The Alarm buzzes you reach for it and bump it off the bedside table, then hobble to the shower because you wrenched your ankle in last night’s tennis match. As you drive to work, you dribble black coffee down your new cream-colored house. By 10.a.m its certain that you’re having one of those classic bad days. But what about that bicycle spill last week, not to mention those two fender benders and bruised tailbone you’ve already had this year? Is someone trying to tell you something?Maybe. And its not just that you’re clumsy, well if you don’t take a look at this minor mishap now they might get worse later. Accidents can work like fevers as symptoms. If they happen too often they usually mean that you’re not paying attention to something in your life that you should be.

How do you know if you’re contributing to your own recent spills?

Here are three common Scenarios

THE TROUBLED MIND

Everybody’s got problem at home or work, the passive-aggressive boss or the fight you and your sister always seem to have. If you don’t deal with them, they can play like background noise, distracting you from what you’re doing. And that can be a dangerous thing-several studies have shown that drivers with marital problems suffer more traffic accidents around the time they file for divorce. But your worries wont necessarily cause something that serious because, they may just manifest themselves as a spate of minor stumbles. If you’re having a day when you’re dropping everything, its probably feelings-anger, anxiety, grief-that are distracting me.

Bottom Line

To avoid the bumps and scrapes that are caused by distracted thoughts, its time to back off and start reflecting. You don’t have to resolve your problem to resolve your accident,you just have to get the feelings out so you’re not walking around in a fog. Talking or writing about them is the first step.

THE “POOR ME“ SYNDROME

The one-and-off numbness in your wrist is now permanent, you broke your foot when the loose step on your porch gave away, and you got a cold right after you were caught in a downpour-just as you thought you would. You might believe you’re jinxed, but you may just be waiting to be the victim. People who are somewhat passive about having accidents because they’re not taking care of themselves and their situations. They find it easier to complain about the problem than to do something about it.

Bottom Line.

Search for ways to take control, fix the step, attend to your medical problems, watch the TV weather reports. If you get proactive about the things that are tipping you up, you’ll find that your luck will improve-and your injury rate will decrease.

THE AGGRESSIVE KLUTZ

The opposite of the victim, you’re the most driven, goal oriented person you know. That 5k fundraiser sponsored by your office? For your co-workers, it’s a social events, but you want to win. While no one’s going to deny that being competitive can be a good thing, it can translate to accidents, especially where sports and exercises is concerned. Highly competitive people of all ages tend to overestimate their abilities. Their advice: Don’t stop skiing or skydiving, but refine your judgment. The message isn’t that you avoid anything fun and challenging. But you need to be realistic and some training never hurts.

Bottom Line.

If you’re really competitive, you probably couldn’t give that trait up if you tried. Which is fine. But if you keep showing up at work with a new injury, or you always manage to sprain that ankle that just won’t heal, give yourself a break. Try activities like yoga that encourages you to check your competitive urge at the door it. it’s good to surrender sometimes-and it’s good to do it on the floor.