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Office-fridge thief gets cold shoulder -- a pilfere's confession
Boston Herald
July 14, 2010

I had intended to cover up the crime, even typing up a reminder on my constantly updated “To Do” list. The game plan was to get to the supermarket at 8 a.m., pick up the goods and discreetly slip them into the freezer before anyone showed up to work.

In today's corporate culture, being on call 24 /7 has become all too commonplace.

Other environmental factors have contributed to work related stress.
Open plans offices for example make people more accessible at all times.
But experts say work stress is rarely about the actual work load itself.

NEW YORK (Fortune) -- Dear Annie: I was hired about three months ago as part of a 12-person training team, and I really like the job and my colleagues, with one exception. Our team leader can't seem to stop picking people apart and tearing down everything we do...

Readers share tales of cruel, inept and the paranoid bosses
Patricia Montemurri, Free Press
December 15, 2009

I asked readers to submit stories about bad bosses to contend for a copy of "Working for You Isn't Working for Me" by Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster (Portfolio, $25.95). The authors describe 20 types of bad bosses. Meet some now...

Learn to Manage Bosses and Other Authority Figures
Morey Stettner, Investors.com
December 14, 2009

Successful managers don't just supervise employees well. They also manage their boss. Influencing someone who wields more authority requires different skills than motivating subordinates. You need to marshal your persuasive power to make up for your lack of positional power.

The past several weeks of work have been pretty darn swell, and I have no one to thank but myself.

Enrique Cerna talks with authors Kathi Elster and Katherine Crowley about their book “Working for You Isn’t Working for Me” on how to identify bad boss behavior and take steps to manage it for your own sake.

Regardless of the economic underpinnings, a layoff always feels personal. “We like to deny that we are expendable. So when we are told ‘we have to let you go,’ it feels like an assault,” says Katherine Crowley, a New York City-based psychotherapist and co-author of the book Working for You Isn’t Working for Me.

Bad bosses. We've all had at least one. Hey, you may actually even be one. And tough economic times make bad bosses seem even worse.

How to prevent co-workers from stealing your thunder
Bad co-workers come in a variety of guises: there's the office gossip, the suck up and the slacker. But one of the most infuriating types is the credit stealer--the co-worker who hogs someone else's spotlight or, even worse, brazenly takes credit for a colleagues work...

Recommended reading: Working for You Isn?t Working for Me
Examiner.com
November 4, 2009

If only I’d received this book in time for National Boss Day! As I read “Working for You Isn’t Working for Me: The Ultimate Guide to Managing Your Boss by Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster, I began to feel more and more empowered—even about past boss relationships. Even if you plan on becoming an entrepreneur and being the boss yourself, this is an incredibly important read.

How to cope with a bad boss
by Marci Alboher, Working the New Economy
Shine, Yahoo.com blog
October 30, 2009

To mangle Tolstoy, good bosses are all alike. They are good mentors; they care about your happiness and advancement; their interests seem aligned with your own.

Bad bosses, on the other hand, come in many flavors. And a new book, "Working for You Isn't Working for Me," by Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster, provides a field guide to the many species of bad boss. There's the "checked out" boss (can these really survive in this kind of job market?), the "rule changer" (who tells you to take a lunch break then seems surprised you're not at your desk), the "underminer" (who asks you for help and then makes it impossible for you to assist), the "chronic critic" (needs no explanation), and a slew of others.

10 Kinds of Bad Bosses and How to Survive Them
By Kenya McCullum
September 30, 2009

Bad bosses are bad for business and they can make everyone’s workday miserable. But not all bad bosses are created equal, according to authors Kathi Elster and Katherine Crowley

10 Ways to Survive a 'Toxic Boss
Featured on CNBC’s Bullish on Book
October 1, 2009

You know how the world's most successful people always say, "do what you love and you'll be a success?" Well, what happens when you're doing what you love, but you're working for someone you hate?

Bad bosses ruining your life? Authors Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster can help you deal with it.

MSN Careers
5 Ways to Cope When Your Boss Behaves Badly
by Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster
September 21, 2009

Many companies are reeling from fluctuations in the current economy. While some individuals have already been laid off, others struggle to hold onto their jobs...

Kathi and Katherine are currently featured as guest experts on a weekly radio show called Everyday Leadership.

Hosted by leadership expert and author, Dan Mulhern, the show broadcasts Saturday mornings on WJIM, AM in Michigan from 7:00 am to 9:00 am.

7:00 to 8:00 am -- Interviews with experts on the workplace, and 8:00 to 9:00 am -- Kathi and Katherine answer questions live

Hosted by leadership expert and author, Dan Mulhern, the show broadcasts live Saturday mornings at 8:00 am on WJIM, AM in Michigan.

CNN/Health
October 11, 2007
Read what you can do when your job is making you sick.

June, 2006
Working With You Is Killing Me was rated #12 on the New York Times Business Books Bestseller list, and #15 on BusinessWeek’s bestseller list.

New Book Offers Advice on Getting Along With Problematic Personalities at Your Job

March 21, 2006 — With more than 134 million Americans in the work force, at least one of them will inevitably drive you crazy at your place of employment.

Coping with these co-workers can be a job in itself, whether the objectionable person is self-centered, manipulative, ill-tempered or just plain stupid.

For that reason, nearly every employed person may want to peruse "Working With You Is Killing Me: Freeing Yourself From Emotional Traps at Work," a how-to guide for dealing with those lovable folks commonly called co-workers.

USATODAY.com

How to work with annoying people
Sunday March 19, 8:51 pm ET

There is always at least one person at work who rubs you the wrong way or, worse, seems out to get you.

That's why the audience for the catchy-titled Working with You Is Killing Me is potentially vast.

The authors know the feeling of dread in your stomach at the mere thought of interacting with the client who does nothing but scream at you. They understand how maddening it is when someone else takes credit for your ideas or spreads nasty rumors about you.

More...

Harvard Business Review Article - April 2006

All the talk about collegial, non-authoritarian workplaces has had an unfortunate side effect; Managers often give employees too much latitude.

More...

Wall Street Journal Article - April 4, 2006
Bookshelf/by Martin Kihn

Cubicle Culprits

The philosopher Jean-Paul Satre once famously observed that “Hell is other people.” And he worked from home. Imagine if he had been one of the millions of us who are forced to navigate the psychic mine fields of the modern corporation. There we daily run into the many archetypes who inhabit our own particular version of hell: the Credit Stealer, the Cynic, the Boundary Buster and—most horrifying of all—the self-appointed Entertainer.

More ...

Kirkus Reports
December 2, 2005

Harvard-trained psychotherapist Crowley and nationally recognized business expert Elster demonstrate exactly how to disengage from emotionally stressful situations, to take things in stride and manage difficult situations with aplomb... Readers will surely identify themselves and their coworkers in many of the scores of example scenarios. Managers will learn how to demand greater accountability from their employees, while employees will gain useful insight into dealing with difficult bosses.

Filled with solid advice and useful strategies, this practical handbook will come as a tall glass of water to those facing emotional distress at work.

Publisher’s Weekly
December 19, 2005

For anyone trapped in an energy zapping relationship with a co-worker, boss or subordinate, Crowley and Elster offer an exit strategy – a highly practical and easily implemented guide to making the situation workable. Looking at the workplace from every employee’s perspective, Crowley, a Harvard-trained psychotherapist, and Elster, an entrepreneurial consultant, have created a book as valuable to readers on the top rungs of the corporate ladder as it is to those near the bottom.

This empowering book delivers a sense of control over nasty workplace situations. It may also offer the answer to high job turnover.