Emotional Intelligence: Lessons From The Playground

As children we dream and workout these dreams through play. On the playground children become doctors, lawyers, firemen, policemen, truck drivers etc. Children learn to perceive what they love, what they hate, what makes them happy and sad on the playground. The full ranges of emotions are essentially felt on the play ground. The child who feels the joy of engaging in a specific type of play will gravitate towards that play. Over time, the child learns from the emotional signals who they are and what their needs are.

As the child ages into adulthood, some of the grand dreams of the playground may fade. The desire to fully express oneself in a chosen profession, marriage or vocation may not be realized. However, the emotional signals that tell us what they love continue. The mind senses the feelings of lost dreams and the unmet need for fulfillment. If the needs of the playground are not met in adult fulfillment individuals can become, hyper-vigilance, defensive and prone to anger. Therefore, it is not unusual to find those who have problems managing their anger also may have had secret dreams and visions of their lives that have been unfulfilled.

A well designed anger management class cannot fulfill a persons dreams, but can help the individual become more emotionally intelligent to identify their emotional needs and fulfill them in ways that meets the needs that triggered the anger. If you have unfulfilled dreams and display persistent anger, an anger management class that teaches anger management, stress management, emotional intelligence and communication skills may be right for you.