8. “The first thing that went through my mind was the well being of my soon-to-born daughter,” Michael replied. “Then, as I lay on the ground, remembered I had two choices: I could choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live.” “Weren’t you scared? Did you lose consciousness?” I asked. Michael continued, “The paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the operation room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, l read ‘He’s a dead man.’ I knew I needed to take action.” “What did you do?” I asked. “Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me” said Michael. “She asked me if I was allergic to anything. ‘Yes,’ I said. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, ‘Gravity.’ Over their laughter, I told them, ‘ I’m choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.’”
9. Michael lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I 1eamed from him that every day we have a choice to live fully. Attitude is everything.
1. 迈克尔是那种你真想恨一恨的家伙，他总是乐呵呵的，总是说些积极上进的话。如果有人问他近况如何，他会这样回答：“如果我还能再好，我就成双胞胎了！”他生来就会让人积极进取。
2. 如果哪位雇员有天过得很糟糕，迈克尔会告诉他如何看待问题的积极一面。他的这种方式着实让我好奇，所以有一天我找到迈克尔问：“我真弄不明白。你怎么能总是那样积极乐观？你是如何做到这一点的？”
3. 迈克尔回答说，“每天早晨醒来时我对自己说，‘迈克，今天你有两种选择。你可以选择心情愉快，你也可以选择心情恶劣。’我选择心情愉快。每次什么不愉快的事情发生时，我可以选择成为一个牺牲品，也可以选择从中吸取教训。我选择从中吸取教训。每次有什么人找我来抱怨，我可以选择接受他们的抱怨，也可以选择向他指出生活的积极面。我选择指出生活的积极面。”
4. “是的，不错。可并不那么容易呀。”我表示异议。
5. “其实很容易，”迈克尔说，“生活就是选择。从每一事物剔除一切枝节后剩下的都是一种选择。你选择如何应付生活中的种种情形。你选择他人会怎样影响你的情绪。你选择是心情愉快还是心情恶劣。说到底：如何生活是你自己的选择。”我琢磨着迈克尔的这席话。
6. 那以后不久，我离开了工作数年的大企业去创建自己的公司。我们失去了联系，但当我对生活做出一种选择而非对它做出反应时，我时常想起迈克尔。几年之后，我听说迈克尔遭遇一场恶性事故，从一座通讯大楼的60英尺高处掉了下来。
7. 在经历了18个小时的手术和数周的精心护理之后，迈克尔出院了，背部装有金属杆。大约在事故发生的半年之后，我见到了迈克尔。当我问他怎么样时，他回答，“如果我还能再好，我就成双胞胎了。想看看我的伤疤吗？”我拒绝看他的伤痕，但的确问了他事故发生时他是怎么想的。
8. “我首先想到的是我那即将出世的女儿的幸福生活，”迈克尔答道，“当时我躺在地上，我记起我有两种选择：我可以选择活着，也可以选择死。我选择了活。”“你难道不害怕吗？你失去知觉了吗？”我问。迈克尔接着说：“那些护理人员棒极了。他们不停地告诉我我会好的。但当他们把我推进手术室，我看到医生和护士脸上的表情时，我真是吓坏了。在他们的眼里，我读出了‘他是个死人。’我知道我应该采取行动。”“你采取了什么行动？”我问道。“有一位人高马大的护士大声冲我问问题，”迈克尔说，“她问我是否对什么过敏。‘是的，’我说。医生和护士都停下手中的活儿等我回答。我深吸一口气大声说出，‘万有引力。’他们的笑声未了，我告诉他们，‘我选择活着。把我当活人而不是死人来做手术。’”
9. 迈克尔活了下来，这要感谢他那些医生的高明医术，但也要归功于他那令人赞叹的态度。我从他那里学到——我们每天都有机会充实地活着，关键是态度。
Are You Having Fun At Work？你在工作中有乐趣吗？
The lack of humor in workplaces is a real shame，according to experts in corporate culture. Studies have shown that happy workers are productive workers， which enhances profitability.
The stress that is endemic in today’s workplace is no joke. If you can learn to laugh， you and everyone around you will better weather the stress storms.
Paul McGhee，Ph.D.，of the Laughter Remedy says that a good sense of humor will contribute to your success in these ways：
1. Change. Roles and responsibilities are changing rapidly in today’s workplace. Your sense of humor provides the resilience7 needed to cope with change.
2. Growing leadership. As your career progresses, you’ll probably be asked to lead more and make more decisions in your organization. Building your humor skills will boost your ability to lead effectively.
3. Increased stress. As already mentioned，stress is a factor in all jobs. The more responsibility you assume9， the more stress you experience. Humor is one of the most powerful stress management tools around. Laughter helps you reduce muscle tension, release anger, improve your ability to overcome panic and bring anxiety under control, as well as keep a more positive frame10 of mind.
4. Demand for creativity and innovation. A better sense of humor will enhance your creative thinking abilities.
5. Outstanding communication skills. Everyone in your organization needs these skills， and humor can be a wonderful way both to boost interest in what you have to say and help you become an accepted team member.
Okay, are you ready to laugh it up and encourage your colleagues to do the same？ Here are several helpful suggestions to get you started using humor.
Step 1. Surround yourself with humor and determine the nature of your sense of humor. How to do this? Watch more comedy movies; look for cartoons in magazines and newspapers； spend more time with your funniest friends and colleagues.
Step 2. Become more playful and overcome seriousness. Spend more time playing with your kids；make a list of things you find fun and do one of them every day.
Step 3.Laugh more heartily and start telling jokes.
Step 4. Play language, puns, and other verbal games.
Step 5. Find humor in everyday life. Look for the unexpected, incongruous, bizarre, and ridiculous aspects of life.
Step 6. Take yourself lightly; laugh at your own mistakes.
Step 7. Find humor in the midst of stress.
按照公司文化专家的说法，在工作场所缺乏幽默感是件十分不应该的事。研究显示，心情愉快的员工富有创造性，从而能提高公司的效益。
当今各工作场所普遍存在的重压感，是个需要认真对待的问题。如果你学会笑，那么你及你周围的人会更好地经受住这类重压“风暴”。
“笑疗”博士保罗?麦吉说，幽默感在下列方面有助于使你成功：
1.适应变化。当今工作中，一个人的角色和责任都在迅速地变化着。你的幽默感会使你有较强的应变力。
2.提高领导能力。随着你事业的发展，在你的机构你可能会被要求领导更多的人并做出更多的决定。掌握幽默技巧会有效地提高你的领导才能。
3.重压感的增加。如前所述，重压感存在于所有的工作中。责任越重，你的重压感也越大。幽默是目前克服重压感最行之有效的手段之一。笑能帮助你减少肌肉的紧张，释放怒气，提高你战胜恐慌和控制焦虑的能力，同时还能使你保持更积极的心态。
4.对创造力和革新的要求。较强的幽默感有助于提高你的创造性思考能力。
5.出色的交流技能。你所在机构中的每一个人都需要这些技能。幽默既可以提高人们对你讲话的兴趣，也能帮助你被接纳为团体中的一分子。
好了，你是否愿意笑并愿意鼓励你的同事同你一起笑呢？下面几条小诀窍或许能助你一臂之力。
第一步：使你周围充满幽默并选定最适合你的那种幽默感。如何做呢？多看喜剧片，多瞧杂志报纸中的漫画，多接触你身边有趣的朋友和同事。
第二步：学会嬉笑，改变不苟言笑的作风。多和孩子们玩耍。将有趣的事情列出清单，每天做一件。
第三步：尽情地笑，开始讲笑话。
第四步：玩语言游戏、说双关语、玩其他文字游戏。
第五步：在日常生活中寻找幽默。发现生活中出人意料、不合时宜、稀奇古怪以及荒唐可笑的事。
第六步：轻松待己，自嘲所犯错误。
第七步：在重压感中寻找幽默。
