The first emotion of failure is frustration. People mistake frustration, and take feeling frustrated personally.

Frustration is at first a feeling, both natural and valid. It comes about when we are thwarted from achieving something we were highly motivated to achieve, but it doesn’t usually stop at a feeling. We have emotions about the feeling. Ways we feel compelled to act when we are frustrated. One typical reaction is to believe that because we were frustrated in our action, that we can’t or aren’t supposed to do it. But you wanted to do it, and that doesn’t go away so you become depressed. Is this in any way empowering?

Frustration feels really bad doesn’t it? But it serves a purpose. We feel frustrated because we are goal pursuing creatures. It’s a natural reaction when we run into a wall, but we reject the feeling and therefore lose a chance at understanding. So frustration just feels bad, and stymies any other activity as well. This is not good for us is it?

It’s said in Taoism that if on the way you encounter any resistance, it’s not a problem with the way whatever moved you. It’s because you don’t yet see the way. If you feel frustration, it’s just a natural tension that tells you this won’t work. It isn’t justification for believing nothing will work.

We tend to go in cycles. We try something and get frustrated. Believe we can’t, and thus choose something else, which just underscores the frustration more often than not. Well, this sounds illogical, but it is something that is in peoples experience, and is often the first stumbling block. People in a desire to not feel frustration feed their own frustration. They blame themselves for feeling frustration.  They believe that because at first they didn’t understand how to do something they want, it’s supposedly because they can’t. This keeps people stuck, and what does stasis give us ever?

What should we understand thru frustration? Understand that we were invested in a worthy goal. Our heart was in it, and that even if we can’t advance as we want, we still have the power to succeed.

But not succeed at that particular thing? No, actually even that isn’t right. Your subconscious mind processes stuff, so it is what builds up that emotional steam. When you get frustrated, the way you were trying to do what you were doing wasn’t right, but what you were trying to do was fine. So you just need to use the energy differently. Maybe in learning more about what you want to do.  Frustration can just mean you’re getting somewhere.

Your thoughts are welcome. Be well friends.

Travis Saunders
Dragon Intuitive
~science,mysticism,spirituality~