I hear it all time. My manager is incompetent. My co-worker is a slacker. My boss is a micro-manager. I don’t get paid what I am worth. My inbox is overflowing. I am stressed to the max.

In other words, one way or the other, work is making me miserable.

Back in my 20’s I worked for a theater. One of my favorite actors came into my office one day and upon hearing some bad news from me, he said, “Stephanie, it’s called showbiz for a reason. If it wasn’t work, we’d call it ‘showfun’.”

Work is just that: work. But despite the ease with which we can find fault with some aspect of our work lives, recent research is showing work is not as bleak as we seem to think it is.

Watch this TEDx Talk from organizational psychologist and University of Minnesota Professor Theresa Glomb. Then, take my “Theresa Glomb Quiz.” Happier at work might be closer than you think.

The Theresa Glomb Quiz

1. Bad things pack a punch. How are bad things impacting your work days?
2. Pause and reflect. Write down one good thing that happened at work today.
3. Stop. Before you go to question #4, savor the answer to #2. How does it feel?
4. What one thing can you do to change your work habits or work environment so that you can make more time for uni-tasking and increase moments of meaningful progress on your work tasks?
5. Consider your answer to #3, who can you ask to help you succeed in changing your work habits or work environment?
6. Does knowing that you can improve your mood by helping others at work make you want to try and help a colleague? If so, who would you be happy to help?

Theresa’s research shows us we all have the power to impact our attitude about work. The trick is taking the time and making the effort to practice new ways of thinking and doing. I hope your answers to the quiz give you a place to start.

Speaking of answers, I am not grading these quizzes, but I would be happy to talk to you about your answers.