Workplaces provide a range of situations rich with ripe emotions.

Neil Fiore, in his book 'The NOW habit at Work' (2010), provided an interesting explanation of how Initial Thoughts produce natural Reactions and how people can take Corrective Actions to remedy those Reactions.

Since People Do Only 3 Things: Good Habits, Bad Habits, & New Things it makes sense to reframe Initial Thoughts & Reactions and Corrective Actions in terms of Bad Habits (Initial Reactions & Reactions) and New Things to do (Corrective Actions, which if repeated successfully over a period of time can become Good Habits).

Here's a reframed look at the relationship between your initial thoughts and the reactions they produce:...and corrective actions

When your initial thought is one of danger or fear, this Bad Habit can bring you stress. Your natural corrective action is to seek safety. The Good Habit you must develop to overcome this Bad Habit is the ability to accurately identify whether or not your sense of danger and your fear emotion are based in reality. If you find you have a Bad Habit of overreacting then you need to develop the Good Habit of taking the time to do a better job of analyzing situations. You need to anticipate tough situations and learn and practice how to handle them. You need to bolster your self-confidence.

When your initial thought is one of indecision or passivity, this Bad Habit can bring you procrastination. The Good Habit you must develop to overcome this Bad Habit is adjusting your mindset to think in terms of options, choices, and empowerment. To get this done you can develop a way of investigating the root cause of your indecision or passivity and resolve that root cause. Or, better still, don't get tied up worrying about the cause - just give the situation a bit of thought then take the best action you can think of. Understand you always have the ability to act.

When your initial reaction is one of self-doubt and self-criticism, this Bad Habit can bring you the feeling of being overwhelmed. The Good Habit you must develop to overcome this Bad Habit is the ability to focus your thoughts on tasks. Set small goals. Quickly, take the first baby-task step toward that small goal. Celebrate small achievements.

When your initial reaction is to think about the past or the future, this Bad Habit can bring you anxiety. The Good Habit you must develop to overcome this Bad Habit is the ability to get present. You cannot change the past; you cannot predict the future; you can adjust how you think about the present and you can decide your next action.