The number one reason we are miserable at work? Our boss.

Our immediate boss, the one we interface with daily via Skype or email (or worst) in person is the person most often mentioned as the one who stresses us the most.

When you consider reinvention, it’s instructive to take a good long look at how your feelings might change if you had someone else to report to. Many times our bad bosses cause us to take a global view, fooling us into thinking we hate everything about our work. It’s possible that a new supervisor could be a game-changer for you, amping your productivity and your overall mood.

Don’t underestimate the toll on your health a job can take. Smoking, drinking, food, lack of sleep – the list of possible stressers is long.

Check out this primer to murder-by-job at Huffington Post.

We need to work, but not at the cost of our health. We’re no good to anyone when we’re under mental seige.

John Scott is the National Online Learning Coordinator and a media history instructor at the School of Multimedia Communications, Academy of Art University, San Francisco. He also counsels clients and groups on the art of reinvention. His debut book Broken Glass and Barbed Wire will be released soon.

Follow John on Twitter @johnscottsf.