Saturday, September 6, 2008

Career Books

Besides the YA novels, I've also been reading career books non-stop. I was interviewing for (and got!) a job with a lot more responsibility, including managing people. Here's a sample of what I've read:

One Minute Manager
I cannot describe the stupidity of how this book is set up. I was embarrassed to read it. Good tips, yes, but I don't need to be told this crap in the form of a "fable."

Influencer: The Power to Change Anything
I'm not sure how useful this will actually be. I picked it up because I wanted to a) influence possible employers to hire me and b) be a better fundraiser. It doesn't really help me with either, but as someone who works in public health (as a fundraiser) the discussion about we change people's behavior is still interesting.

The Girl's Guide to Being a Boss (Without Being a Bitch)
Obviously the title is terrible. I know I can be a boss without being a bitch, but I still want to know how to be a good boss. The vocabulary is demeaning ("chick-in charge"? Fuck you), but it does have useful information. It just constantly reminds you that you're female, as if you'd forget.

Do What You Are
Have you ever taken the Briggs-Myers personality test? I vaguely remember doing so in Junior English and scoring the same as the weirdo who sat next to me--I'm still convinced that he cheated off me. Anyway, I am an ISFJ. Although in high school we took the test to get an idea of what we would do when we grew up (my possible career path: shoe salesperson. Why shoes?), now I just wanted to be clearer on how to work with different personalities and how to express what my personality needs at a job. My current job is very influenced by certain personalities and I was recently criticized for not having that kind of a personality (trying to protect the innocent with my garbled desciption), and I have to say that having this book made me feel better about it. Not like I can't learn to do or act in a certain way, but I can confidently say now that I focus on work duties, not my coworkers personal lives, and that's fine. I know that with my new job, I can start out with this kind of confidence.

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