Category: Office

Ambition and the Modern Careerist

by candacemoody

Somewhere along the way, ambition went out of style, or at least showing it did. Recently, articles about Olympic snowboarder Shaun White reported that he is wildly unpopular among his fellow snowboarders despite the fact that he almost singlehandedly brought the sport to the world stage. Other snowboarders found his ambition to win unseemly.

Mapping Relationships at Work

by candacemoody

When you understand where people stand and how they think, you may be able to form more productive relationships. It’s not necessarily about being liked and having friends; it’s about having cordial relationships based on respect. Those are the kind of relationships that help you get things done.

Power Surges

by candacemoody

“Power” is a word that many of us associate with unpleasant ideas: it makes us think of egocentric politicians and crazy movie villains. Somewhere along the way, power and abuse became linked in our cultural lexicon. But almost everyone has some sort of personal or positional power that they exercise in the office, even if we don’t often call it by name.

The Politics of Calling in Sick

by candacemoody

Full disclosure: I’m sniffling as I write this at work. Down the hall, I hear regular coughing, and I just finished a meeting with someone who dabbed at her nose the entire time. The odds are pretty good that one or more of us will infect an innocent bystander by our presence at the office. Why do we still come in?

Why Can’t We Be Friends?

by candacemoody

There are people who claim to like people they don’t trust, but I almost never believe them. For me, the word “like” implies a relaxed relationship, and I can’t relax around people I don’t trust. I suspect that liking someone you don’t trust means that you believe you’re far enough down their enemies list to escape any negative behavior.

Playing Nice

by candacemoody

I’ve written about being nice before and how it can sabotage your career and your wellbeing. It’s not that nice guys finish last; I think that if we were all nicer to each other, the world would be a better place. But what is corrosive to your soul is being nice instead of being strong – being nice in the hope that you won’t have to be strong. It doesn’t work, and it eats at your confidence and your power.

Guest Post: 7 Ways to Tell Your Job is Worth Keeping

by candacemoody

Time to quit? Maybe. After all, the correlation between personal fulfillment and success on the job is a strong one. If you’re really miserable, you’re unlikely to brainstorm those cutting edge ideas that will both advance your career and put your company on the cutting edge.