Here's what to do about it:

#1 Remember that other people's moods and attitudes belong to them and not to you. When they are sent your way, you don't have to absorb them or do anything at all with them. You are not responsible for how they feel. However, you are responsible for what you do about it.

You can put up guards, but, before you do that, you have to be constantly active in choosing your own mood and mind-set and maintaining it. Every morning, consciously choose to be positive the minute you slide your feet out of bed. Start the day with these four uplifting mental exercises:

• Recite your favorite positive affirmations
• Visualize happy activities and positive outcomes for your day's activities (go to your happy place!)
• Check your emotions and change any negative or depressing ones you feel to positive...the choice is always yours
• Scour your attitude and conversations for negative self-talk. When you hear yourself saying, or thinking, "I can't...," for example, gently switch it to, "I can..."

We all have little pockets of negativity in our own minds. Those pockets can work like a magnet when co-workers or family members complain and dump their bad moods and attitudes on you. Just choose to stay happy and positive while overriding hot blasts of negativity with some powerful self-talk of your own. Surround yourself with your own invisible bubble and imagine negativity just bouncing right off of you.

You are not required to be the repository of anyone else's misery. You will be surprised by what you can block out when you set your mind to it.

One safety technique you might not know about is using the quiet word "cancel" to quickly block all the negative energy being tossed at you. For every negative coming at you, just think "cancel" and visualize those loaded statements vaporizing.

You could also mentally express love and compassion for them. When you can shift into a state of loving compassion, you immediately block out those negative vibrations. When you focus on your positive vibrations, you won't absorb the negative ones and the Universe will return what you broadcast. When you do this, make sure you are not just saying you love that person, but really feel love for them.

If this negative blast is ongoing, or seems like it is going to last a while, excuse yourself and find a quiet place to recharge and refocus your positive attitude. If you are at work, try the office conference room, library or the restroom.

The only one in charge of your feelings and thoughts is you. You choose how you are going to feel and what you are going to think. Just choose to be positive.