Table Of ContentEarly praise for Help Your Boss Help You
I highly recommend Help Your Boss Help You. This book is like having a seasoned
mentor to validate your experience when you’re having conflict with a manager,
help you see the big picture from different perspectives, and show you the ropes
on how to respond so that you build trust with your manager and ultimately,
motivate your manager to support your goals and development.
➤ Seth Axelrod, PhD
Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Director of DBT Services, Yale School of
Medicine, Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital
Help Your Boss Help You outlines one of the greatest methodologies and strategies
for managing upward. Ken’s experience working with managers at all levels gives
an unparalleled perspective on how to succeed in the workplace, and his hard-
learned lessons are something we can all benefit from. Help Your Boss Help You
is required reading for career-minded people.
➤ Daniel Woods
Distinguished Engineer, Target
This is the first book I’ve read that effectively explains the long-term relationship
between managers and their employees from the subordinate’s perspective. Having
served in both roles, I believe the term “constructive loyalty” is a mantra that
should form the basis of all relationships, professional and personal.
➤ Tom Fulton
President, Mentor Communications, Inc.
This might be the most important (non) technical book you’ll read. Frameworks
come and go, but the wisdom contained in these pages will pay dividends for the
rest of your career!
➤ Michael Carducci
Lead Architect, IHS Markit
I have a bookshelf full of tech books covering everything from “agile” to “zsh” but
only a few books on the people side of development work. This book will deservedly
take its place alongside Understanding the Professional Programmer and The Politics
of Projects. Congratulations on a great book.
➤ James Harmon
Independent Consultant
I really wish I’d had this book right at the beginning of my career. There’s solid,
actionable advice I know I would have benefited from. The examples and advice
have also helped me see there are times when the employee/manager relationship
cannot be fixed, and that in those times it’s right to look for something that fits
you better.
➤ Trisha Gee
Java Champion and Lead Java Advocate, JetBrains
I wish I had this book to read when I was starting out in the corporate world. Its
lessons are quick to read, easy to understand, and most of all, right on the money.
It really is a clear book with good organization that should be passed out to entry-
level hires in any technical-related field.
➤ James A. Lutz, PhD
T.W. Daniel Associate Professor of Forestry, Utah State University
Help Your Boss Help You was a very useful read. It’s ideal for people just starting
out in their careers or at the mid-point looking to advance. Ken explains the things
that unfortunately many of us have had to learn the hard way after dealing with
difficult managers. Highly recommend!
➤ Annyce Davis
Online Video Instructor, Davis LLC
I wish this book had been around 25 years ago! Many parts of it really resonated
with me and with the experiences I have had. I think it will be extremely helpful
for anyone who is looking for ways to better manage or improve the relationship
with their manager. The prose is engaging and easy to read, and I enjoyed the
popular culture and Star Trek references.
➤ Meg Watson
Software Engineer, XID
We've left this page blank to
make the page numbers the
same in the electronic and
paper books.
We tried just leaving it out,
but then people wrote us to
ask about the missing pages.
Anyway, Eddy the Gerbil
wanted to say “hello.”
Help Your Boss Help You
Convert Conflict Into Opportunities
Ken Kousen
The Pragmatic Bookshelf
Raleigh, North Carolina
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ISBN-13: 978-1-68050-822-2
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Book version: P1.0—July 2021
For Cheri, Mem, and Josh
