Customer Reviews

Games Mother Never Taught You: Corporate Gamesmanship for Women

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

... and if you weren't either a football player in high school or in the military you don't know them.

It's written for women, but any men that weren't jocks or military need to read this too.

I used to wonder why I got in trouble at work -- now I know and don't do it anymore. I'm getting well paid for my work, get along with my co-workers and management, and my career is on track.

I recommend this book to everyone I know, the few who actually read it get the same results I got.

It's a little dated, but don't let that stop you. The corporate culture (at least in the United States) hasn't changed much this century and it's not likely to change anytime soon. Some of the details she presents may be different, the general principles are still completely current.

Also, she's a fun writer and it's a good read.

Interesting book which describes the corporate world from a women's perspective and gives advice on career planning and advancement. As a man, I find the book overstates the nature men and of `male' business - not all men are sports jocks. However, the book does contain plenty of good, ruthless, honest advice.

When I bought this book a stranger came up to me and said "That book is fantastic and will change your life". It is an essential text for women who want to succeed. As I read it for the first time the scales fell from my eyes. I felt embarrassed that I had missed so much about workplace dynamics, acceptable behaviour, ways of presenting oneself and relating to coleagues that suddenly seemed so glaringly obvious. The book's message: all organisations are based on the hierarchical command structure of the military, and work groups are based on sports teams. Therefore, women with little or no experience of the military/team sports will be constantly swimming against the tide and speaking the wrong language UNLESS THEY READ THIS BOOK! I have bought half a dozen copies of this book and given them to women friends. It is always easy to spot those who need it. I expect it is possible to be a successful career woman without reading this book, but why make life more difficult than necessary? From a successful career woman.

Someone gave me this when I was just starting out in my career, years ago. I donated this copy to the Women's collection in my employer's library, and reread my old, dog-eared copy. The advice and insights are just as fresh and relevant as they were years ago. This should be given to every young woman just entering corporate America - it would be good to add to ethics studies in both business and science (my field). I still make use of the advice and strategies.It would be nice to see an new edition come out ...

This book was assigned reading in college back in the 70's. Lots of women's lib perspective in it. Over the years, it's been a great reference book to understand just what is going on in business, and why some things are so important to men, and why it's important for women to understand and acknowledge it. For women who do or do not want to be involved in the politics in the workplace, the material is relevant and helpful. Knowing what is going on around you and why has an effect on what happens to you. This book is also a great resource for men entering the workforce.

Recommend that it be used as a resource and not a one-time read, since much of the information in it becomes increasingly applicable as people progress in their careers.

Do you want to be taken seriously? Do you want to understand at least some of what's happening in the halls and offices of your company? Do you want to accomplish the upwardly mobile career goals you've set for yourself? Do you want a "guidebook" through the land of corporate America? Written especially for you, a woman? Read this book.

Like several of the other reviewers, I read this book when entering the workforce several years ago. Another woman, a fabulous mentor to me, recommended it. Every page resonated with me and changed the approach I took in my career immeasurably. I'm certain that the lessons I learned from this book are an integral part of my professional success.

Yes, the material is somewhat dated now, but unfortunately, not THAT much has changed. Understanding that today's young women have been raised to participate in sports activities as much as young men and the military comparisons are not quite as applicable as they used to be, these formats and vernaculars still form the basis for many, many of today's corporate environments.

Every young woman should have this information, if only, but not limited, to understand what other women have dealt with to pave the way for today's career women. A great deal of progress has been made but the fat lady hasn't sung yet.

This book has never been topped for women seeking to get ahead in the corporate world, or any world dominated by traditionally-educated, Western males. You may think it's outdated because of the first pub date; you may think things aren't this way any more. Not true. This is a roadmap, a translation. What you do with the information is up to you.

This book was a godsend for me back in the 1970s. It put me on an even playing field with many men in the corporate field, especially in the older industries that have been minimally impacted by women in the workforce and tend to be Old School/Good Ol' Boys clubs. (Yes, they're still very much out there.)

Would highly recommend to young women who are too young to remember what life was like before women changed the work force for the better. There is still a long way to go in some areas, although the "newer industries," like IT, which grew with the women's movement, tends to be less sexist and male (military/sports) dominated.

Would love to see this book updated. I'm sure it's very dated, but for a historical perspective (and to deal with the die hard good ol' boys,) definitely give this book a thorough read.

'Games' was mentioned in a local seminar that I atttended as part of my serious self-evaluation while trying to determine a carrer path. I haven't been able to put it down since! Harragan's book has been an incredible eye-opener, as I now see the pitfalls I've allowed myself to get trapped in through my working years. She has made me see that there are rules that management plays by, and failure to play by those rules leaves you sitting on the sidelines merely cheering your team on, rather than being a part of the action. I was ignorant of the rules, and worse, I didn't realize that I've been paying for it. It is now time to start playing by the rules, and stop being a spectator! This book is a must-read for anyone who is mapping a career path and is trying to figure out what is *really* going on.

This is the book that I wish I had read before I went to college. The title says it all, mothers do not teach their daughters how to play the games that are essential to survival in corporate America. Be warned, this book is not for everyone, the target audience is women. Harrigan believes, and rightly so I think, that women have a hard time in the workplace because they don't know the real rules and what games are being played. Men, on the other hand, have been conditioned since childhood by playing sports to negotiate the corporate world which is really a reflection of the team sports they particiapted in as children. I know that i didn't know all that Harrigan talked about and I especially wished I had her chapter on college when i was in school. If i had known then what was in that book, I might have planned my college education differently.