As your romantic inclinations turn toward the cute guy in the next cubicle, proceed with caution. Although the thought of interoffice dating is cozy, it can be a risky venture for your love life and your career.

It can lead to hard feelings, a decline in job performance and emotional distress. But it's not all bad. Charles Pierce, a professor of industrial psychology at Montana State University, says that sometimes dating at the office can be beneficial. Your performance can be enhanced by channeling romantic involvement into work, if it means you work harder to impress your significant other. As Jason, a San Francisco-based marketing executive, said, "Dating someone in the office definitely makes work more interesting."

If you are going to do it, date smart and learn these rules -- before you canoodle.

1. Know your company's policy
Although dating a coworker is not illegal, some companies have policies against it; others turn a blind eye. Because of the shadow of sexual harassment, workplace dating is tricky for employers. "Some companies don't want to intrude on employees' lives, while others are very conscious about sexual harassment," said Richard Niolon, a Chicago-based psychologist who has written on workplace dating.

It seems unlikely you'd "get in trouble" for interoffice dating. But some companies believe that daters should notify human resources (yeah, right), and even sign a "consensual relationship contract policy" to relieve them of the fear of legal action. Unfortunately, that isn't exactly a romantic little document to whip out on your first date.

"Companies are worried about liability if a romance goes bad," said Calvin House, a lawyer with Pasadena, California, based Gutierrez, Preciado & House, who advises companies on this issue.

There is one corporate rule that is wise to follow: If the person you date is a supervisor or an underling, it's best to simply steer clear.

2. Establish ground rules from the start
"You have to make it clear that you intend to be friends after you break up," said Jason, who has been involved several times on the job. "The first time I dated someone I worked with, we broke up and it was terrible." Of course, "being friends" after the break up is easier said than done. But planning for the worst can help if romance turns sour. Decide who you want to tell, what your expectations are and how you'll interact at work.

3. Be aware of perception
"You would never want to be perceived as creating a hostile work environment or using power in the wrong way," said Ellen Bayer, human resource practice leader at the American Management Association. And you especially don't want to skew perception of your professional identity.

Melissa, a New York-based trade journalist, began dating her colleague Ron, another writer, after only one week on the job. "I should have thought more about what it would mean in my company," she said. "While we tried to keep it a secret, people came to know me as Ron's girlfriend and I didn't really have an opportunity to pursue my own identity."

4. How will it affect your job?
Often new relationships are a big distraction, more so if your sweetheart is in the office. Minimize the effect by agreeing to talk only certain times during the day, like lunch, and check your personal life at the door every morning.

Be aware of your motivations too, since boredom or dissatisfaction may be your impetus for cooking up love, says Lorraine Vestris, a New York psychotherapist. "If someone is bored or unsatisfied at work, having a romance can deflect dealing with other issues," she said.

5. Be discreet
No broadcasting your weekend plans across the office or sitting on his lap in the conference room, unless you want to become gossip fodder. When Janice, a New York-based editor, started dating her present fiancé, she minimized the tongue-wagging by not being seen with him around her workplace.

"We used to meet at Banana Republic down the street and go out from there," she said. "For many months we barely nodded at each other at work."

Sometimes it's hard biting your tongue, Jason says, when work and love collide. "If people said bad things about her I couldn't say, 'Shut up, that's my girlfriend.' I couldn't defend her the way I would have liked."