Ask A Manager by Alison Green | Audiobook Review

I received this book for free from Library, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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

Advance 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

Why Did I Listen To Ask A Manager by Alison Green?

Ask A Manager: How To Navigate Clueless Colleagues, Lunch Stealing Bosses And The Rest Of Your Life At Work by Alison Green REALLY appealed to me. I enjoy reading her blog time to time. Personally, I love career related books. As a supervisor, I am trying to soak up as much knowledge about being a strong leader as I can. When I saw that my library had this on Overdrive, it was a no thoughts given immediately put a hold kind of situation.

What’s This Book All About?

Okay, so I feel like every time I review a book with a long subtitle, I just tell you all that the book is what the subtitle says. AND WELL THIS BOOK IS. I just like when the subtitle is accurate. Ask A Manager essentially is a book of people asking Green for work related advice. There’s different sections for different grouped scenarios – like with coworkers, with bosses, with promotions, etc. It actually is pretty well organized to tell the truth.

How Did I Like It?

Overall, I really enjoyed Ask A Manager. I feel like Green gives advice that is thoughtful and well measured. She never tells the writer to do something unreasonable. In fact, she uses this common thread through her advice. That is the advice to communicate. She occasionally provides a script for the writer/reader as well. I appreciated that because sometimes parsing out the right language in difficult or stressful situations is not easy. I especially liked how useful Green’s advice was as well. This is a book that I think should go on your shelf if you are a young professional still navigating the waters at work. As a person in a leadership role, I loved all that I learned from this book about effective communication and handling things with grace and professionalism.

How’s The Narration?

The audiobook is narrated by the author herself. Typically I do not like when the audiobook is narrated by the author. HOWEVER, this book is well narrated. Green obviously knows her book and her material well. Plus, it helps that her voice is not weird or annoying. I listened to this book both at 2x speed and 1.5x speed. It was easy to follow at both speeds.

Other reviews of Ask A Manager by Alison Green:

• The Nerdy Girl Express – “the perfect tool for anyone looking to advance themselves in their career“
• Clerical Chick – “a terrific addition to your professional library“

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April (Books&Wine)

April is in her 30s and created Good Books And Good Wine. She works for a non-profit. April always has a book on hand. In her free time she can be found binge watching The Office with her husband and toddler, spending way too much time on Pinterest or exploring her neighborhood.

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