accept others.

I’ve learned a few things from Anger Management. Consider the picture below (sorry for the Japanese). It shows core values. In the middle, are values that are the same as my own. In the middle, are values that I can tolerate, and understand, but are different from my own. The outside layer is values that I cannot accept or tolerate. If you can expand the middle layer, the one that is different from your views yet still acceptable, then you can help control your own anger.

If you are too tolerant, you may feel it is too much, but in fact those are the situations when it is most useful. When that middle layer is at its thickest, covering most of the circle, then there are not many situations that are unacceptable. It also means the part that is unacceptable is very well defined and understood.

Expanding tolerance and becoming stress free

Long ago, the entertainer Yutti said, "Don’t worry about the small stuff." He said "God lives in details", this will help us put things in perspective and control our anger. Especially for people who use chat tool at work, there can be a feeling that annoyances are neverending, always showing up on your screen. This can lead to irritation and anger all the time.

I hear that the majority of work stress is from dealing with other people, so while concentrating on my own work that I can control, I acknowledge diversity while admitting that other people are "different from myself". I think, “How about figuring out a stress-free way of working?” Before you make your health worse by stress, try to be more tolerant.

Work is not about doing things by yourself, it's what you do with a team. So don’t worry about the small things.

(In General Meeting)

Please check Nulab English Blog, too!

Thank you for reading.