by Peter Johns

Created on: March 15, 2007   Last Updated: May 20, 2007

Can work be dangerous for your health? All the difficulties and stresses that occur at work can take a real toll on your heart. Sometimes it helps to keep it simple. The following 5 steps may help keep you upbeat, alleviate some of the stress and possibly even bring you closer to the satisfaction you're looking for.

1). Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You

2). Always Challenge Yourself to "Flip" Negatives into Positives
3). Do One Nice Thing For Someone Every Day - No Matter How You Feel About Them
4). Give People the Benefit of the Doubt
5). Always Remember How Lucky You Are

1).If you're being mean to people all the time, just remember, would you want them to be mean to you? It's really that simple. It's about putting yourself in their shoes. Would you really want someone to "bark" at you, use harsh language, gossip about you or treat you with a dismissive or condescending attitude? Being that way often seems to be the easiest (or funniest) choice, but you can end up alienating yourself. Do you like being around those types of people?! There you have it.

2). Always try and flip a negative. For example, sometimes I may feel extremely reserved about walking into a room or making a certain phone call, or opening a certain email. How do you flip that? No matter what you do, the end result is going to be the same. It's still going to be the same room, phone call and email, right? A friend of mine, Lee, once taught me a trick he uses all the time. Before he walks into that room, he forces the largest smile he can muster. He will stand there and literally just grin like crazy, no matter how goofy it feels. Then when he actually goes into the room, it's easy for him to produce an ordinary uplifting smile. He was the most successful salesman in the office I worked at the time.

So I tried it and it worked like magic. It's said that making yourself smile will eventually make you feel like smiling. It's true. Furthermore, people will mirror your expressions, so if you walk into a room looking glum, chances are they're going to bounce that emotion right back at you. You're then going to think they have a problem with you. On the other hand, if you walk in with a smile, they see someone with a great disposition, they smile back, and whatever follows is many times more positive than it otherwise would've been.

3). People often forget that 50% of happiness is giving. Receiving is great, but don't underestimate the value of giving. Even if it's just a compliment, kind

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