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So, this headline really grabbed my attention last week––Taika Waititi Wants Hollywood to Stop Asking POC About Diversity Problem: ‘You F*cking Broke It, You Fix It’––from an article by Samantha Bergeson in IndieWire. “Stop asking us what to do, how to fix things, all right? I’m so tired of this,” Waititi said. “I’m so tired of the diversity conversation, the inclusivity conversation, all the conversations. All of us want to be working and not having to come and do fucking panels and speeches in the middle of our day.”
“I’m so tired of the diversity conversation, the inclusivity conversation, all the conversations. All of us want to be working and not having to come and do fucking panels and speeches in the middle of our day.” –– Taika Waititi
Although Waititi is referring to indigenous people in his clearly frustrated and highly relatable comments, I feel that he is speaking for all underrepresented people. As a fan of the outspoken and incredibly talented filmmaker, he makes an interesting point, having recently had a similar conversation with a friend––a woman of color who vented her frustration about this very issue in the hospitality industry. To which I added that the same frustration holds true for all underrepresented people in every industry – racism, sexism, cissexism, ageism, antisemitism, size-ism…enough isms, already! “All of us want to be working!” All of us want to be treated fairly!
How Frustration Can Lead to Change
Frustration can be a powerful tool to effectuate change…it motivates people to speak out and challenge the status quo. How we choose to express our frustration is totally up to us.
“We are all wired to expect things to function as per our expectations and when that doesn't happen it triggers irritation, frustration or dissatisfaction,” writes Deepack Mallick in his Linkedin article, Turning Frustration into Motivation, who goes on to say, ”frustration doesn’t go away by itself and can get worse if not managed well, but the silver lining is frustration is an early warning signal and can be surely changed into something positive. “
How to Convert Frustration Into Something Positive
So how do you convert that frustration into positive action and potentially yield successful results? It’s easier than you think! Here are some tips on dealing with frustration:
A positive mindset can take you a long way
Understand the WHY
Seek help from others
Turn expectations into appreciation
Focus on the road ahead
In her article, Frustration Is a Powerful Tool for Success, Zada Kent tells us to
“Embrace those feelings of frustration, anger, and irritability and use them as fuel toward change. Without motivation, it’s difficult to commit to change no matter how much we know we need to. Frustration is your brain’s signal that you’re unhappy with something. It’s a way of motivating you toward improvement.”
Over the course of my career, I can count on one hand the times I was so frustrated that I lost my sh*t. While I wasn’t proud of the way it happened, it did effectuate positive change. I’m not suggesting you go full Waititi like I did, maybe better to take these tips from Zada––up to you!
Identify the true origin of your frustration.
Embrace your feelings of frustration and lean into them.
Allow yourself to get pissed off.
Use that motivation to improve yourself and create new opportunities for a better life.