By Dan Prendergast, M.A.
Like many thousands of Americans, due to the recent government shutdown I will not receive a paycheck on October 15th or on subsequent pay periods unless Congress is able to fund the government. Because I depend on receiving regular pay to cover living expenses, I am quite irritated that factors beyond my control could potentially cause me some unknown degree of hardship for some unforeseeable period. In my unfavorable position I have a choice to feel functional negative emotions such as irritation and annoyance by thinking rationally, or to feel dysfunctional negative emotions such as anger, anxiety or depression by thinking irrationally. Let’s use the government shutdown as an excuse to practice some REBT and explore ways that I might think rationally and irrationally.
First, some irrational thoughts and beliefs that might leave me needlessly disturbed:
“Because these incompetent people have failed to do the jobs that they absolutely must do in a way that is convenient for me, they are terrible louses, and should all be driven from Capitol Hill and stripped of their pensions! Their inability to get their acts together has resulted in an inconvenience to me that is so absolutely awful that I cannot stand it, and not being paid will probably cause such financial hardship that it will affect several areas of my life in extraordinarily bad ways that will last for quite a long time. Because I will be broke, I will not make rent and will become a burden on my family, and the people I know will lose respect for me and cease to desire my company. I cannot stand the idea that there is no resolution to this terrible catastrophe. I demand a solution to it, and I must know right this instant when my pay will be reinstated! It is completely unfair that despite my responsible financial behavior and best efforts, people who are (of course) more reckless, idiotic and unscrupulous than I am are probably going to compromise my financial stability. This absolutely can’t be happening!”
Next, rational thoughts and beliefs that will leave me annoyed and displeased, but not disturbed:
“While I strongly prefer that Congress gets its act together so that I can be paid, I realize that there is no law that says Congress must work effectively or efficiently, or that it must act in a way that is convenient for me. Though I am free to disagree with them, question their judgment and vote how I choose, insisting that the politicians who run the federal government do so flawlessly and effectively is quite foolish, as they are fallible humans who cannot possibly make perfect decisions absolutely all of the time. In fact, there is a long history of political theater and occasional bad decision-making in U.S. politics, and some degree of foolishness and perhaps even human suffering is unfortunately expected in this imperfect world. It does not make sense to insist that bad things do not happen when they are indubitably happening this very minute. It does not logically follow that just because I want to be paid, or want anything for that matter, that it must be provided for me by the universe or by Congress. Furthermore, I recognize that the government is in fact shut down for the time being, and demanding that I be paid will only make me angry and will not magically end the government’s problems and deposit money in my bank account. It would be wonderful if I could predict when the government shutdown will end and when I will be paid, but unfortunately I do not have psychic powers and will not see the future. Because October 15th has not yet arrived, I do not know for sure that I will miss even one payday. However, if I did miss several paydays it would only be quite inconvenient in the grand scheme of things, and would not be the worst thing imaginable. In fact, it is relatively easy to think of many people who are more adversely affected than me by the present shutdown, or whose lives are far more difficult than mine.”
So there we have it. I have to admit that I was a bit angry about my situation when I started writing and the irrational paragraph wasn’t all that hard to come up with. Writing the rational paragraph was slightly more difficult because it required more critical thinking, but once I got started it became easy to scrutinize the many holes in the irrational thoughts I came up with. By the end of the rational paragraph I also felt noticeably less irritated. Because I am only annoyed and concerned about the government shutdown and not fuming mad, I am better able to take proactive actions like making adjustments to my budget, writing this blog entry for the Ellis Institute, and perhaps calling a member of Congress.