Poor Workplace Relationships (WPRs) and weak social judgment have become the new corporate epidemic. Its symptoms mask a deeper plague that reduces the effectiveness of entire teams and can even destroy the future of promising careers. The symptoms are everywhere: Unproductive teams, failed projects, workplace violence, reduced productivity, low morale, poor or indifferent communications, lack of cooperation, chronic absenteeism, lateness, high employee turnover rates, bad attitudes, and dishonesty begins with the germination of poor WPRs that gradually disrupt the cooperation of entire teams. Eventually the epidemic erodes the confidence of managers and workmates and shuts the door to future career progression and organization success. Is this a Leadership problem or an employee problem? It is both.

If you are a conscientious, success-minded person, you would do well to be concerned about the depth of your WPR skills. Poor relationship skills put whatever you do at risk. Even when you do a good job, you will not be recognized for it. Intuitively, many people recognize the risks and hazards of poor WPR skills. Nevertheless, they do little to nurture those relationship skills that make their entire lives genuinely successful. I have been deeply concerned about this threat to the careers of unsuspecting people and offer my books and publications as a way to navigate one’s way through it. No one is immune, including me.

Several of my books and publications enable people to recognize the different kinds of workplace relationships that exist and how to intelligently respond to them. You will learn how to enjoy the WPRs you should enjoy, avoid the relationships you should avoid, and wisely get out of the relationships you should carefully flee. I designed a series of highly focused books and publications to increase one’s effectiveness as stewards of one’s own professional success. Here, readers can learn how to navigate the pitfalls and tar-pits of poor WPRs. In the following section, I share some interesting insights that are funto to contemplate. Not everything has to be boring.