CHAPTER 21

Refuse to Schmooze and You Lose

Cultivating the Social Side of Business

I recently talked with talented young woman in a fast-growing software development firm who was shocked when her coworkers ranked her low in a peer-rated performance review. The reason? One recurring criticism was that she rarely socialized with other members of the company, never joining them for lunch or drinks after work, and seldom attending company parties. They actually saw her behavior as undermining the teamwork necessary to meet their corporate goals. “But I do great work,” she lamented. “I didn’t realize that being a party animal was part of the job description. And I’m just not good at that sort of thing!”

Do we really have to mix business and pleasure ...

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