Anger Management Expert to Appear on Radio Talk Show

Dr. Ari Novick, president of the AJ Novick Group will be appearing on a popular east coast radio show in the coming weeks. Dr. Novick was selected after the host of the show actually participated in one of his anger management programs. After completing the program, he was so impressed that he asked if Dr. Novick would be willing to discuss the Century Anger Management model, which Dr. Novick is the co-founder of as well as discuss how anger management classes work. The general public is often misinformed about what is involved in taking an anger management class and what one should expect to learn. Dr. Novick will explain the "8 Tools of Anger Control" in detail as well as answer questions from callers.

More on this exciting interview will be posted in the coming weeks.

For information on anger management classes contact Dr. Ari Novick at 949 715-2694

Eight Practical Tips for Reducing Stress Triggers

Eight Practical Tips for Reducing Stress Triggers:

By Ari Novick, Ph.D.

(1) Take time off – Take a vacation or a long weekend. During the work day, take a short break to stretch. Walk, breathe slowly, and take a day off and go to the beach, and relax.

(2) Manage your time – Set realistic goals and deadlines. Plan projects accordingly. Do “must do” tasks first. Schedule difficult tasks for the time of day when you are most productive. Tackle easy tasks when you feel low on energy or motivation.

(3) Set limits – When necessary, learn to say “no” in a friendly, but firm manner.

(4) Choose your battles wisely – Don’t rush to argue every time someone disagrees with you. Keep a cool head and avoid pointless arguments altogether.

(5) Use calming skills – Learn not to act on your first impulse. Give your anger time to subside. Anger needs to be expressed, but it is often wise to do something that takes your mind off the situation. The break allows you to compose yourself and respond to the anger in a more effective manner.

(6) If appropriate, look for less stressful job options – But first, ask yourself whether you have given your job a fair chance.

(7) Take control of what you can – For example, if you’re working too many hours and you can’t study enough, ask your boss if you can cut back.

( 8) Don’t commit yourself to things you can’t or don’t want to do- – If you’re already too busy, don’t promise to decorate for the school dance. If you’re tired and don’t want to go out, tell your friends you’ll go.

Ari Novick, Ph.D. is Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a certified anger management provider for both adults and adolescents. Dr. Novick is also an adjunct professor of psychology at Pepperdine University’s Graduate School of Education and Psychology. His corporate website is www.ajnovickgroup.com and his innovative online anger management class is available at www.angerclassonline.com

On-site Anger Management Training and Classes for Employees

The AJ Novick Group has been a recognized leader in the field of anger management since 2003. We have provided on-site trainings in anger and stress management to numerous corporations and agencies over the last 5 years. Often times human resource staff or decision makers at companies do not know when it might be appropriate to bring on an expert to provide an on-site anger management training. Here are a few questions to ask yourself when trying to figure this important question out:

1. Has there been a history of inappropriate behavior by an employee(s)?
2. Has your company ever provided an educational training in anger management for risk prevention?
3. Do you have just one or two employees that need anger management, but you do not want to single them out?
4. Are you worried about a lawsuit or legal action from a victimized employee?
5. Will an on-site anger management training be helpful?

Anger management training provided at your company should be an educational experience for all who attend. These trainings are aimed at teaching skills in a variety of areas with the goal of improving relationships among employees, increasing moral, and improving the growth of ones company or workforce. Here are some common skills taught by the AJ Novick Group's on-site trainings:

1. Skills in effective communication and listening
2. Empathy and social awareness training
3. Introduction of ways to handle volatile people and/or situations
4. Introduction of ways to diffuse hostile people
5. Anger management and conflict resolution training
6. Skills in improving impulse control and judgment
7. Stress management training
8. Expectation management
9. Use of EAP programs and adjudicative resources
10. Basic crisis skills training
11. Learning to identify hostile situations and people (warning signs)
12. Introduction to calming techniques, cool down's and time-outs

Our on-site anger management training and classes can be offered in a variety of formats and range from 4 hours to 2 full days of training. All participants will be assessed prior to participating as well as at the end of the training. This assessment will help identify areas to improve as well as strengths and weaknesses as group or team.

For those that would rather have their employees take a corporate online anger management class as either a preventative measure or as part of a disciplinary action, we also offer this option.

For more information on any of our on-site anger management training or programs please contact:

Ari Novick, Ph.D., LMFT
AJ Novick Group- Anger Management
949 715-2694

Broadcasting Company HIres Anger Management Expert for Key Staff

The AJ Novick Group was recently hired by Trinity Broadcasting Company to provide anger management coaching and training to key staff and personnel. TheAJ Novick Group was selected because of their outstanding reputation and world class service. The AJ Novick Group teaches skills to help improve employees communicate more effectively, resolve conflicts, manage stress and increase empathy, improve judgment and impulse control as well as better manage expectations of self and others.

All corporate coaching uses our acclaimed Century Anger Management model, assessments, and instructional materials. We have also begun video taping role play exercises so participants can visually see what they are doing well and what skills still need to be worked on. Similar to the NFL reply videos, this approach has been highly effective in teaching participants how they are perceived by others by watching their own behaviors and mannerisms.

The AJ Novick Group also offers on-site training in anger and stress management for both small and large corporations. For more information, please contact:

Ari Novick, Ph.D., LMFT
AJ Novick Group- Anger Management

Assertive Communication - An Anger Management Technique

Our client, Aaron, told us that in his family they typically yell at one another to get the point across. Aaron recently got in a relationship with a woman who told him that his anger “scares” her when he gets upset. Aaron’s reply was that he was not upset, this was “just the way I am used to expressing myself when I get upset, this is normal for me”. The reality is that what might be “normal” for you and your family of origin may not be the “norm” is terms of communicating effectively with others. Aaron’s style of communication is aggressive, but he didn’t realize the impact it had on his girlfriend. Aaron had to learn about his style of communication as well as other styles of communication to understand the kind of changes he needed to make. By learning to become more assertive, Aaron felt better, his needs got met more of the time, and his girlfriend no longer feared him when he did get upset.

The way we communicate or the style we use to communicate is often learned from much earlier experiences in our lives when our language skills were newly formed. Think about your family’s style of communication for a moment. Is your style similar to any of theirs? Most of us tend to communicate in a way that was adaptive in the environment we grew up, but problematic in our lives today. For many of us, our style of communication can leave us with unmet needs, unexpressed emotion, and damaging effects on those around us. It is important to understand that there are many different communication styles, yet only one that tends to yield the results we are seeking. Learning to express your primary feelings and needs, clearly, calmly, with good eye contact is what assertive communication is all about.

Good communication skills are an essential ingredient to anger management because poor communication causes untold emotional hurt, misunderstandings and conflict. Words are powerful, but the message we convey to others is even more powerful and often determines how people respond to us – and how we feel toward them.

Because communication is a two-way process, people with good communication skills are good at “receiving” messages from others as well as delivering them.

If you look at people in your life and we also look at your own behavior, you may discover certain patterns of communication. Some patterns are negative and harmful while others are positive and productive.

Frequently persons who have anger problems use harmful ways of communicating to others – harmful in the sense that it disrupts relationships and usually does not accomplish the goals that you intended.

Assertive communication, on the other hand, is a much more effective way to get what you want and what you need without the negative consequences. In short, the development of assertive communication skills will works for you by making you a more effective and less stressed person.

What is assertive communication? Is is a way to communicate so that you convey your rights in a good way. Assertive communication helps people clearly explain their wants, needs, and feelings to other people. It is a way of getting things that you want without violating or offending others’ rights or having to walk away without getting what you want.

Assertive people tell others what they want and need clearly; they have a knack of saying the correct thing at the correct time.

Assertive communication skills are the antidote to harmful and destructive communication patterns.

To learn more about improving your communication skills visit the AJ Novick Group- Anger Management Classes


Ari Novick, Ph.D., LMFT
AJ Novick Group- Anger Management
Anger Class Online- Online Anger Management Classes

Online Anger Management Classes Exclusively for Corporations

The AJ Novick Group launched one of the most innovative online anger management class programs of its kind in early 2006 (www.angerclassonline.com). Since its launch, requests from corporate America has been surging.

“For many employers and human resource professionals, finding an anger management program for an employee can be difficult, time consuming, and problematic for the employee,” says Dr. Ari Novick, founder of AJ Novick Group and Anger Class Online. “Employers need an effective, affordable, and efficient way to train employees without having to massive time away from work,” says Dr. Novick. “We have created an online anger management class specifically for employees that can be monitored by the employer or company representative to ensure successful completion an comprehension,” explains Dr. Novick.

These specialized online anger management classes for employees are timed and every employee is required to pass short quizzes before they are able to move to the next lesson. Each employee is also monitored with an employee “log”. This log will show their progress though the course including which quizzes were passed and how much time was spent on each lesson. It will also show the time they logged in and out of the program. Once the employee finishes the course, a Certificate of Completion will be mailed to the employer. Dr. Novick says, “The employer has the ability to purchase the courses in bundles and assign them to any employee who needs to take a class”.

Corporate online anger management classes are ideal for employees who need an anger management class as part of a preventative skills training or as a requirement of a disciplinary action. “We are pleased to be able to bring to market an innovative product such as this one, and continue to strive to deliver high quality and comprehensive programs to the public”, explains Dr. Novick. For more information visit http://www.angerclassonline.com/Corporate.aspx


Ari Novick, Ph.D.
AJ Novick Group- Anger Management

Want to Learn A Stress Management Technique?

The Freeze-frame Technique for self-soothing

The Institute of HeartMath has developed an excellent exercise called “freeze-frame” which is ideal for self-soothing during your retreat time. The best part is while it only takes a couple of minutes to do it, the results can be quite astounding. The technique is based on the idea that, like movies, our conscious life is made up of up of a series of incidents – or frames- strung together over time. When flooded and overwhelmed, it helps to stop the movie—or freeze just one frame. This frame can be the conflict you had with your partner before leaving to regroup and marshal your emotional resources.

Once you freeze this frame in your mind (you can close your eyes, or not, depending on what makes you feel comfortable), put your hand on your heart and pretend your heart is “breathing” as you inhale and exhale. Make a sincere effort to shift your focus away from you racing mind or disturbed emotions to the area around your heart.

As you relax and calm down, try recalling the feeling of a positive time or experience you’ve had in your life-or a good or fun time you have had.

Now, using your intuition, common sense and sincerity ask your heart what would be a better response to the situation, one that would repair the damage to your relationship. Then, listen to what your heart answers to your question.

Don’t worry if you have trouble recalling that positive time or experience – the technique will help you even if you just feel neutral – instead of positive- during this step.

Believe it or not, recent scientific research is showing that the heart (and also your gut) actually may be able to do some of what your brain does in terms of giving you answers; it may be that your heart actually can function like a little satellite of the brain – and hence may be able to give you some answers – just like your brain does.

The AJ Novick Group is a leading provider of Anger and Stress Management training, classes, workplace programs and products. Dr. Novick is an expert in the field of Anger Management and has written numerous articles for magazines and Internet sites. He is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. He is the co-author of “Anger Management for the Twenty-first Century”, a newly developed model for Anger Management intervention. For more information on Ari Novick, Ph.D., or the AJ Novick Group please visit http://www.ajnovickgroup.com or http://www.angerclassonline.com

8 Tips for Dealing with Exposive People

Eight tips to communication with aggressive or explosive people:

1. Do not respond in kind. Hostility often begets more hostility. Respond instead with a non-hostile message to defuse people who are behaving in a hostile manner toward you. The classic example of this is in when simple inconsiderate driving or even aggressive driving suddenly escalates into road rage due to two drivers ratcheting up hostility in response to the other's hostile acts, words, or gestures. Please remember that in these and other hostile situations, you contribute somewhat to the outcome by your decision to return hostility or not.

2. Take their upset seriously and validate their feelings. Listen to what they have to say and hear them out; ignoring them or minimizing their feelings will tend to escalate their anger further. There have been untold numbers of workplace violence incidents that could have been averted had supervisors or managers listened with empathy to disgruntled employees rather than responding in an insensitive, or uncaring manner.

3. Never argue with someone when they are intoxicated or on drugs. When someone is drinking or intoxicated, this is no time to try to solve a business, personal or other related problems (especially if you too have had a few drinks). Drinking often impairs judgment, decreases inhibitions (resulting in saying things we don't mean), and distorts your normally astute reasoning ability.

4. Respond to the feelings they are having not the content of what they are saying. Try to hear and respond to the underlying hurt or pain the person is experiencing underneath the angry words. Use statements such as "I can appreciate why you feel that way," or "It sounds like you are very angry right now, many people feel the way you do."

5. On roadway, don't make eye contact with an aggressive driver. This is the secret signal in the animal world to engage in combat and will frequently escalate things, sometimes into "road rage." Just ignore aggressive drivers and stay out of their way.

6. Allow angry people to physically escape the situation Don't block their way or prevent access, or you may be putting yourself in a dangerous situation. Take off the heat rather than increasing the pressure! Don't insist on solving the problem "now" when the other person is in an agitated state.

7. Don't defend yourself by attacking back at them or their character flaws. Defensiveness often escalates anger in the other person and, in fact, is one of the predictors of divorce, according to recent marital research. There is a time to present your side, but not when your partner is unable to hear it due to his or her anger.

8. Don't try to solve an emotional issue with logical arguments. Trying to diffuse an angry person with overwhelming evidence of their thinking errors or mistakes in logic, or facts to the contrary, or reasons for why they shouldn't feel the way they do, or why they should feel differently - usually makes the situation worse.

Ari Novick, Ph.D.
AJ Novick Group- Anger Management Classes
Anger Class Online- Online Anger Management Classes