The Brazen Careerist


Bad answers: How interviews go astray Published on Dec 8th, 2005 0 comments Recently I interviewed for a job. I haven't interviewed for the last three years, since my first son was born. I felt that awkward feeling that people describe when they break up with their long-term...
Pay freeze? Ask for other rewards Published on Dec 1st, 2005 0 comments Salary-review season is upon us. Most managers conduct performance reviews at the beginning of the year, and most performance reviews entail some sort of salary review. Don't get your hopes up for a...
Bad advice: Don't let it stop you Published on Nov 24th, 2005 0 comments Entrepreneurship used to be an inclination that festered until a midlife crisis. But the entrepreneurship bug isn't something that hits only in middle age, so why wait that long? Today, the people...
Ask yourself: Do people like me? Published on Nov 17th, 2005 0 comments You get promoted in this world because people like you, not because you get the work done. In fact, a study just published in the Harvard Business Review shows that people would rather work with...
Glass ceiling: It's about to self-destruct Published on Nov 10th, 2005 0 comments Forget the glass ceiling. It's about to become irrelevant– not because women are finally going to get to the top of Fortune 500 companies in forces of more than two companies at a time. That...
Cold calls: Ticket to a good job Published on Nov 3rd, 2005 0 comments Cold calling is for champions. Skeptical? Well, I'm not sure you have much of a choice. Fewer than half of all jobs are advertised, and most people don't get jobs through listings. So how are you...
Career change: How to make it happen Published on Oct 27th, 2005 0 comments These days, everyone is a career changer. No one is going to keep the same career for 40 years. How boring. People change, so careers should change. But why do people have to be so incompetent about...
First born?: Birth order tells a lot Published on Oct 20th, 2005 0 comments I'm a sucker for birth order theory. I love it because it explains so much about a person so quickly. Birth order theory will help you understand someone's world-view quickly. It will also give you...
Pink slip: Be ready for bad news Published on Oct 13th, 2005 0 comments Unemployment is traumatic, and people who have been there never shake the fear of going back. If you've spent five months job-hunting (an average amount of time) you have probably faced worry,...
Nola libre: Lessons from Katrina Published on Oct 6th, 2005 0 comments The footage from New Orleans reminds me of my own experience at the World Trade Center. The first couple of weeks after the hurricane are just the beginning. So much of the rest of the story is about...
Chick list: Forget old status symbols Published on Sep 29th, 2005 0 comments Hey, all you women! Looking for a way to look good at a party? Forget bragging rights to a house with a picket fence. Forget a plastic-surgeried body that defies gravity. Here are the status symbols...
Violations: Avoid these résumé mistakes Published on Sep 22nd, 2005 0 comments This is the problem with the résumé -writing world: Everyone thinks they're an exception to the rules. Everyone thinks they can pick and choose which rules are important. Do not do this. Until you...
For U? Think twice about MBA Published on Sep 15th, 2005 0 comments Whether you're thinking of a top-tier MBA or a PhD in anthropology, there's a right way and a wrong way to approach graduate school. You need to understand your dreams and what's required to achieve...
Biz classes?: Read a novel, join the gym Published on Sep 8th, 2005 0 comments The September ritual of selecting classes usually takes place in a fog of bad criteria: uninformed friends, overly invested parents, and the never-ending quest for no early morning classes. I have...
Fat lessons: Learn from pregnancy plan Published on Sep 2nd, 2005 0 comments "I don't mean to be harsh," my agent said three days after I delivered my baby, "but you look terrible." The fact that good-looking people make more money is more true for women than men, which is...
Choice words: When to put a lid on it Published on Aug 18th, 2005 0 comments Preparation for an interview should include preparing to be silent. An interview is a sales call, not a chat session. So you shouldn't answer every question you get. Sometimes, you need to give a non...
Get a life: Make work take back seat Published on Aug 11th, 2005 0 comments Recently I read about a company with three full-timers whose only job is to make employee life fun. They plan outings, parties, raffles, all reportedly in an effort to "stave off headhunters" and to...
Get real: You can't avoid office politics Published on Aug 4th, 2005 0 comments Here is a message for people who say they can't stomach office politics: You will die a slow, painful career death. This is because there's no getting around office politics, and mastering them is...
The secret: Organize your sloppy day Published on Jul 28th, 2005 0 comments Periodically, a college student sends an email to me asking if he or she can interview me for a term paper. I always say yes, and I always learn something about my work by answering such questions....
Cruise, Tom: Depressed folks need help Published on Jul 21st, 2005 0 comments I am not featured in my high school yearbook as the person most likely to be giving career advice. People were probably thinking, as they signed my yearbook, that I was the person most likely to...
Babywise: Lessons from the delivery room Published on Jun 30th, 2005 0 comments I had my baby last week. I'm tired. But not too tired to recognize management issues during labor. There were three management styles among the people in the delivery room: 1. The micromanager...
Hey, there: This column's for you Published on Jun 23rd, 2005 0 comments My brother Erik told me that I should make my headlines more cryptic so more people will read my column. I informed him that most people think the purpose of a headline is to tell the reader what the...
Worst mistakes: Avoid errors of new managers Published on Jun 16th, 2005 0 comments First-time managers are generally nightmares to work for. They are people who got promoted by doing a non-management job well, and they probably have little experience in management. Here are four of...
Poncho mia: Plan career before baby Published on Jun 9th, 2005 0 comments I am pregnant. Due on June 21. The last time I had a baby was not a great moment in the history of gender discrimination in America. For one thing, as soon as I announced I was pregnant, my editor at...
Plan now: Change career without pai Published on May 25th, 2005 0 comments People start working when they're 22 and don't stop until they're 65 or older. People change. The career you pick when you're 22 will not be appropriate when you're 44. Many people are already...
Gal pals: Network everywhere you go Published on May 19th, 2005 0 comments One of the reasons the glass ceiling persists is that networking is key to getting ahead, and women are not as effective as men at building a network. For one thing, men more than women are likely to...
Google 'em: Networking the easy way Published on May 12th, 2005 0 comments In the ongoing development of me as a brazen careerist, my weak point has been networking. I know it's my weak point because I meet a lot of powerful people who could do a lot for me, but instead of...
Google 'em: Networking the easy way Published on May 11th, 2005 0 comments 252"> The HooK: THE BRAZEN CAREERIST- Google 'em: Networking the easy way // >> classifieds >> personals >> advertise >> contacts...
THE BRAZEN CAREERIST- No monster: Flatter coworkers with cookies Published on May 5th, 2005 0 comments <P>My latest management tip: bake cookies. That's right, bake them at home and bring them to the office. This advice applies to both men and women and requires no great cooking skill. You will...
No monster: Flatter coworkers with cookies Published on May 5th, 2005 0 comments My latest management tip: bake cookies. That's right, bake them at home and bring them to the office. This advice applies to both men and women and requires no great cooking skill. You will surprise...