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45 Things You Do That Drive Your Boss Crazy--And How to Avoid Them

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This is a great book. Written by a journalist with useful experience including a garbled recording of Richard Nixon.
The book is entertaining and useful. I checked it out from the library, renewed it several times, paid fines and finally just bought it.

Pretty basic stuff, but nevertheless, it's a good read, perfect for the recent graduate or others who are new to the work force.

In Anita Bruzzese's syndicated column "On the Job," and in her numerous magazine articles, readers have become accustomed to her invigorating writing style, with these prominent characteristics:

--Clear, simple yet colorful language

--True relevant incidents that illustrate her points

--Tasteful wit, not overcooked

--Practical steps for solving every problem she identifies



Without fail, Bruzzese scratches readers where they itch. In fact, hers is not armchair counsel. "I work for a living," she explains in this book's Introduction, "and have since I was fifteen." Beyond her own experience, she draws on the hundreds of letters she receives from readers, and "hundreds of interviews I have done with company managers and career experts." Her conclusion: "Something is seriously wrong here, folks."



In 45 Things You Do, Bruzzese spotlights what's wrong--what we do, or don't do, on the job and even off duty that jeopardizes our standing with the boss, and frequently annoys our work associates as well. Office romance, enjoying the office holiday season party too much, inappopriate clothing, gossiping, crying at work--nothing offensive escapes her sleuthing eye. In every case, fortunately, she tells us how to eliminate toxic behavior from our professional life.



I wish this very helpful book had been available when I started my twenty-three year management career. I would have benefited two ways.



First, I would have avoided stupid blunders of my own that angered my bosses and threatened my career. The unfortunate part was that I didn't consider my behavior risky, much less out of bounds. Yet with each careless act, my bosses must have moved me into the "do not promote" category.



Second, I would have made this book required reading for every person I supervised, so they would ease my mind and improve their performance dramatically. Now that I serve as a consultant and coach for top-level corporations, I will recommend 45 Things You Do to my clients. They will thank me, and will praise Anita Bruzzese for her terrific practical guidelines.



As I titled this review, Don't Go to Work Without This Book. And once you have read it, distribute copies to your colleagues. Soon, your boss won't be angry, your place of business will enjoy more harmony, and productivity will increase markedly.





--Bill Lampton, author of The Complete Communicator:

Change Your Communication, Change Your Life!

President, Championship Communication.The Complete Communicator: Change Your Communication-change Your Life!

Item was received promptly and in good condition. I've enjoyed reading the book and it will stay in my library for a long time. Thank you!

The coal mine canary was a low-tech but effective early warning device that miners used to detect dangerous poison gases in the mineshafts. Anita Bruzzese performs a similar warning function for the modern workplace. Since 1992, she has written about its various ills, as well as reporting on general workplace topics in her popular, insightful weekly column "On the Job." To develop her book, Bruzzese culled through hundreds of letters she received from workers asking for advice about problems they encounter at work (many of which they create themselves). Bruzzese is a leading authority on all things office-related. getAbstract suggests that she can teach you a lot about what constitutes acceptable - and not so acceptable - workplace behavior. This book is ideal for any employee who wants to know what mistakes to avoid in order to stay in the boss's good graces and to get ahead at work.

You hear with this book, "I wish I'd had this advice 30 years ago." That's the problem with it - this light-weight effort is for kids with their first jobs. The author's observations are so facile as to be insulting to the competent, experienced employee - of any age. The writing style borders on snotty in an attempt to be humorous. Unfortunately, the people buying the book are the managers - like my boss. He's reading each chapter OUT LOUD at weekly department head meetings to people who are all over 40, some close to retirement. This new book has created an culture of paranoia - "is he talking about ME?" - because we can't believe he really thinks he has to tell the executives of his company to not dye their hair purple. I cannot stress to you enough: This book is not for adults but would make a dandy gradutation gift for the kids in your life, provided they don't mind being told they're driving someone crazy.

"In her writing style that engages millions of readers ever day, Bruzzese reveals the most important strategies to keep your career on track. It's loaded with practical advice, and it will help you build a better career as you laugh along the way. If you don't read this book, I hope you enjoy watching everyone else get promoted."

I have worked in the business world for over 30 years - and never realized that everyone faces the same weird, annoying, and maddening problems at work every day. The rules for behavior at work are covered - and solutions to help you deal with those who don't follow the rules - or even know the rules exist - are also covered.

This book was written in a down-to-earth manner - a very easy read!

This is Anita Bruzzese's second book (her first was Take This Job and Thrive) and it is one of the funnest I've read all year. On my blog I tend to focus on getting a job (or, as one reader recently wrote, bashing job seekers :p) and don't really go into what you do once you got the job, or how to keep the job. That's where this book comes in.

Anita breaks her book down into five sections, and has a bunch of the "things" that drive bosses crazy under each section.

A few foundational principles that come out of Anita's book include:

Bosses don't hire you to fire you. They want to keep you around. It's a pain to find new employees and always try and make the team as productive as it should be. If you are the right hire they want you around!

You need to make your boss look good. Your boss has a boss. What you do (or don't do) will make him/her look really good or really bad. Your boss wants to look really good!

Don't be a dork, or stupid! A lot of the things in this book are things that *I would never do* ... ! Even though many of them, to me, are "common sense," I think about my past jobs and can't believe how many people violated so many of these 45 things! Just amazing. There really is a need for this book.

Reading a list of the 45 things is okay but Anita makes the case for each point and it's really worth the read. I definitely recommend this to anyone that is just starting their career (yes, even the Gen Y folks :p). Consider leaving a copy on the desk of that coworker who kicked the copy machine (I've seen that, to the point of being scary), or the coworker who thinks that an industry conference is a family vacation (I've seen that way too many times), or the coworker who always seems to get out of certain meetings to get her own work done, or the coworker who doesn't know how to delegate, or the coworker who always seems to be sleepy, or not dress well, or... man, the list goes on and on!

An excellent book, a fun read, and very inexpensive.

Anita Bruzzese presents her readers with rare gifts: the tools and the coaching to take control of their own careers. Employees will prosper and bosses will smile wherever "45 Things You Do That Drive Your Boss Crazy" is required reading.