"This is a timely must-read for managers and anyone who has ever had to deal with a difficult coworker; it addresses a ubiquitous problem in a proactive, positive manner that should get the desired results." - Publishers Weekly Everyone has a “schmuck” in their office---a difficult, disruptive person who upsets the workplace, confuses coworkers, and causes concern. It’s hard to understand why schmucks act the way they do, but one thing is certain---they seem to come in all shapes and sizes. . . . - Narcissus---the condescending attention-seeker who carelessly steps on everyone’s toes - The Flytrap---the bringer of chaos whose emotional instability causes an office maelstrom - The Bean Counter---the orderly perfectionist who never gives up control, even when it’s full-steam-ahead to disaster - The Robot---the unreadable stone wall who just can’t connect Sound like anyone you know? These are just a few of the more prominent types of difficult people at work. In The Schmuck in My Office, Dr. Jody Foster explains the entire spectrum of people we may think of as schmucks, how they can decrease productivity, destroy teams, and generally make everyone else unhappy. Along with nailing down the various types, she looks at personality traits and explains how dysfunctional interactions among coworkers can lead to workplace fiascos. She helps readers understand schmucks as people, figure out how to work with them, and ultimately solve workplace problems. She also makes readers consider the most difficult thing of all: despite where your finger may be pointing, sometimes you are the “schmuck”! Let Dr. Foster teach you how to make your workplace a happier and more productive one.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • What if you lived out the drama of your twenties on Air Force One? “[This] breezy page turner is essentially Bridget Jones goes to the White House.”—The New York Times RECOMMENDED READING theSkimm • Today • Entertainment Weekly • Refinery29 • Bustle • PopSugar • Vanity Fair • The New York Times Editors’ Choice • Paste In 2012, Beck Dorey-Stein is working five part-time jobs and just scraping by when a posting on Craigslist lands her, improbably, in the Oval Office as one of Barack Obama’s stenographers. The ultimate D.C. outsider, she joins the elite team who accompany the president wherever he goes, recorder and mic in hand. On whirlwind trips across time zones, Beck forges friendships with a dynamic group of fellow travelers—young men and women who, like her, leave their real lives behind to hop aboard Air Force One in service of the president. As she learns to navigate White House protocols and more than once runs afoul of the hierarchy, Beck becomes romantically entangled with a consummate D.C. insider, and suddenly the political becomes all too personal. Against a backdrop of glamour, drama, and intrigue, this is the story of a young woman learning what truly matters, and, in the process, discovering her voice. Praise for From the Corner of the Oval “Who knew the West Wing could be so sexy? Beck Dorey-Stein’s unparalleled access is obvious on every page, along with her knife-sharp humor. I tore through the entire book on a four-hour flight and loved reading all about the brilliant yet hard-partying people who once surrounded the leader of the free world. Lots of books claim to give real insider glimpses, but this one actually delivers.”—Lauren Weisberger, author of The Devil Wears Prada “Dorey-Stein . . . writes with wit and self-deprecating humor.”—The Wall Street Journal “Addictively readable . . . Dorey-Stein’s spunk and her sparkling, crackling prose had me cheering for her through each adventure. . . . She never loses her starry-eyed optimism, her pinch-me wonderment, her Working Girl pluck.”—Paul Begala, The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

Are you thinking of starting a business or have you already taken the leap? This no-nonsense book will help you on your way. Starting from the beginning stages going all the way to your exit DBAS gives you tips and pointers than will save your time, money and energy.Don't Be a Schmuck is an accumulation of knowledge and anecdotes that will help you start and succeed in business. Focusing on real world examples and not just fluff that you will find in most other books in this field. Mixing hard info with interesting anecdotes be entertained while you learn to think differently than your competitors. The author Michael Hofeld has launched successful businesses of all size producing over $5 billion in sales. The point of this book is not for you to follow it step by step, but to see what path in business suits your goals and personality best. Steering you away from pitfalls that have doomed many small businesses while pointing out some tricks to supercharge your company.Covering topics like-Making the leap to start your business-Getting Partners or Co Founders-Where to House Your Office-Cultivating Your Ideas into an actionable plan.-Who to Hire and not-Raising money and from who-Cheat Codes for Online Sales-Learn To Growth Hack Your Business-How to position your company to be sold.-Creating Goals That Lead to Success-Understand How to Make Money of Seasonality-Dealing with Gotchas and Momentum Killers-How to balance happiness and profit-Dealing with success and failureDon't be sucked into other books that are written by corporate types who don't know what its like to bootstrap a business. You need to know how to survive and thrive. Don't Be a Schmuck delivers the unadulterated truth without sugar coating.

"This book is a modern catalyst for change in education. I have made it required reading for doctoral students, administrators, and faculty who must update their pedagogy to raise student learning." -Joseph Martin Stevenson, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Jackson State University "This is a wonderful book for learning communities to use to self-evaluate prior to beginning new teaching techniques, and throughout the process." -Donna Walker Tileston, President Strategic Teaching and Learning Convert frustrations into solvable problems through action research! Action research provides a process for educators to individually and collectively study their own situations, try new practices, evaluate those innovations, adjust, and try again. In this revised second edition, Richard Schmuck demonstrates how educators at all levels can use action research to improve their professional practice and change the culture of their schools, districts, or communities. He shows how educators, by reflecting on their past, present, and future practice, can convert frustrations into solvable problems. This updated workbook covers both the proactive and the responsive models of action research and also includes: Easy-to-understand explanations of methods, steps, and phases A chapter devoted to questionnaires, interviews, observations, and public documents Guidelines for both solo and cooperative projects "How-to" worksheets that guide readers through the process Journal-writing activities at the end of every chapter Case studies of real action research projects Practical Action Research for Change is the essential tool to help educators tailor action research to their specific situation and improve professional practice.

“Why are you so unhappy?” That’s the question that Zeke Pappas, a thirty-three-year-old scholar, asks almost everybody he meets as part of an obsessive project, “The Inventory of American Unhappiness.” The answers he receives—a mix of true sadness and absurd complaint—create a collage of woe. Zeke, meanwhile, remains delightfully oblivious to the increasingly harsh realities that threaten his daily routine, opting instead to focus his energy on finding the perfect mate so that he can gain custody of his orphaned nieces. Following steps outlined in a women’s magazine, the ever-optimistic Zeke identifies some “prospects”: a newly divorced neighbor, a coffeehouse barista, his administrative assistant, and Sofia Coppola (“Why not aim high?”). A clairvoyant when it comes to the Starbucks orders of strangers, a quixotic renegade when it comes to the federal bureaucracy, and a devoted believer in the afternoon cocktail and the evening binge, Zeke has an irreverent voice that is a marvel of lacerating wit and heart-on-sleeve emotion, underscored by a creeping paranoia and made more urgent by the hope that if he can only find a wife, he might have a second chance at life.

Facing Tyson gives a ringside view of the world's most dangerous and notorious boxer. Brutal, controversial, and always newsworthy both inside and outside the ring, Mike Tyson remains a cultural icon to this day. Despite the personal, legal, and mental problems that have overshadowed his celebrated boxing career, he continues to make headlines as a fascinating, yet extremely flawed character. Several of the era's biggest names in boxing, including Pinklon Thomas, Tyrell Biggs, Evander Holyfield, and Lennox Lewis were interviewed by author Ted A. Kluck specifically for Facing Tyson. Each opponent gives his account of what it was like to face the most feared and loathed boxer at different stages of his career. .

**A New York Times Editor's Choice selection!** This outrageous and hilarious memoir follows a film and television director’s life, from his idiosyncratic upbringing to his unexpected career as the director behind such huge film franchises as The Addams Family and Men in Black. Barry Sonnenfeld's philosophy is, "Regret the Past. Fear the Present. Dread the Future." Told in his unmistakable voice, Barry Sonnenfeld, Call Your Mother is a laugh-out-loud memoir about coming of age. Constantly threatened with suicide by his over-protective mother, disillusioned by the father he worshiped, and abused by a demonic relative, Sonnenfeld somehow went on to become one of Hollywood's most successful producers and directors. Written with poignant insight and real-life irony, the book follows Sonnenfeld from childhood as a French horn player through graduate film school at NYU, where he developed his talent for cinematography. His first job after graduating was shooting nine feature length pornos in nine days. From that humble entrée, he went on to form a friendship with the Coen Brothers, launching his career shooting their first three films. Though Sonnenfeld had no ambition to direct, Scott Rudin convinced him to be the director of The Addams Family. It was a successful career move. He went on to direct many more films and television shows. Will Smith once joked that he wanted to take Sonnenfeld to Philadelphia public schools and say, "If this guy could end up as a successful film director on big budget films, anyone can." This book is a fascinating and hilarious roadmap for anyone who thinks they can't succeed in life because of a rough beginning.