Queens, Drunks, and Thespians.

Who are those who love drama?

That is correct.

For those of us who strive to be normal, we typically try to distance ourselves from unwelcome, unnecessary drama in our lives. Why? Drama is a cancer that eats away at our time, our energy, our emotions, our thoughts, and even the rest of our relationships.

So why do we put up with so much drama in our lives? The short answer is that we don’t know a successful, productive way to eliminate needless drama. Are you a parent? If you got kids, you got drama. Work for a living? If you got a job, you got drama. Manage people? If you got peeps, you got drama. Have any relationships in your life? If you got others, you got drama.

Do you get the point? Drama isn’t optional. Even if you contain your own drama, you can’t determine if the person next to you will choose to contain his or her drama. However, there is a way for you to respond to the drama of others so that you may reduce its negative impact on you and others.

A good friend of mine, Marlene Chism, wrote Stop Workplace Drama that outlines both practical and positive steps to reduce drama in your life. And by the way, I’m not promoting her book because Marlene is a friend of mine: Marlene became a friend of mine the minute I read her book. I love her practical wisdom along with her scientific approach to dealing with drama. She is wise, and I love surrounding myself with people who help me learn and grow. Marlene in one of those kind of people.

Here are some interesting drama research that you’ll find in Marlene’s book:

• Negativity at work costs US companies $3 billion each year in lost productivity. Can our economy afford this?
• Venting makes you feel better. But each time you vent, you create new brain cells for the sole purpose of venting. Talk about a wasted effort!
• Of the 60,000 thoughts most people have each day, it’s estimated that 85% of them are negative. Negative thinking IS A HABIT. And bad habits can and should change.
• If you spend 5 minutes recalling an angry experience, you can suppress your immune system for up to 6 hours. Which makes me wonder why Lewis Black is still alive…

But research or even buying Marlene’s excellent book isn’t going to help you out. What will help you is the simple, practical and memorable outline in Stop Workplace Drama on how to reduce unwanted drama from your life.

Marlene’s book will be successful, and I predict sales to be brisk. But if you wish to benefit from her wisdom and experience, you can’t just buy the book. You have to read it and apply it. Once you do, you’ll know what Marlene means when she says, The one with clarity navigates the ship. Everyone else shovels coal.

March is STOP YOUR DRAMA month so there’s no better time to get to know the woman who has never met a drama she couldn’t help contain! Here’s where you can find Marlene’s site…and here’s where you can get a copy of Marlene’s awesome book! (Buy her book today, and you’ll get a free membership in her book club).

Learn why Marlene says, You can’t foster positive change from a negative mindset.