Q. I joined Blue Company three months ago. Since then my department has experienced a 40% turnover. I can see why. It’s disorganized and outdated. Our boss expects us to put in long hours to do meaningless work. Time to leave? A. Maybe. The key question seems to be:
Workplace Politics
Career Decision: Leave a sinking ship (or enjoy more cheese?)
Handling criticism on the job
Many years ago, when I was a college professor, we had a dean who could be more than a little temperamental. Department heads would come out of meetings swearing and upset. They rarely stood up to the dean. (If you’re not familiar with academic hierarchy, deans are like directors and department heads are more like […]
Office politics: Case of the insufferable colleague
This post was inspired by a letter to the “Workologist,” an advice columnist who fields questions about office politics every week. Read the post here. First, there are many good reasons to consult a career consultant instead of writing to an advice column (even a workologist!) and the limits of seeking columnar advice will be […]
“Bad Career Hair Story”
Last Sunday’s New York Times included the story of a really Bad Hair Day. It’s the second story on this page. Here’s how it goes. A woman works in Hong Kong for a Paris-based fashion house. She dyes her hair bright red. She gets some compliments from her coworkers. But then a few months later […]
Workplace Politics: Can This Career Be Saved?
.This week I’m beginning an occasional series, “Can This Career Be Saved?” It’s named after the popularly magazine feature, “Can This Marriage Be Saved?” I’ll present a scenario and suggest my response. Then I’ll ask some questions and invite you to comment on the blog post. You are also invited to contribute questions that can […]