Hochheiser (How To Work for a Jerk, Vintage, 1987) offers readers the benefit of his hindsight in this guide to workplace strategy. A veteran of the perils of dictatorial bosses, unhelpful co-workers, firings, and other debilitating work situations, Hochheiser has reassessed the meaning of the workplace and proposed a simple formula for success: Forget the idea that hard work alone leads to success and instead focus on building good relationships. The author asserts that the best way to win at work is to understand what is needed to support the egos of bosses, peers, and subordinates. Accurate assessment of those needs can then be indirectly associated with one's own personal goals and exploited to make substantive workplace gains. Methods of determining needs are given for a variety of situations, and strategies are offered to help make some of the worst work situations at least marginally better through networking and personal development. Raw, straightforward, and entertaining, this fast-paced self-help guide is for anyone disappointed with his or her job. Recommended for public libraries and career resource centers.?Robert L. Balliot Jr., East Greenwich Free Lib., R.I.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Hochheiser explains why understanding people can be the key to success on the job. He offers six elements of job satisfaction: meet your needs while meeting the needs of others, stay focused, learn from your mistakes, take charge of your career, cultivate alternative sources of satisfaction, and never sacrifice or jeopardize your integrity. He believes that self-interest rules every job and every boss, even the good ones. In putting themselves first, bosses are responding to their survival instincts. He provides action plans for making personal changes in stressful and uncertain job situations, which include cutting personal expenses and exploring other professions, but cautions against moaning and groaning, which is almost instinctive. Such response is self-defeating. Concluding with the chapter "Don't Let the Bastards Grind You Down," Hochheiser offers colorful advice on how to handle conflicts with peers and bosses. Almost everyone who is employed will find familiar scenarios presented in this book, along with explanations and solutions that may or may not be convincing. Mary Whaley