This was an informative and interesting read. My apologies for the late review. The advice found in this book would easily apply to everyone whether you're entering the workforce for the first time or you're later into your career.

There is a lot of good business philosophy in this book and plenty of real-life stories to illustrate the key points. From my perspective what the book now needs, is explicit “how to” guides that demonstrate how you and I can emulate these real-life exemplars.

The introductory chapter covers the challenges of working in today’s organizational structures – silos are mentioned numerously. However, there is no description of the actual structures – hierarchical, matrix, or combinations. From a manager’s and a non-managerial employee’s (perhaps someone aspiring to become a manager) viewpoint, it would have been an ideal opportunity, and informative, for the application of some of the points, to understand when a hierarchical structure works best, and when a matrix structure works best. This could be particularly important for how a potential “go to” person works across, up/down, or diagonally within each type of structure. Whilst the influencing skills are the same, understanding the different nuances of various organizational structures, makes it easier to plan strategies and tactics.

I also thought the introduction was too repetitive – three or four pages would have equally well-made the author’s point instead of 27 – then straight into the real part of the book.
And to the real part of the book? It’s mostly been said before in many other books and yet is still a good reminder, particularly for those new to management roles. There were some good case studies/examples and yet I was not able to quickly see “how” these could be applied. Certainly the “Why” was evident and well described. For example, the chapter on “When to say No and How to say Yes´ follows a new product development process and there was a potentially good side-bar that shows the “How”, yet I was unclear as to which statements were examples of words to use to say “No”, or inner decision making thoughts or prompts. More clarity would make it easier for the reader to have an “Ah ha” moment and be able to apply it to his/her situation.

All in all, a reasonable primer for people new to management, perhaps not for the experienced.

Great book, shows a plethora of tips and insights on becoming a major contributor in your workplace, would highly recommend, Can't wait for more books from this author.

My review: - did not read due to format
I could not read or review this book given the PDF format. I wish I would have known at the time of the request.

We all want to be wanted. The person people go to when they need something. A trusted source of advice, insight, and making things happen. How do you become that go-to employee in your organization? The Art of Being Indispensable at Work: Win Influence, Beat Overcommitment, and Get the Right Things Done looks to show you just that.

The Art Of Being Indispensable

So, you want to be the go-to person in your workplace? The Art Of Being Indispensable At Work seeks to help you make that happen. The problem is, it doesn’t offer much more than commonsense.

Anyone that’s been in the workforce for more than a year or two should understand what it takes to become a trusted person others can rely on. The person they seek advice from or ask for help when outcomes really count.
It’s not that difficult to understand what it takes to be that person, because we’ve all known people in those roles, even if we’re not currently that person ourselves. So why the need for a manual to tell you how to get there?

The Art Of Being Indispensable At Work doesn’t offer much more than examples of people we’ve all experienced. There’s not much value here, unless you’re truly clueless to how to be a good employee and coworker.

The truth is, if you aren’t someone who puts themselves out there for others, always produces high-quality work, manages their commitments well, and has the knowledge to make things happen, it’s unlikely a book is going to change that. Most of these required traits are baked into our personality and unlikely to change. It’s like expecting that reading a driving manual will magically imbue you with the ability to be a NASCAR driver.

Obvious Advice

Countless books that claim to teach you everything you could ever want. Sadly, it’s rare we suddenly become empowered with the abilities outlined in these guides, and few have fortitude to focus and put in the efforts required to make the changes needed. It’s why most self-help books fail to lead people to the amazing lives they claim to offer the reader.

If you’re just looking for examples of why some are the go-to players within their organization, The Art of Being Indispensable at Work: Win Influence, Beat Overcommitment, and Get the Right Things Done may be worth flipping through. But for those that want to be the indispensable people in their workplace, more perspective, a good gameplay, and constant commitment to top performance will get you much further.

"The Art of Being Indispensable at Work" is a great primer on how to get ahead in your career. When you become a Go-To person, you’ll be the first to get promoted, and the last to get laid off.

Sure, being a Go-To guy or gal takes fortitude. Plus a great attitude and loads of hard work. But author Bruce Tulgan, the modern-day Dale Carnegie, shows us how it can be done.

For starters, it's about managing up, down and sideways -- even if you're not the boss.

I highly recommend this book. It’s a quick, easy read for all aspiring leaders and managers. In fact, "The Art of Being Indispensable at Work" is chock-full of examples of ways that employees are “killing it” at work. And it’s possible to thrive in any role, whether you work in a restaurant, a school, a non-profit, a small business or a major corporation.

Spoiler alert: To be indispensable, show up to serve others, not just yourself.

So go ahead and grab yourself a copy. It will be really beneficial to help you lead with influence, get more done, learn how to say no (and yes), and work smarter (not harder).


Special thanks to NetGalley, Bruce Tulgan and Harvard Business Review Press for the electronic copy in exchange for my honest review.

I found myself thinking through this book recently. Finding little pockets of wisdom to help me try to refocus a little in the age of COVID-19 and round the clock work from home. There are gems that I found super impactful in helping me get out of my own head and do better work.

I would have wanted to read this book three to five years ago. Actually, there’s a lot I know that would have been very useful to me knowing some three years ago. Alas, nothing to be done about that.

Rather, I’d like to know: how to become a go-to person when you’ve already rubbed a few people the wrong way? Is it actually possible to redeem yourself?

This book tells you in easy to relate to examples how to become that person that is a go-to person and pretty much indispensable at work. All through reading I asked myself: do I do this? Do I not do that?

A lot of the advice given in this book was more of a confirmation that I’m doing the right things. I work smart, but probably could still work smarter (create more job aids). I do give the occasional sloppy yes, but that’s because sometimes I am actually the only person who can do the job, so saying no is a moot point. But perhaps I can be more critical of the sloppy asks before I say yes, so they will be less sloppy by the time I give my inevitable yes.

Anyway, I’ve taken lots of notes and plan to put theory in to practice. And who knows, perhaps I can straighten out those wrongly rubbed.

Everyone wants to be indispensable in their work place. Doing so can be difficult and possibly lead to burnout or being overwhelmed and overcommitted. The Art of Being Indispensable at Work, published by Harvard Business Review, provides the resources you need to become the go-to person in your workplace and teach others how to be indispensable as well. After reading this book, being indispensable won't feel like a lofty and out of reach goal.

Tulgan emphasizes that businesses today are using a collaborative model instead of an hierarchical model. This flatter organizational chart can provide opportunities for more cross-departmental projects and collaboration. But cross-departmental projects can lead to confusion as to who is in charge and who has authority over projects. With this collaborative work environment in mind, Tulgan emphasizes the importance of working both vertically with a boss or supervisor and individuals whom report to you as well as sideways and diagonally with individuals in other departments. In all of these relationships Tulgan encourages readers and provides a blue print to become a go-to person who gets things done fast, right, and on time.

From page one until the end of the book, Bruce Tulgan provides practical how-tos and examples everyone can understand and relate to--in fact you will recognize yourself or someone you work with in the examples. While published by a noted business publishing company, this book is not limited to people who work in an office setting or are business executives. This is demonstrated by the fact that Tulgan uses examples drawn from the medical field and manual labor including ditch digging in addition to traditional businesses. The Art of Being Indispensable at Work is highly recommended as a textbook or as a book to read with colleagues. While some might want to keep the secret to being indispensable to themselves, Tulgan encourages that a true indispensable person helps others to become indispensable as well. Buy this book for yourself and for everyone in your office and learn how to work better and smarter regardless of your position.

This is a great guide for not only surviving, but thriving in the current workplace. Due to the pandemic, many employers are cutting their staff, so it is more important than ever to be the person that people come to when they need assistance. The author gives great advice on how to be the indispensable person that is relied upon. This is a great book, no matter what industry you work in.

Tulgan has written an essential text on how to truly become indispensable at work. There is more to becoming the go-to person at work than always saying 'yes' or knowing everything.

I have read this book twice since obtaining it and plan to purchase a copy upon release.

Each chapter is easy to read and highly actionable.

Highly recommended to those who are often referred to as the go-to person at work and wish to maintain that place without sacrificing themselves.

This book talks about how to collaborate and become a go-to person at the workplace without affecting your mental peace and health.

These days doing your job has become a lot harder, it requires a lot more that it ever did. You collaborate with a lot more people than ever before. you have to collaborate not only with your boss and your peers, but all over the organization chart - up, down, sideways and diagonal. In addition to your direct boss, immediate teammates, you probably serve a seemingly unlimited number of people in these internal teams in your organization. And your colleagues are also in the same boat with you.

You and most of your colleagues make commitments and promises to deliver for each other. Most everybody wants to be that indispensable go-to person and depend and deliver for each other.

But if you are not careful about your commitments then you may end up doing over commitments which can muddle your priorities and your important tasks are left undone or done ineffectively. If you are not able to finish your own work, how would you become indispensable for others ?

As collaboration is the latest revolution sweeping across the workplace because of the globalization, We need to look at it more closely. Collaboration manifests in different ways with different names in any organization. It can be called matrix management, dotted-line reporting, cross functional coordination, self managed project teams, lateral cooperation, inter dependency etcetera.

The main goal of collaboration is speed up and improve -
-- information exchange,
-- decision making,
-- planning,
-- resource sharing,
-- execution.

In a collaborative working environment you should be ready to work with everyone and anyone. Think about corporate departments that provide common services to all other departments, like the IT department or the Payroll department. If Anyone in the organization has a problem either with their computer or paycheck they come to these two departments. In a collaborative environment you are required to manage more working relationships and produce richer, more flexible products and services faster.


What is the main problem with collaboration ? Getting what you need from your lateral colleague is difficult because there is no way to hold them accountable without clear authority. The author here talks about something called over commitment syndrome. Which is defined as -

Inundation of requests + No Accountability + EIMJ (Everything is my Job ) = Over commitment Syndrome

This syndrome emerges when everything in your list is told to you as urgent and important by the persons who made the request. New priorities are added to the list everyday. There is competition for resources. You keep saying yes to each other but at the end of it you let down each other.

And, if this continues and you remain overcommitted then the time will come that you would start feeling to resist any new work coming towards you and you will also become more aggressive while making requests to others for some work. It ends up with spoiled working relationships. and , it becomes detrimental to your goal of becoming that GO-TO person in the organization that you always dreamt to become. Author calls this - Siege mentality which is more like you are fighting your rescuer when you are in over your head.

Most people bounce back from the siege mentality sooner or later but they start saying “Yes, Yes, yes” again and it leads them back to the over commitment syndrome which again leads them back to the “siege” mentality and which again leads right back to saying “No, No, No”.

So, How to get out of this no-win cycle ?

It is a fact that in any organization everybody needs something from others all the time. And above all the lines of authority are usually unclear and there is always a room for confusion. In this situation the author suggests to use real influence where people work for you because they want to. But he wants us to adhere to two things.

What is the first thing ?

The First thing is, Regardless of how much influence you have, never ignore authority. Somewhere someone is making decisions. You should ensure that you are aligned with your boss and the leadership.

What is the second thing ?

The Second thing is, do not put pressure of any kind on people to get them to comply. That will make people root against you, and wish for your failure.

Now the author says that, The real influence a go-to person achieves by serving others. Stop focusing on what other people can do for you and focus instead on what you can do for them. Make yourself super valuable to others. The more value you add, the more truly invested others become in your success. The author says that - that’s how you become indispensable. That’s how you use real influence and become a real go-to person.

As per the book following are the characteristics of a go-to person with real influence -
#1 incredibly valuable to others.
#2 Are very good at their job.
#3 have positive attitude and double on hard work
#4 Take personal responsibility and get things done.
#5 Are creative and tenacious but do the things by the book and follow orders.
#6 Do all the things consistently, almost every time.

Now, if we talk about the structure of the book, There are 8 chapters in this book .

The first chapter “Fight over commitment syndrome” talks about the over commitment and it’s affects..

The second chapter “The peculiar mathematics of real influence” is on how to create real influence.

The third one “Up and down chain of command” talks about alignment on ground rules, priorities etcetera with your boss and leadership.

The Chapter 4, talks about when to say no and how to maximize your gains while saying yes.

In the chapter 5 “Work Smart”, the author talks about mastering the best practices, repeatable solutions and job aids.

In chapter 6 “finish what you start”, the author talks about how to finish one work at one time and how to have and manage a long to-do list.

In chapter 7 “Keep Getting better and better at working together”, the author talks about building long lasting work relationships.

In chapter 8, Go-to-ism is the art of being indispensable at work, the author talks about finding and building new go-to-people wherever and whenever you need them.

Finally the verdict, This book is highly practical in the suggestions that it makes and the approach that it suggests. I liked this book and now I think that I have some idea about how a person can become indispensable in any organization.

I found it an interesting and informative read, full of ideas and examples.
I liked the style of writing and how the book is organised.
It's a useful and excellent read, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

A very well organized and overall systematic work on all internal skills, ideas, behavioral patterns that help a person not only to excel in the specific field, work situation but secure a position in terms of company or the world-wide economy changes. It gives a comprehensive review of the personal and professional skills needed to have a potentially secure position among others in your field, regardless of carrier-level.

While I don't think this reinvented the wheel, it was a great way to inspire confidence in the reader about their work. This would make an excellent gift for a recent grad! Entering the workforce can be scary, you worry about whether you're truly competent and it's just an overall scary thing, and having this as a guide is a great start to doing your best work and feeling proud of your work.

The formatting wasn't great. I think it would have been a bit more helpful to have broken up some of the chunks of text a bit more. Also it was a pain that I wasn't able to read it on my kindle, but I know that's just an ARC formatting thing, so it's not a big deal.

The timing of this book couldn't have been more perfect. Bruce Tulgan has done it again, presented a compelling, objective, rational and actionable plan of execution for what appeared rather a subjective topic.

So what does it take to be indispensable, well it starts by resisting your urge to say Yes to everyone, know when to say Yes and No with purpose. Be a Go To guy whom people can trust to get things done and have an internal locus of control, or in other words don't be a people pleaser.

What I liked particularly about this book was it very easy to read and comprehend unlike some of the other books. Naturally, this one is a keeper. Do read it, recommend it and more importantly document and share your learning and key takeaways with others..

Absolutely must have addition to your library. I am currently on a Leadership journey, for the past year at least. I’ve been investing much of my time improving my skills in the area, and this book was a fantastic tool for my tool box! LOVED it and so happy to have it in my library. I will say, this book is not just for those in my position but for everyone! There is a take away for each of us, and aspects which can be applied to your personnel life, family in addition to work. Many books out there these days, some knocking it out of the park, some filled with fillers. This one is an “out of the park” read in my humble!

For example change your attitude. Modify your mindset. If you are a “Yes” person, well you need to revisit this. There is only so much time on that clock per day and if you are a yes person, are you able to commit and get that which you have committed yourself to, over the finish line? Don’t say yes to everything.

Start somewhere. Start your journey here! If you are already on your path, well here is another tool for the toolbox! Get after it folks! You are worth the investment. Pick up a copy for the recently graduated in your life too! Help them build their toolbox!

This book was full of practical information about becoming a better employee and being indispensable to your superiors and co-workers. However, there was a lot of information that I had read before in other books. As far as self-help books go, I look for fresh content and while there was a little bit of that - most was repetitive of what I have read before.

In this book, Bruce Tulgan provides the readers sound pieces of advice on how to become indispensable at work. While many of core concepts are familiar to most readers of self-help books, readers would still benefit with the way the book coalesce these ideas into coherent whole. This makes the arguments more solid and convincing.

Reduced to its fundamental point, this book argues that anyone can be indispensable at work by adopting a service attitude towards others. It stresses the importants of taking care of our relationships upward, downward, sideways, and diagonal.

In addition to the key concepts, I also like the straight-forward tone used throughout the book. It really feels like the author is just beside you while sharing his ideas in friendly conversational and sometimes serious manner.

This was a fun and educational read for me.

As far as self-help books go, this one doesn't add anything. It feels like the same context as several other books that I have read.