The Great Recession punished American workers, leaving many underemployed or trapped in jobs that did not provide the income or opportunities they needed. Moreover, the gap between the wealthy and the poor had widened in past decades as mobility remained stubbornly unchanged. Against this deepening economic divide, a dominant cultural narrative took root: immobility, especially for the working class, is driven by shifts in demand for labor. In this context, and with right-to-work policies proliferating nationwide, workers are encouraged to avoid government dependency by arming themselves with education and training. Drawing on archival material and interviews with African American women transit workers in the San Francisco Bay Area, Katrinell Davis grapples with our understanding of mobility as it intersects with race and gender in the postindustrial and post–civil rights United States. Considering the consequences of declining working conditions within the public transit workplace of Alameda County, Davis illustrates how worker experience--on and off the job--has been undermined by workplace norms and administrative practices designed to address flagging worker commitment and morale. Providing a comprehensive account of how political, social, and economic factors work together to shape the culture of opportunity in a postindustrial workplace, she shows how government manpower policies, administrative policies, and drastic shifts in unionization have influenced the prospects of low-skilled workers.

Brainblocks are the mental obstacles that keep people from achieving success, defined as setting, pursuing, and achieving a goal. Managing the brain is the solution to preventing mental blocks from interfering with achieving your goals. And neuropsychologist Dr. Theo Tsaousides gives you the tools to improve: Awareness: • the seven brainblocks to success (self-doubt, procrastination, impatience, multitasking, rigidity, perfectionism, negativity) • the characteristic feelings, thoughts, and actions associated with each brainblock • the brain functions involved in goal-oriented action • brain glitches and how they create setbacks • the cost of not removing brainblocks • the best strategies to remove the blocks Engagement: • actively search for brainblocks in your actions, thoughts, and feelings • recognize and label each brainblock as soon as it is identified • practice each strategy consistently until it becomes second nature • track your progress toward a goal Through these strategies you will learn to overcome these cognitive obstacles and harness the power of the brain to achieve success in any endeavor.

A no-nonsense guide for minorities in business who want to make it to senior management In recent decades, corporate America has gotten better at recruiting minority talent. But despite their education and hard work, too many African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans still find unique obstacles on the path to senior management. And there are too few minority mentors available to help them understand and overcome these challenges. Keith R. Wyche, a division president at a Fortune 500 company, is the perfect mentor for ambitious minority businesspeople at all levels. His book is filled with thought-provoking insights and practical advice based on his own experiences and those of the many people he has counseled. He discusses the importance of: Understanding corporate culture—and the impact it has on your career Being visible—because you can’t get ahead if nobody knows who you are Staying current—why minorities must be continuous learners Good Is Not Enough also includes anecdotes from prominent CEOs such as Ken Chenault of American Express, Richard Parsons of Time Warner, and Alwyn Lewis of Kmart.

A career advisor explains why many talented, hard-working people often miss out on their full career potential, revealing the tells, blind spots, secrets, and unspoken rules you need to know in order to play the game to win. While many careers have been impacted by economic downturns, failed projects, downsizing and restructuring, or just bad bosses or bad timing, we all know of colleagues who continue to rise through every tough situation. Most assume that they have an advantage that protects them—degrees from the right schools, great mentors, influential friends and family, or just better luck. But these hyper-successful professionals have faced setbacks, too. Instead of allowing challenges to derail their rise, they’ve learned how to manage them better. In Workplace Poker, Dan Rust gives you the strategies you need to accelerate your career, and prevent setbacks from stalling your progress or spiraling it downward. The trick, he reveals, is to “play the game under the game,” to think more deeply and act more strategically. If you are talented, ambitious, and hardworking, but feel your career just isn’t accelerating as rapidly as it should, or as fast as you would like it to, this book is for you. If you have been frustrated to see others (less talented, who don’t work as hard as you do) achieve rapid professional progress while your career stalls out, this book is for you. If you’ve been annoyed by those who are successful primarily because of where they went to school, or family connections, or financial resources, this book is for you. Rust gives you the insight and skills you need to transform yourself and adapt and survive any hurdle—to turn every adversity into advantage, and every struggle into strength, including: • Recognition of your own “blind spots” and what to do about them • Mastering strategic and authentic self-promotion • Enhancing your personal charm and likeability • Achieving the high energy, both mental and physical, necessary to drive an exceptional career trajectory • Developing an interest in “corporate anthropology” and the complex human dimensions of business • Neutralizing the career-stalling impact of difficult or dysfunctional colleagues • Deeply “owning” and learning from career missteps and failures In his smart, funny, relatable voice, Rust shares stories of individuals who have applied these capabilities in real world situations, and provides short, focused exercises to help you think about yourself and your own career. With Workplace Poker¸ you’ll learn how to get out of you own way, and find the success you deserve.

Less than 2 percent of entrepreneurs succeed, only 15 percent employees get the best hikes, promotions and appraisal ratings. Less than 1 percent get to senior management positions and higher. Does this mean the rest do not work as hard or are not as smart? They are! But there are subtle, yet profound differences. According to bestseller author, TGC Prasad, there is more to accomplishments than just working hard or at times even being smarter. Working Hard is Not Good Enough is an insightful management book for all who want to make a difference to their performance, potential and life in general–to achieve success and importantly happiness.

From the creator of the popular website Ask a Manager and New York’s work-advice columnist comes a witty, practical guide to 200 difficult professional conversations—featuring all-new advice! There’s a reason Alison Green has been called “the Dear Abby of the work world.” Ten years as a workplace-advice columnist have taught her that people avoid awkward conversations in the office because they simply don’t know what to say. Thankfully, Green does—and in this incredibly helpful book, she tackles the tough discussions you may need to have during your career. You’ll learn what to say when • coworkers push their work on you—then take credit for it • you accidentally trash-talk someone in an email then hit “reply all” • you’re being micromanaged—or not being managed at all • you catch a colleague in a lie • your boss seems unhappy with your work • your cubemate’s loud speakerphone is making you homicidal • you got drunk at the holiday party Praise for Ask a Manager “A must-read for anyone who works . . . [Alison Green’s] advice boils down to the idea that you should be professional (even when others are not) and that communicating in a straightforward manner with candor and kindness will get you far, no matter where you work.”—Booklist (starred review) “The author’s friendly, warm, no-nonsense writing is a pleasure to read, and her advice can be widely applied to relationships in all areas of readers’ lives. Ideal for anyone new to the job market or new to management, or anyone hoping to improve their work experience.”—Library Journal (starred review) “I am a huge fan of Alison Green’s Ask a Manager column. This book is even better. It teaches us how to deal with many of the most vexing big and little problems in our workplaces—and to do so with grace, confidence, and a sense of humor.”—Robert Sutton, Stanford professor and author of The No Asshole Rule and The Asshole Survival Guide “Ask a Manager is the ultimate playbook for navigating the traditional workforce in a diplomatic but firm way.”—Erin Lowry, author of Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together