Following Directions mid-tantrum

One of my students became very upset today because the headphones on the computer weren't working properly (the volume had been turned down).  He only just decided yesterday that they were OK to use.  When I tried to fix them (by wearing them and then adjusting the volume) he started crying and hitting his head.  Despite all of the noise and apparent upset, he was still able to follow verbal directions.  I was able to get him to follow me to a quiet space, take a tissue, put the tissue in the garbage can and then return to the classroom (though it didn't all happen that fast).  It wasn't that long ago that this same student wouldn't even follow these simple directions when he was calm - now he can follow them when he is mad!