J effrey Hollender is chief inspired protagonist, cofounder, and

executive chairperson of Seventh Generation Inc., the country’s

largest distributor of nontoxic, all-natural cleaning, paper, and
personal products. He would undoubtedly be considered a successful
businessperson. However, every time Hollender visits Canada, he is
detained for extra security screening “because of an incident where
authorities arrested and deported the then-23-year-old American for
operating an adult-education school in Toronto without a work permit.”1
Other prominent businesspeople also had setbacks early in their career
but went on to be successful.
If you want to be successful in your career, maybe you’ll face
setbacks, but maybe you won’t. The main thing to keep in mind is that
you are the one responsible for your career.2 No one else is going to do
it for you, including the organization where you’re employed. That’s why
we’ve included this module in the textbook—to help you better manage
your career. The information in this module is set up by topic area so you
can pick and choose what you’re most interested in. Have fun reading it
and good luck in your future career!

Career Opportunities
in Management
If you’ve paid any attention to news reports over the last few
years, you know about the widespread layoffs both in the
United States and worldwide: Merck cut about 11 percent of
its workforce. Unisys reduced its workforce by 10 percent.
Pfizer Japan Inc. cut its workforce by 5 percent. Kodak
eliminated up to 25,000 jobs. So are management jobs dis-
appearing? You might think so based on these reports. The
truth is: The future looks bright! Business administration
and management continues to be one of the top 10 most
popular college majors, and jobs are likely to be waiting for
those graduates!
Almost 2 million individuals in the United States are
employed as managers.3 The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
estimates a 5 to 28 percent growth in executive, administra-
tive, and managerial jobs through the year 2018.4 These jobs,
however, may not be in the organizations or fields that you’d
expect. The demand for managers in traditional Fortune
500 organizations, and particularly in the area of traditional
manufacturing, is not going to be as strong as the demand
for managers in small and medium-sized organizations in
the services field, particularly information and health care
services. Keep in mind that a good place to land a manage-
ment position can be a smaller organization.
Finding a Culture That Fits
Richard D’Ambrosio thought he had found the perfect job at
an accounting firm. It had all the outward appearances of a
good workplace—employee recognition awards and managers
with “politically correct” answers to work–life questions. Yet,
as soon as he signed on, he found himself in a culture that
prized working long hours just for the sake of working long

340

hours and where junior accountants were expected to be at
the beck and call of the partners. If it was your wedding
anniversary, too bad. If it was a holiday, too bad. It only took
a few months before he quit. How can you avoid the same
problem? How can you find a culture that fits?5 Here are some
suggestions.
First, figure out what suits you. For instance, do you like
working in teams or on your own? Do you like to go out after
work with colleagues or go straight home? Are you comfort-
able in a more formal or a more casual environment? Then,
narrow your job search to those kinds of employers.
Once you’ve gotten through the initial job screening
process and begin interviewing, the real detective work
begins, which involves more than investigating the “official”
information provided by the employer. Try to uncover the val-
ues that drive the organization. Ask questions such as the
proudest accomplishments or how it responded to past emer-
gencies and crises. Ask, “If I have an idea, how do I make it
happen?” Ask if you can talk to someone who’s on the “fast
track” to promotions and find out what they’re doing and why
they’re being rewarded. Ask how you’ll be evaluated—after
all, if you’re going to be in the game, shouldn’t you know how
the score is kept? Also, look for nonverbal clues. What do
people have at their desks—family pictures or only work
stuff? Are office doors closed or open? Are there doors? How
does the physical climate feel? Is it relaxed and casual or
more formal? Do people seem to be helping each other as
they work? Are the bathrooms dirty, which might indicate a
low value placed on anything to do with employees? Look at
the material symbols and who seems to have access to them.
And finally, during your investigation, pay particular atten-
tion to the specific department or unit where you’d work.
After all, it is the place where you’d spend the majority of
your working hours. Can you see yourself being happy there?
Taking Risks
“IYAD-WYAD-YAG-WYAG: If you always do what you’ve
always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got! So if
your life is ever going to improve, you’ll have to take
chances.” —Anonymous6
How will you approach your various career moves over
the course of your lifetime? Will you want to do what you’ve
always done? Or will you want to take chances, and how
comfortable will you be taking chances? Taking career risks
doesn’t have to be a gamble. Responsible risk taking can
make outcomes more predictable. Here are some suggestions
for being a responsible, effective risk taker in career deci-
sions. It’s important to thoroughly evaluate the risk. Before
committing to a career risk, consider what you could lose or
who might be hurt. How important are those things or those
people to you? Explore whether you can reach your goal in
another way, thus making the risk unnecessary. Find out
everything you can about what’s involved with taking this
career risk—the timing; the people involved; the changes it
| MANAGING YOUR CAREER MODULE 341
will entail; and the potential gains and losses, both in the
short run and the long run. Examine closely your feelings
about taking this risk: Are you afraid? Are you ready to act
now? Will you know if you have risked more than you can
afford to lose? Finally, ensure your employability. The most
important thing you can do is ensuring that you have choices
by keeping your skills current and continually learning new
skills.
As with any decision involving risk, the more informa-
tion you have available, the better able you are to assess the
risk. Then, armed with this information, you can make a more
informed decision. Even though you won’t be able to elimi-
nate all the negatives associated with taking the risk, you can,
at least, know about them.
Reinventing Yourself
Face it. The only constant thing about change is that it is con-
stant. These days you don’t have the luxury of dealing with
change only once in a while. No, the workplace seems to
change almost continuously. How can you reinvent yourself
to deal with the demands of a constantly changing workplace?7
Being prepared isn’t a credo just for the Boy Scouts; it
should be your motto for dealing with a workplace that is con-
stantly changing. Being prepared means taking the initiative
and being responsible for your own personal career develop-
ment. Rather than depending on your organization to provide
you with career development and training opportunities, do it
yourself. Take advantage of continuing education or graduate
courses at local colleges. Sign up for workshops and semi-
nars that can help you enhance your skills. Upgrading your
skills to keep them current is one of the most important things
you can do to reinvent yourself.
It’s also important for you to be a positive force when
faced with workplace changes. We don’t mean that you
should routinely accept any change that’s being implemented.
If you think that a proposed change won’t work, speak up.
Voice your concerns in a constructive manner. Being
constructive may mean suggesting an alternative. However, if
you feel that the change is beneficial, support it wholeheart-
edly and enthusiastically.
The changes that organizations make in response to a
dynamic environment can be overwhelming and stressful.
However, you can take advantage of these changes by rein-
venting yourself.
Learning to Get Along with
Difficult People
We’ve all been around people who, to put it nicely, are diffi-
cult to get along with. These people might be chronic com-
plainers, they might be meddlers who think they know
everything about everyone else’s job and don’t hesitate to tell
you so, or they might exhibit any number of other unpleasant
interpersonal characteristics. They can make your job as a
342 PA R T F O U R | ORGANIZING
manager extremely hard and your work day very stressful if
you don’t know how to deal with them. Being around diffi-
cult people tends to bring out the worst in all of us. What can
you do? How do you learn to get along with these difficult
people?8
Getting along with difficult people takes a little bit of
patience, planning, and preparation. What you need is an
approach that helps you diffuse a lot of the negative aspects
of dealing with these individuals. For instance, it helps to
write down a detailed description of the person’s behavior.
Describe what this person does that bothers you. Then, try to
understand that behavior. Put yourself in that person’s shoes
and attempt to see things from his or her perspective. Doing
these things initially might help you better understand, pre-
dict, and influence behavior.
Unfortunately, trying to understand the person usually
isn’t enough for getting along. You’ll also need some spe-
cific strategies for coping with different types of difficult
personalities. Here are some of the most common types of
difficult people you’ll meet and some strategies for dealing
with them.
THE HOSTILE, AGGRESSIVE TYPES. With this type, you
need to stand up for yourself; give them time to run down;
don’t worry about being polite, just jump in if you need to;
get their attention carefully; get them to sit down; speak
from your own point of view; avoid a head-on fight; and be
ready to be friendly.
THE COMPLAINERS. With the complainers you need to
listen attentively; acknowledge their concerns; be pre-
pared to interrupt their litany of complaints; don’t agree,
but do acknowledge what they’re saying; state facts with-
out comment or apology; and switch them to problem
solving.
THE SILENT OR NONRESPONSIVE TYPES. With this type,
you need to ask open-ended questions; use the friendly,
silent stare; don’t fill the silent pauses for them in conversa-
tions; comment on what’s happening; and help break the
tension by making them feel more at ease.
THE KNOW-IT-ALL EXPERTS. The keys to dealing with this
type are to be on top of things; listen and acknowledge their
comments; question firmly, but don’t confront; avoid being
a counterexpert; and work with them to channel their energy
in positive directions.
What Do I Want from My Job?
If you’re reading this textbook, you’re likely enrolled in a
class that’s helping you earn credit toward a college degree.
You’re also likely taking the courses you need to earn a col-
lege degree because you hope to get a good job (or a better
job, if you’re already working) upon graduating. With all this
effort you’re putting forth, have you ever stopped to think
about what you really want from your job?9 A high salary?
Work that challenges you? Autonomy and flexibility? Per-
haps the results of surveys of workers will give you some
insights into what you might want from your job. The top rea-
sons that employees took their jobs and stay with their jobs
are as follows:
Work–life balance and flexibility 29%
The work itself 27
Compensation offered 26
Coworkers 25
Work culture 13
Training opportunities 5
Advancement opportunities 5
(Total adds up to more than 100% because individuals indicated more
than one factor.)
Do any of these characteristics describe what you want
from your job? Whether they do or don’t, you should spend
some time reflecting on what you want your job to provide
you. Then, when it’s time to do that all-important job
search, look for situations that will provide you what you’re
looking for.
How Can I Have a Successful Career?
Leaving college after graduation to enter the workforce is
always a scary step. However, you can make that transition
much easier through one “undeniable element: personal
accountability.”10 And because you’re likely to be the
youngest team member, it’s especially important that you
take responsibility for your actions and behaviors. By tak-
ing an active role in managing your career, your work life
can be more exciting, enjoyable, satisfying, and rewarding.
So, here are some suggestions that will help you on the path
to a successful career:
! Understand yourself—your abilities and disabilities;
your strengths and weaknesses
! Protect your personal brand—watch what you share
online and in interactions with others, and watch your
e-mails11
! Be a team player—focus on knowing your peer group
and your organization and on the best ways to work
within them
! Dress appropriately—first impressions count, but so do
other impressions that you make every day
! Network—develop and keep your links to other
professionals open and active by participating in
professional organizations, staying in touch with

classmates and friends, using online networking sites,
and so forth12
! Ask for help—if you find yourself facing an issue you’re
not sure how to handle, ask someone for advice or guid-
ance; seek out a mentor
! Keep your skills updated—although you might think you
know it all, you don’t; keep learning about your profes-
sion and your industry
| MANAGING YOUR CAREER MODULE 343
! Set goals and then work hard to achieve them—showing
your boss that you’re able to set goals and reach them is
always impressive
! Do good work—above all, having a successful career
means doing your job well, whatever that job might be