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Why Bother Getting Mad at a Vending Machine?

  • Writer: Deric Hollings
    Deric Hollings
  • Jul 17
  • 6 min read

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Have you, or someone you’ve known or witnessed, ever self-disturbed with beliefs which were irrational (not in accordance with both logic and reason) in regard to a vending machine? It’s a fairly common experience.

 

You anticipate receiving a desired product for which you’re willing to pay a fee. You insert the required amount of money and select an item. However, the merchandise isn’t delivered, your money is gone, and now your expectation is left unmet. At that point, your beliefs upset you.

 

“I absolutely shouldn’t be inconvenienced,” you unhelpfully demand, “because vending machines ought to work as expected!” Not only do you have less money than you did before the event, you’ve now upset yourself into an angry disposition. Was it worth the bother?

 

This is the sort of scenario with which I’m quite familiar when working with people for care regarding their mental, emotional, and behavioral health. Noteworthy, principles of the psychotherapeutic modality I use are reflected in a book that I’m currently reading.

 

As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman.

 

When recently discussing Stoic principles with a client, this individual informed me of a loved one apparently having helpfully purchased Meditations, written by ancient Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius, for the client. About this text, authors of The Daily Stoic state (page 69):

 

A significant chunk of Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations is made up of short quotes and passages from other writers. This is because Marcus wasn’t necessarily trying to produce an original work—instead he was practicing, reminding himself here and there of important lessons, and sometimes these lessons were things he had read.

 

Incorporating the wisdom of Aurelius into sessions with the aforementioned client, I use imaginary scenarios similar to the vending machine example herein. Regarding this method of rational living, authors of The Daily Stoic quote Aurelius and add (page 69):

 

“You shouldn’t give circumstances the power to rouse anger, for they don’t care at all.”

 

This particular quote is special because it comes from a play by Euripides, which, except for a handful of quoted fragments like this, is lost to us. From what we can gather about the play, Bellerophon, the hero, comes to doubt the existence of the gods.

 

But in this line, he is saying: Why bother getting mad at causes and forces far bigger than us? Why do we take these things personally? After all, external events are not sentient beings—they cannot respond to our shouts and cries—and neither can the mostly indifferent gods.

 

When contemplating the interpreted meaning of Bellerophon’s conclusions, I think of a vending machine. It’s silly to self-disturb with beliefs about aspects of an inanimate object having anthropomorphic traits (described or thought of as having a human form or human attributes).

 

The vending machine doesn’t have a vendetta against you. It’s not a living thing. Therefore, why bother getting mad at a vending machine when it’s rational to conclude that machines often malfunction? Granted, it isn’t pleasant when this occurs. Yet, is it worth being angry over?

 

Instead of unhealthy disturbance, would you be willing to settle for healthy distress in the form of frustration, annoyance, or disappointment if or when a vending machine malfunctions? Concluding their proposed point, authors of The Daily Stoic state (page 69):

 

That’s what Marcus was reminding himself of here: circumstances are incapable of considering or caring for your feelings, your anxiety, or your excitement. They don’t care about your reaction.

 

They are not people. So stop acting like getting worked up is having an impact on a given situation. Situations don’t care at all.

 

In consideration of the information contained herein, how may you alternatively respond to undesirable events in the future? Is it worth upsetting yourself over common occurrences such as vending machines malfunctioning? Personally, such matters aren’t worth the bother.

 

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

 

As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

 

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

 

 

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW

 

References:

 

Daily Stoic. (n.d.). Translating the Stoics: An interview with “The Daily Stoic” co-author Stephen Hanselman. Retrieved from https://dailystoic.com/stephen-hanselman-interview/

Holiday, R. and Hanselman, S. (2016). The daily stoic: 366 meditations on wisdom, perseverance, and the art of living. Penguin Random House LLC. Retrieved from https://www.pdfdrive.com/the-daily-stoic-366-meditations-on-wisdom-perseverance-and-the-art-of-living-d61378067.html

Hollings, D. (2024, July 9). Absolutistic should beliefs. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/absolutistic-should-beliefs

Hollings, D. (2025, June 17). Daily practice. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/daily-practice

Hollings, D. (2022, October 31). Demandingness. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/demandingness

Hollings, D. (2024, October 21). Desire. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/desire

Hollings, D. (2022, March 15). Disclaimer. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/disclaimer

Hollings, D. (2025, March 12). Distress vs. disturbance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/distress-vs-disturbance

Hollings, D. (2023, September 8). Fair use. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/fair-use

Hollings, D. (2024, May 17). Feeling better vs. getting better. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/feeling-better-vs-getting-better-1

Hollings, D. (2023, October 12). Get better. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/get-better

Hollings, D. (2022, August 24). Green with anger. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/green-with-anger

Hollings, D. (n.d.). Hollings Therapy, LLC [Official website]. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/

Hollings, D. (2023, September 19). Life coaching. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/life-coaching

Hollings, D. (2023, January 8). Logic and reason. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/logic-and-reason

Hollings, D. (2024, March 4). Mental, emotional, and behavioral health. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/mental-emotional-and-behavioral-health

Hollings, D. (2023, September 3). On feelings. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/on-feelings

Hollings, D. (2025, April 25). Preferences vs. expectations. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/preferences-vs-expectations

Hollings, D. (2024, May 26). Principles. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/principles

Hollings, D. (2023, September 15). Psychotherapeutic modalities. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/psychotherapeutic-modalities

Hollings, D. (2024, May 5). Psychotherapist. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/psychotherapist

Hollings, D. (2022, March 24). Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT). Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rational-emotive-behavior-therapy-rebt

Hollings, D. (2024, May 15). Rational living. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/rational-living

Hollings, D. (2024, October 27). Reactions have consequences. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/reactions-have-consequences

Hollings, D. (2024, July 10). Recommendatory should beliefs. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/recommendatory-should-beliefs

Hollings, D. (2022, November 1). Self-disturbance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/self-disturbance

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Hollings, D. (2024, April 21). Stoicism. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/stoicism

Hollings, D. (2025, February 28). To try is my goal. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/to-try-is-my-goal

Hollings, D. (2025, April 18). Tolerable FADs. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/tolerable-fads

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Bellerophon. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellerophon

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Euripides. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euripides

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Marcus Aurelius. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Aurelius

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Meditations. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditations

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Ryan Holiday. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Holiday

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