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Avoiding the Dodgeballs ...at Work: A Young Woman's Guide to Succeeding at a First Job
Information About the Book: A career guidance book that prepares entry level women employees for the world of work. This career guidance book addresses a variety of subject matters including: project management, team work, managing your boss, performance evaluations, sexual harassment, difficult coworkers and networking. It is an easy to read guidance book with two main characters. One of the fictional characters is a female, a recent college graduate, who is preparing to enter the workforce. The other character is the narrator, who gives the new employee straight to the point advice -with a touch of humor- on how to handle or avoid potential work related issues. There are funny scenarios and illustrations scattered throughout the book. An index is included to locate specific subject matter. The author E. Marie is hopeful that upon reading her book, readers will get a heads-up on what to expect during the first year of employment while obtaining some tips on how to avoid first job "hiccups" and smoothly move up the ladder. About the Author: Writing under the pen name "E. Marie," Emerald Betts is a business professional who has worked in various industries, including large and small corporations and non-profits. She holds a Bachelor Degree in Accounting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Science Degree in Communications from Northwestern University. As a person who loves to read and listen to talk radio, Emerald enjoys mentoring young people of all ages. When not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and attending grandson Jalen's baseball games. Mrs. Betts resides in Chicago, Illinois.
206 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 22, 2018
There was some good advice here, but I wasn't a big fan of the style. A lot of it is pretty common-sense, but a helpful look at some of the pitfalls in a first job.
January 31, 2015
Avoiding the Dodgeballs … at Work: A Young Woman's Guide to Succeeding at a First Job tackles a topic normally buried in wider-ranging career guides: how to dodge typical problems that affect young women as they embark on their first climb up the business ladder. It's directed to entry-level female employees or supervisors and it outlines the exact nature of these common obstacles and how to either avoid them entirely or work with them.
One might anticipate that the major problem involves harassment or prejudices - and indeed these underlie many of the issues - but the pleasure of this coverage lies in its candid discussions of office politics and problems that range from gossip to demotions and confrontations both with peers and superiors.
Chapters display questions and answers from the fictional 'Katie', the perfect example of a new employee fielding her first obstacles, and use her responses as a foundation for exploring everything from fringe benefits and how they are applied to identifying both the mindset and processes of different kinds of supervisors, managing or coping with not only one's own time but the work of supervisors and peers, and avoiding coworkers who create toxic environments.
While many of these issues may seem to skirt the edges of common-sense thinking more than business savvy, it's important to note the audience for Avoiding the Dodgeballs: the new grad student, the entry-level worker, or the female facing her first obstacles on her first job. This audience is unlikely to receive such insights from anywhere other than this book and the school of hard knocks: and given the choice between the two, Avoiding the Dodgeballs should win hands down.
Add in some black and white cartoon embellishments and a format which is chatty yet information, breaking topics into segments and visuals and making them readable and easy to understand, and you have a guide which should be in every women's issues or business and career collection.
One might anticipate that the major problem involves harassment or prejudices - and indeed these underlie many of the issues - but the pleasure of this coverage lies in its candid discussions of office politics and problems that range from gossip to demotions and confrontations both with peers and superiors.
Chapters display questions and answers from the fictional 'Katie', the perfect example of a new employee fielding her first obstacles, and use her responses as a foundation for exploring everything from fringe benefits and how they are applied to identifying both the mindset and processes of different kinds of supervisors, managing or coping with not only one's own time but the work of supervisors and peers, and avoiding coworkers who create toxic environments.
While many of these issues may seem to skirt the edges of common-sense thinking more than business savvy, it's important to note the audience for Avoiding the Dodgeballs: the new grad student, the entry-level worker, or the female facing her first obstacles on her first job. This audience is unlikely to receive such insights from anywhere other than this book and the school of hard knocks: and given the choice between the two, Avoiding the Dodgeballs should win hands down.
Add in some black and white cartoon embellishments and a format which is chatty yet information, breaking topics into segments and visuals and making them readable and easy to understand, and you have a guide which should be in every women's issues or business and career collection.
February 6, 2019
As a young woman who is a library intern and soon to venture out into the professional world, I was lucky enough to receive Avoiding the Dodgeballs...at Work: A Young Woman's Guide to Succeeding at a First Job by E. Marie.
Chapter 2, “The Oogly List,” set off the humorous tone of the book. It helped me realize that though a first job can stress you out, it is helpful to remain calm. This chapter gave me a heads-up on how to look at co-workers, because let’s face it: we have all been faced with co-workers who are difficult.
It was refreshing to read Chapter 22, reminding readers that whether you are hired to your dream job or not, it is important to work on yourself. Reading this, I learned that I should never get too comfortable. I want to always look ahead to the future, make a new goal, and reach that new step. As I am currently working towards my Master's Degree, Chapter 42 also helped me keep in mind that creating goals is imperative.
The graphics brought life to the book. As simple as it may seem, Page 22, gives you a nice illustration of some basic office supplies one may want to keep handy at the desk.
Another very important tip that I have taken away from this book is to constantly review and rewrite my resume, in order to move up the ladder of success, because I may look for bigger and better positions as time goes by.
I look forward to E. Marie's further advice on my first professional job, perhaps in a second book!
Chapter 2, “The Oogly List,” set off the humorous tone of the book. It helped me realize that though a first job can stress you out, it is helpful to remain calm. This chapter gave me a heads-up on how to look at co-workers, because let’s face it: we have all been faced with co-workers who are difficult.
It was refreshing to read Chapter 22, reminding readers that whether you are hired to your dream job or not, it is important to work on yourself. Reading this, I learned that I should never get too comfortable. I want to always look ahead to the future, make a new goal, and reach that new step. As I am currently working towards my Master's Degree, Chapter 42 also helped me keep in mind that creating goals is imperative.
The graphics brought life to the book. As simple as it may seem, Page 22, gives you a nice illustration of some basic office supplies one may want to keep handy at the desk.
Another very important tip that I have taken away from this book is to constantly review and rewrite my resume, in order to move up the ladder of success, because I may look for bigger and better positions as time goes by.
I look forward to E. Marie's further advice on my first professional job, perhaps in a second book!
October 26, 2014
I received this book for a fair review.
Overview: Let’s meet Katie. She’s heading for her first job and Mrs. Marie has a treasure trove of advice for both her, and the readers heading for their first jobs.
Likes: Mrs. Marie has hit on everything from punctuality to the proper ways to dress and speak at work. We learn how to recognize problem personalities and get a reminder that the workplace isn’t much of a social circle, though you still have to socialize.
Dislikes: I believe this book can benefit everyone. So even though this is addressed to women, please read it too guys.
Conclusion: I had a fun time reading this book. The critical information was put down in an entertaining way. I strongly recommend it to anyone heading for his/her first job, or second….
Overview: Let’s meet Katie. She’s heading for her first job and Mrs. Marie has a treasure trove of advice for both her, and the readers heading for their first jobs.
Likes: Mrs. Marie has hit on everything from punctuality to the proper ways to dress and speak at work. We learn how to recognize problem personalities and get a reminder that the workplace isn’t much of a social circle, though you still have to socialize.
Dislikes: I believe this book can benefit everyone. So even though this is addressed to women, please read it too guys.
Conclusion: I had a fun time reading this book. The critical information was put down in an entertaining way. I strongly recommend it to anyone heading for his/her first job, or second….
October 23, 2014
Given To Me For An Honest Review
Avoiding the Dodgeballs...at Work: A Young Woman's Guide to Succeeding at a First Job by E. Marie is an interesting book to have read. It is a fast read so it didn't take too long to finish it. There were some areas that it seemed to be all over the place. But, all in all with it's use of a bit of humor it has viable information to help an entry level employee or an employee who has decided to re-enter the workforce. Although it is geared toward young women, I believe young men could gain from reading it too. I recommend it to those who may not understand the ins and outs of entering the job market. I look forward to more from E. Marie.
Avoiding the Dodgeballs...at Work: A Young Woman's Guide to Succeeding at a First Job by E. Marie is an interesting book to have read. It is a fast read so it didn't take too long to finish it. There were some areas that it seemed to be all over the place. But, all in all with it's use of a bit of humor it has viable information to help an entry level employee or an employee who has decided to re-enter the workforce. Although it is geared toward young women, I believe young men could gain from reading it too. I recommend it to those who may not understand the ins and outs of entering the job market. I look forward to more from E. Marie.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews