Confessions of a Corporate Shopaholic

I was captivated by the title of this book by Anita Bruzzese a few years ago.  I think it was my wicked sense of humor to attempt to do some of these 45 things to get even with my boss at the time.  Yes I said it was wicked, and I plead myself guilty.  However, at the end of the day, I did nothing of the sort since I cared so much more about my own professional reputation rather than some silly grudges over the most childish cases of office politics.

Are you curious about what these 45 things are?  Well, they are not as obnoxious as you think.  Or are they?

1. Treating the office like it’s your love shack
2. Punching the soda machine when you’re stressed out and ticked off
3. Goofing off on a business trip
4. Earning a reputation as a whiner, drama queen or general pain in the neck
5. Discussing your personal beliefs at work
6. Telling dirty jokes and cussing on the job
7. Having questionable personal integrity
8. Blogging about your job (Oh no….)
9. Having poor writing and spelling skills
10. Failing to write thank-you notes
11. Committing e-mail blunders
12. Failing to speak intelligently
13. Wearing the wrong thing to work
14. Behaving immaturely at company parties
15. Being disorganized
16. Being a poor listener
17. Losing sleep
18. Using your personal cell phone too much
19. Acting like a boot at business meals
20. Not appreciating coworkers
21. Failing to delegate
22. Being intolerant
23. Disrespecting a mentor
24. Not getting to know others in the company
25. Giving feedback that is deliberately hurtful
26. Fostering an offensive workplace
27. Gossiping
28. Not giving or accepting an apology
29. Crying at work
30. Caving in to a bully
31. Failing to learn from mistakes
32. Being unable to overcome obstacles
33. Having too much – or too little – confidence
34. Neglecting to write things down
35. Asking for a raise you don’t deserve
36. Lacking knowledge of current events
37. Holding grudges (bingo…)
38. Giving lackluster speeches or presentations
39. Squandering time at seminars
40. Skipping company-sponsored events
41. Ignoring the company’s goals
42. Dodging meetings
43. Not going beyond your job description
44. Neglecting new coworkers
45. Fighting change

I recommend this book if you are eager to find out how you can avoid the mistakes and mend things with your boss, or, if you have the same devious reason as I did.

Well, of course I’m kidding.