Stressed at work? Be bulletproof with these top tips

Dodge common work worries with these foolproof tips for success

How do you win round hostile colleagues or an overbearing boss; face the prospect of redundancy or the rejection of your best idea and learn from your professional mistakes? The everyday knocks of life at work can be challenging to deal with.

A new book, Be Bulletproof, deals with these and many other hazards of the workplace. Professional trainers James and Simon Brooke draw on their experiences to deliver practical, thought-provoking and inspirational solutions so you can brush yourself off and come out with more confidence.

The book includes tips for building your own metaphorical bulletproof vest, including:

1) Stop mind reading – this is a common thinking trap. Even when we are convinced we know what is in someone’s mind, we are often wrong.

2) Become aware of your inner cave dweller – the instinctive responses that kept our ancestors alive are not always useful today. Take a deep breath and calm yourself. You will make better choices, even in the heat of the moment.

3) Turn criticisms around – wrong-foot your opponent by not defending an attack, instead say ‘I need to consider what gave you that impression’.

4) See your boss as a customer – take pride in managing them and keep a healthy distance.

5) Be ok with politics – politics is mostly defensive, a way for people to protect their own interests. No-one is plotting your downfall, so don’t be a martyr to political games.

6) Nobody noticed – when you make a mistake most people won’t notice. Even a Barry Manilow T-shirt flies under most people’s radar.

Be Bulletproof is available through Amazon at £10.99.

More information on James and Simon Brooke at threshold.co.uk