Book Review
I was pleased to receive an Advance Reader's Copy of "Ask a Manage: How to Navigate Clueless Colleagues, Lunch-Stealing Bosses, and the Rest of Your Life at Work" by Alison Green ...:
(Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books; Publishing Date: May 2018 ISBN-13 978-0-39-918181-8; Price: USD 16.00)
Embarrassing questions or tricky situations: "ask a manager" with zero risk of further embarrassment or adverse consequences.
This book should serve as a sourcebook of ideas and suggestions on how to cope with those difficult situations that arise in day-to-day company life. It appears, at least to me, that this book would best serve new employees, but can serve as a refresher course for older and more seasoned individuals.
The book's value lies mostly in the snippets of suggested wording that will help you formulate an effective response to the situation at hand.
I would have no problem with recommending this book to my readers -- especially after they visited the author's website to get a sampling of her style in dealing with office issues.
Yes, there are negatives?
One, like most business advice, it is easier said than done and requires a certain amount of intestinal fortitude to face down your boss.
Two, this book lacks a "keyword" index that would allow you to more quickly access and deal with a particular issue. Since this is an advance copy, perhaps that will be a feature that will be added during the publication process.
Three, much of the information is freely available on the internet at the author's website and by using a Google search you may be able to access those items that did not make it into the book.
From the publisher ...
From the creator of the popular website Ask a Manager and New York magazine’s work-advice columnist comes a witty, practical guide to navigating 200 difficult professional conversations—featuring all-new advice!
There’s a reason Alison Green has been called “the Dear Abby of the work world.” Ten years as a workplace-advice columnist have taught her that people avoid awkward conversations in the office because they simply don’t know what to say. Thankfully, Green does—and in this incredibly helpful book, she tackles the tough discussions you may need to have during your career. You’ll learn what to say when
• coworkers push their work on you—then take credit for it
• you accidentally trash-talk someone in an email then hit “reply all”
• you’re being micromanaged—or not being managed at all
• you catch a colleague in a lie
• your boss seems unhappy with your work
• your cubemate’s loud speakerphone is making you homicidal
• you got drunk at the holiday party
Like most business books, the advice is a mixture of common sense and time-tested practices. And like most things in life, your results will vary and will be proportional to the amount of time and effort you bring to the table.