Customer Reviews

How to Succeed in Business without a Penis: Secrets and Strategies for the Working Woman

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

While I have little experience in the realm of women's
career/self-help/humor, I thought this book was fantastic. It's seems
to cover in a comprehensive fashion every women-in-the-workplace
dilemma I have ever heard about. In a strange way, it starts with the
most existential question first: "What do I really really want in a
career." It then works back from there to the gimmes like "is it
OK for me to flirt in the workplace?" (unequivocally yes, if only
to even things out a little bit). The book is brutally honest about
practical tactics for dealing with office issues.

Funny and the merit of truth. Great book for women looking for confidence in business endeavors.

WOW! It is so refreshing to read a useful book for the modern business woman that has some real humor to it. This book gives anyone, rookies to veterans, the real-life tips they'll need to survive in the corporate jungle while adding a laught or two -- and all the while, the author manages to stay fairly politically correct in her opinions. Enough of those stuffy business books! This one is a perfect mix for business in the '90's.

This book is a refreshing change of pace from male-bashing feminist tomes or "I'm a victim" self-help pulp. Salmansohn combines the tough and tried truths of Sun Tzu (I've been a disciple of his for years) with deep zen thought, and balances it all with an incredible wit for a result that is instructive without being preachy. What I appreciated most was her common sense practicality and her "just do it" attitude.

"How to Succeed" had me laughing out loud several times, and was quite the conversation starter when I read it in public. Don't let the provocative title dissuade you from picking up this little gem.

How to succeed in business without a penis offers advice for women wanting to succeed in a man's world. Gives insight into male behavior, and offers strategies for women wanting to play by their own rules. Rather than explaining how to join the "old boy's club", this book provides a blueprint for building a career that exploits the myths of women in business

Interesting book -- contains both humor and help. What convinced me to buy and read it ? Why, the negative comments from Patriarchs !! Sexism is alive (sometimes seems to thrive) in the USA today. If some men are threatened by this book, maybe that it is a good sign. Salmansohn is a fun and interesting author, as seen again and again in her books. I also like her newest, 'How To Change Your Entire Life By Doing Absolutely Nothing' -- which is another good blend of humor and help.

I decided to stop reading it, after the first chapter or so. There was a sense that the author felt women deserve certain things simply because of their gender, and I feel this is wrong. I'll give an example.

Page 16, one of the questions she asks is, "Why don't women command higher salaries than men when we've got more expensive upkeep: our haircuts, beauty toiletries, tailoring, dry cleaning, clothing, and skimpy bathing suits?"

I do not agree with this kind of entitlement. A person does not deserve more money because he/she wants to spend more money. Rather, a person deserves more money because she/he has worked hard and is successful in business and should be rewarded for producing a product of great value. A salary should be given to a worker based on the ability to do well----not simply because someone "wants" it or "needs" it. If we could get money simply because we want it, then what would be the motivation to keep doing well, improving, and being a better worker? There would be no motivation when we can get more money based on want/need instead.

Under the author's logic, then salaries would be based on how much a person wants to spend on themselves. Therefore, if I tell people that I "need" or want to spend money on frivolous things such as dying my hair, buying clothes, and going to the spa, then I should automatically get more money. Then, everyone would make up things to spend the money on, in order to get a higher salary. They'd lie about it, and it would snowball into a bankrupt business.

I disagree with the author's philosophy and that is why I do not recommend this book.

I gave this book 2 stars instead of 1 because I thought the title was very funny. :-)

The title is eye-catching and the synopsis promised somerealistic suggestions for getting ahead in the land of the glassceiling. What I found, however, was an insipid piece of writing which offers nothing more than an ego boost for the author. Her "aren't I witty?" approach is tedious, at best. Unfortunately, books such as this are part of the problem. No woman will be taken seriously if she follows this tripe as the way up the career ladder.

Yet another worthless book from Karen. This author loves to take any opportunity to attack anything thats symbolically male,including in this case,the world of business which was created by men.Men should not feel guilty or apologize for that fact either,nor should they be sympathetic of the "female struggle" in business or any other domain of men.Its important to note also that men created the free-enterprise system and all business schools,as well as higher-education in general.