Being Angry Will Usually Come Back To Bite You

Being angry causes people to do things that are not in their best interests.  See yesterday's post for part one of this discussion.  Anger also costs people money in attorney's fees.  If I were the greedy type, I would want an angry client any day, especially if I could keep them angry.  Angry people can't see a compromise, and they will not reach an agreement easily.  Angry people also have trouble thinking rationally.  I have a number of cases in the office where one side or the other is unreasonably angry at the other.  These cases don't resolve and they cause a large amount of stress to the lawyers and their staff.
Part of my job, the part that really doesn't involve giving legal advice, is helping the clients channel and release their anger in a productive and healthy way.  Only then can they clearly think about what is important and what is not, and what they need to move forward in a healthy way. Anger, like guilt, is a poor motivator, and it is my job here in the trenches to take it out of the equation as much as possible.