I Hate People!: Kick Loose from the Overbearing and Underhanded Jerks at Work and Get What You Want Out of Your Job

by Marc Hershon, Jonathan Littman

Whether your company has 10 employees or 10,000, you must grapple with people you can't stand in the office. Luckily Jonathan Littman and Marc Hershon have written I Hate People! , a smart, counter-intuitive, and irreverent turn on the classic workplace self-help book that will show you how to identify the Ten Least Wanted — the people you hate — while revealing the strategies to neutralize them. Learn to fly right by the "Stop Sign" (nay-sayer) and rise above the pronouncements of the "Know-it-None." I Hate People! teaches you how to become a more effective Soloist -- one of those bold individuals daring to work alone or collaborate with a handful of other talented people....while artfully deflecting the rest.

Genres: Nonfiction, Business, Psychology, Self Help, Management, Social Science

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Marc Hershon wrote "I Hate People!" with Jonathan Littman. Marc is a branding expert who helped to create names for countless hit products, including BlackBerry, Swiffer, and nvi. He is also a comedy veteran who has worked closely with Dana Carvey, Bill Maher and many other comedians. A contributing editor for Playboy, Jonathan Littman is the coauthor of The Ten Faces of Innovation. He has also written two nonfiction books about famous computer hackers, The Watchman and The Fugitive Game.
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Reviews

[Cwilson466 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I, for one, hate people. That is, I hate people as a group. I like individual people, but when they come together they are just no fun at all. This book called to me from the bookshelf and I had to read it. I am so glad that I did. It was funny, relevant, well researched (for the most part), and unique as business books go. It was a fun read and there are lots of really great stories and very wise suggestions about navigating the world of work. I had names ready for each of the 10 "least wanted" in the workplace. Yes, I have met all of these people, and so have you. The only reason that I did not give the book 5 stars is because there are some points made by the authors that I feel are not representative of what the research says. For example, as much of a pain as teams are, they are good. Teams can accomplish more than the individuals working separately, this is why organizations have moved toward using teams. This comment aside, I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who works with anyone else; co-workers, bosses, clients, direct reports, anyone.

[Wendy Bunnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a new book, out for a decade. But, it still holds true. The same types of people roam current workplaces, preventing you from getting stuff done and getting on with it. I might have mentioned it to a coworker who reads a lot of non-fiction, and now wonder what category I fall into. Probably the "minute man" who interrupts to many times for something not important. Though I'd like to think I'm a daring soloist who comes up with innovative solutions despite the constraints of the corporate workplace. Fly free, daring eagle of the cube farm.

I picked up the audiobook from my library because of the title, and my complete love for the song "I Hate People" sung by Squidward Tentacles in an episode of Spongebob Squarepants. Youtube it, you'll love it. My boys sing it to me when I complain about people.

Like Squidward's song, this book is funny and has a light tone. They're both right. People are. the. worst. Yet, we still need to get paid. This way, we can at least snicker about them while we're reading during lunchbreak.

[Cassie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though this is an older title, was excellent (and funny), providing actual great advice and game plans for creative introverts who hate people (particularly those who like to say they’re busy and talk about the busy but don’t ever do anything to combat the busy).

[Krissy from aNobii · Rating 3 out of 5]

«Un libro per chi non vuole rischiare di perdere il lavoro in questo momento di crisi, e anzi aspira a un glorioso futuro professionale.» Arricchito da numerosi esempi tratti dalle metodologie utilizzate in grandi società – come Google e Procter & Gamble – per togliersi di torno gli Altamente Indesiderabili, Io odio la gente è un libro fondamentale per quanti aspirano a vivere nel migliore dei mondi possibili, almeno in ufficio. Che lavoriate in un'azienda di dieci impiegati o di diecimila, prima o poi troverete in ufficio della gente veramente insopportabile. Ma questo non comporta che vi lasciate pestare i piedi da tutti. Seguite i preziosi consigli contenuti in questo libro e: identificherete a colpo d'occhio i sabotatori, i capetti e i pugnalatori alle spalle che rendono il luogo di lavoro un campo minato. Diventerete un Solista, uno di quei coraggiosi individui che osano lavorare autonomamente o con una ristretta cerchia di persone in gamba e motivate. Costruirete il vostro spazio personale entro cui lavorare con serenità risparmiando tempo ed energia. Rifiutando la cultura dell'ipocrita "gentilezza-a-tutti-i-costi" che ha danneggiato così tante aziende e persone, "Io odio la gente" offre una bussola per navigare fra le insidie del posto di lavoro. GLI AUTORI - Jonathan Littman, giornalista e scrittore è autore, insieme a Tom Kelley, di I dieci volti dell’innovazione, e ha scritto The Watchman e The Fugitive Game su due famosi hacker. Marc Hershon è un esperto di branding. Ha «inventato» il nome a innumerevoli prodotti, fra cui BlackBarry, Swiffer, Pentium e Dasani. È anche attore, sceneggiatore e «veterano» del mondo dello spettacolo e ha lavorato accanto a personaggi come Dana Carvey, Bill Maher e Robin Williams.

[Delaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really, really needed this book. Giving it three stars doesn't fully represent its value, because it presented a way of looking at the workplace and my own work style that has been incredibly helpful. However, the book as a whole isn't constructed that well, and there were several clumsily explained parts. But that doesn't matter, because it's made me feel less crazy about my work style and the frustrations I've exprienced.

This book isn't exactly about hating people, it's more about giving people permission to be choosy about the people they work with, take back their solo work time, and just do good work. Personally, I'm not excited about working with just anybody on any team. I want to work with people who inspire me, know more than I do, and with whom I have good professional and creative chemistry. Without those things, I'd pretty much rather work alone.

For a long time I've been told that teams are the key to doing great work, which I don't entirely disagree with, but sometimes this belief can be taken to such an extreme that it no longer matters who's on the team or how well they work together. With this way of thinking, if the team's not working well, it's the team's fault, not the fault of wonky group chemistry, lack of trust, or a lack of admiration amongst team members. And I think this is missing the critical magic that's so necessary to make great collaboration work. Putting together an "ensemble" as the authors put it, is the kind of teamwork I'm interested in. In the meantime, I'm excited about my newfound identify of Soloist.

[Uzma · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book seems to be for people who are the most perfect work-fellows in the world. It has a very you vs them mentality it sets out in the book and paints a very drab picture of everyone else. It begins by differentiating people from individuals but the fact is that we work with individuals and not just an arbitrary group of people. People in our lives all have names and faces and different experiences. It doesn't work the way this book suggests.
When reading this book and the tone with which it categorizes people made me really question if this book was meant to help people resolve their issues and improve themselves and their relationships. Most of it just seemed to categorize people and then trash talk them. Yes, there are difficult people out there but unlike the tone that the book takes to describing them, most people aren't aware that they are coming off a certain way.
Maybe I don't hate people as much as this book seems to think I should. Or maybe I am an amalgamation of all 10 of the worst types of people out there. But I felt terrible reading this book. It brought no value to my life. It just managed to make me feel worse.
I just don't think we can assign terrible traits to a person in isolation as a matter of fact. It's not necessary that a bulldozer is always wrong or a stop signs are the worst. People are a lot more than the color we paint them and we should respect that. I thought this book would help me understand and improve myself. Instead it just trashed everyone else to try to make me feel better.

[Cyndie Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another book that is a list of some of the jerks you will encounter in the workplace (ala. The Jackass Whisperer: How to deal with the worst people at work, at home and online--even when the Jackass is you and Alexei Maxim Russell's Field Guide to Assholes.

Think it is more successful than other similar books in actually being both humorous and helpful, with more practical tips for overcoming the challenges that are encountered with the difficult people we work with than I'm used to seeing.

I think the most valuable part of the book was how challenged the assumption that working together is always better and that independent work can be really helpful and innovative.

They seem to gloss over the fact that many of these labels are subjective and someone who thinks they are the normal one may be far enough on the spectrum to be someone else's top 10. A good book for people who aren't ready to stop blaming people, do some introspection, and start considering other people's perspectives - but who also who want to spend more time being productive in the mean time.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was mostly full of impractical advice. Not everyone can take a break during the workday to go sailing, spend thousands of dollars to redecorate their office, or work from home for part of each week. It's geared more toward people at innovative tech companies with lax rules rather than the everyday person.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is far too specifically geared to business people and office culture, as opposed to ANY job — they should clarify the subtitle. The coworker stereotypes don’t necessarily apply to other fields. The rest of the book, though, focusing on strategies the individual can implement, is interesting and valuable.

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A provocative title, but this books provides techniques for dealing with difficult people such as the 1) stop sign (“no!”), 2) flim flam (“you two work this project”), 3) bulldozer, 4) smiley face, 5) liar liar, 6) switchblade, 7) minute man, 8) know-it-none, 9) spreadsheet (only wants facts), and 10) sheeple (“I’m not qualified to handle that”). Helpful.

[Sarca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yep, I'm a soloist. I work best alone. However!☝️ I do work well in a team, and have experienced pretty much every person described in this book. As funny as this book is, it is dated, and corporate. Not much anyone can do working in food service when you're surrounded by jerks. And not everyone can take a break from their desks to redecorate the office. But, it was an interesting study.

[Missy Reams Falck · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't hate people, but this book has some great ideas how to be more productive at work and how to carve out that productive time.

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing mindblowing, but I did get a few useful tips from the book/affirmations of things I already do.

[S S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Resonates with my personal beliefs.

[Gaby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Synopsis:
Designed for navigating pitfalls and stop signs in the workplace, I HATE PEOPLE! helps you identify the top drains on your time and resources and teaches office jujitsu tactics to help wrest back your time.

Divided into four parts, the book first identifies and classifies each of The Ten Least Wanted who pose the greatest threat to getting your work done in the office. Without going into a full discussion of The Ten Least Wanted, here they are:

* Stop Sign (like the Kodak executive who predicted digital cameras had no future)
* Flimflam ("expert at identifying people to do her bidding")
* Bulldozer ("wrong decision is better than indecision")
* Smiley Face (think Batman's Joker - constantly smiling with something up his sleeve)
* Liar Liar
* Switchblade (Judas)
* Minute Man ("Do you have a minute, I just have one thing...")
* Know-It-None (full of facts, but most of which are useless or wrong)
* Spreadsheet (Obsessive micromanager)
* Sheeple (avoids making decisions)


The second part of the book introduces the concept of Flying Solo. If you enjoy your work but not distractions from people around you, then your best solution would be to become a successful Soloist. As a soloist, on your best days, you are someone who works effectively with small groups and on your own. By sharing the stories and techniques of successful soloists from a broad range of industries and companies, the book develops a clear picture of how a soloist works.

The last half of the book deals with the work environment. The third section, Office Life, incorporates The Ten Least Wanted with the constraints and demands of office life, such as constant interruptions, disruptions, unreasonable expectations and demands, and excessive rules and red tape. While the last section, Spaces and Places, discusses the need to carve out your own "personal cave" - whether you work in a bull pen, a cubicle, office with a door, or occasionally from home.

Review:
The advice and strategies are interspersed with enough anecdotes from successful soloists to make I HATE PEOPLE! both helpful and interesting read. I'll spare you the comments about how I would have loved to read this while working at Big Law or any similarly predictable remarks. I do think the book's strength is that it helps identify the difficult people and situations that we absorb, acquiesce and live out on a regular basis. I look forward to trying out several of the suggested strategies, such as being more sensitive to and wary of the Switchblades around and trying a "hard stop" with my Minute Man.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who feels frustrated in the office and is looking for ways to eke out more time and autonomy.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a goodreads giveaway win book!!

It took me forever to read. Not because it was a poor book, but because I was reading it in bits and pieces during my lunch 1/2 hour whenever I had the chance (which may be an indication that I need more Island Hopping in my life, according to the book! =) ).

So, finally, here is my review:

Overall, like most business how-to books, this one was good but not revelatory. I think anyone in the working world knows that they hate people - and for the very specific reasons listed in the book. I think they also know that the solution is common sense.

The authors also discussed learning to soar on your own - creating your own space, pursuing your own hobbies, and allowing those hobbies to influence what you do in your work. I found this part a good reminder to encourage my staff to take what they are good at, what they are passionate about and find a way to bring it in to the workplace.

In short, a fun book about the reality of the work place with some practical ideas tossed in.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a little disappointed when I read the full title of this book. I had originally thought it was just a "I hate people... in general" book, which is right up my alley because I do hate people in general. But this book focused mainly on hating people in the workplace. Unfortunately, I don't work in a typical workplace. This book is great for those who sit in tiny cubicles at a big corporation and must sign out with their boss before going to the bathroom. I, however, do not work at such a place. I do, however, already implement some of the book's "solocrafting" techniques, such as "island hopping", so I think I'm well ahead of the game. I also enjoyed what the book said about finding a hobby that you can do at your desk, such as SCRAPBOOKING. Oh if only I felt like I could get away with scrapbooking at my desk. I think I'd need a door on my half-cubicle for that one. Someday, though. Someday.

[John Kowalczyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

As you can hopefully tell by the title and cover illustration, this book is to be taken as a tongue-n-cheek look into today's corporate world. Written by two accredited and humorous individuals, the book begins with clever descriptions of the 10 archetype personalities they've encountered in the business world and heard in their various interviews throughout corporate America. Although it has a strong message of avoiding the negative people you encounter; I've found it to be less about finger pointing and more about being conscious of my own tendencies and seeing (in various degrees) these very characters in my own personality. So get over the non-PC title because they have to grab your attention on the bookshelf, right? It ends up being a refreshing reminder to take control of your own environment, your own reaction to other people and your own personal and professional decisions about how you want to work. Stop finger pointing, complaining and blaming, and start making it happen.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I couldnt help but agree with a lot of what was said, I hated the tone and the tact. Marc Hershon does a great job of describing the frustrations we face, categorizing the challenges we deal with on a daily basis and provides solid steps to overcome them all. His idea of solo-crafting is fantastic and really works well with anyone who has become a Tim Ferris fan.

I wish Hershon had more confidence in the Solo-crafting concept as I felt he needed to hide it behind the Hate concept. If you decide to pick this one up, go paper and avoid the audiobook, the reading was dry and painful... Steven Wright would have been a more dynamic voice for the book...

[Meg · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow there are people who clip their nails in the office? This book is just pages and pages of generic descriptions of all the assholes everyone works with combined with completely unhelpful suggestions on dealing with said assholes. Talk the IT guy into putting an out-of-office message on your email when you're really busy! Tell that person that interrupts you in the meeting that they can present if they have a better idea! Block off 10 minutes of your day where no one can interrupt you! Find out if you can telecommute!

None of the ways to "get what you want out of your job" actually apply if you are A) a woman and/or B) work for a small company.

[Loretta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, if I wasn't laughing I was matching titles to co-workers I have endured over the years! I have in fact found that I am gladly in the soloist communion and am quite happy to keep it that way. I do not suffer others well and for that I have felt like there was something wrong with my psyche... until reading this delightful tome! Okay, so there are some traits that had me evaluating my "office persona" with a bit more clarity than bias, which gives me a new approach for my own goals. I am truly looking forward to gifting this book to more than a few people that would truly appreciate the candor and humor that these two men have poured into it's pages.

[Patty Dixon · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who has tried everything in getting along with people who I don't...take the high road, kill them with kindness, etc. Yuck! Sure way to turn yourself into a doormat. Now I have a firm line between work and my real life. At work, not having to get along with people I don't respect is so liberating. You just co-exist. I'm no longer drained.

And by putting on ear phones, going to your "cave', I have never been more productive. I've had jobs where I get along very well with people and there is something to be said for that, of course. But if you find yourself in the unfortunate situation that you are not clicking, read this book. I'm glad I did.

[Sharon Lensky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I admit I chose this because the title made me laugh. This is anything but my personality - normally I try to put a positive spin on my coworkers' foibles. This is a comedic, fresh take on the typical "dealing with difficult people" conundrum. It also suggests many ways to get more out of your own personal performance (soloism) including giving yourself breaks from your work persona (which we all need). Plenty of examples of successful businesspeople in history are profiled. This was a good break from my recent run of fiction.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate to admit it but I could never finish this book. The beginning had potential with descriptions of those who impede your production, however, it never really tells you how to kick loose except to ignore them. This book might be good if you worked in an office and in management, but I don't see how it works in all industries and in all positions. Overall, I was quite disappointed.

[Holly]

I am thinking about reading this....the title tickles me... the first couple pages are an interesting discussion of the level of stress and anger a lot of people feel now days....here's a quote from the book:

"A PERFECT HOLIDADY: What were one third of fifteen hundred British workers willing to do? Forgo a week's holiday if they didn't have to work next to people they hated"

[Kimberly Hughes · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was all common sense and clichés. The only good thing about this book was the pissy stick figure kicking the water cooler on the cover.
Edit: I am appalled at how many stars many people gave this. Spewing out bad puns and beating some emo "omg people are sheep" mantra into the ground? Not witty. WE GET IT.

[Lionkhan-sama · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty cool book that isn't afraid to step away from the norm and say the taboo. It encourages hating people in a way that is beneficial to you and your work, and not simply blind hating everyone as the name might imply. The hate encouraged here is the type that allows you to fulfil your ambitions.

An enjoyable read for anyone with annoyances at his/her work. It may very well help you cope.

[Troy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice little book about the different people in office environments and the threats they pose to your advancement, assuming that you're the type that works best alone and/or away from the bureaucracy of huge groups.

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads contest... was supposed to get an advance copy. I've been waiting for it since May 23, and it never arrived. I'm sure I'd love it if it actually arrived, however it has not shown up so I have no idea if I like it or not.

[Jen Giebler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny approach to office survival skills. Found out I already do a lot of these things already. If your job ever gets bad enough that you feel like reading this book, probably time to start looking...