Handling Disruption

I am a person who likes routine. To site a few examples, generally, I prefer having dinner at the same time, going to the gym at the same time, producing blog entries on the same days of the week, and going to bed at night around the same time. I admit all this may point one into concluding that I tend to be a bit boring. That may be true. But in fairness, I am an "old dog" and we all know how difficult it is to teach a critter like me new tricks. I share these fun facts about me because my sense is there are others whose lives revolve around similar routines as well.  (I would say we should all get together some time, but, then, that would not be part of my routine.)

Seriously, given this similar characteristic, the challenge we routine-lovers share is, from a communication standpoint, how we handle things when there is a disruption to our routine. What feelings does the disruption trigger? How do we communicate them to others? How well do we communicate whatever follow-up steps or actions we might take in response to the disruption? Depending upon the specific circumstance, in the past not all of my responses have been that mature. The disruption becomes a focus of my frustration and anger and the person around me becomes the entity or target of my negative feelings.

Communicating one's thoughts that are triggered by feelings of frustration and anger is not easy, particularly if the disruption is caused by another. Successful communication at such a moment begins with a clear recognition of what has just happened. "My dinner has just been disrupted," we acknowledge. "How do I feel about it? Do I need to share my feelings on this matter with any one else? If so, how can I best communicate that message in a way that will be properly heard and appreciated?" Such questions may seem simple. At the same time, they are pointed enough to help one craft talking points to themselves and others. The goal is to communicate in a way that builds bridges and then helps one maintain them.