This book appeared in my life at just the right time (thanks to an advance from the publisher). Kim Scott knows how to write and tell a story. She is generous in sharing stories about herself that don’t paint the most favorable picture of herself but pack a punch in the lesson learned - I admired this about her.

(And coincidentally my son is trying to write a college admissions essay where they ask the difference between tolerance and acceptance - after reading this book, the answer was clear to me.)

Unlike many other business self-development books which are geared to those just entering the workforce, this one would appeal to anyone at any stage of their career.

There is not one specific successful employee profile. Each individual is different and we should not hire based on a cookie cutter profile. In her candid and constructive style, she outlines how injustices can occur and steps that we can take to address them.

This non-fiction book defines various types of workplace biases, prejudices, hostile bullying, and systemic injustices and lays out techniques for combatting each of these.

In general, I thought this was fine. There wasn't really any new ground covered, just another way of thinking about biased/toxic workplaces and coworkers. It felt like a book written for people who want to create a better work environment, but are just baffled as to how to do it. While her anecdotes were supportive of the point that she was trying to make, it felt like too many of them were from 15-20 years ago, but maybe I'm being naive.

Regardless, this book is very much about trying to make the workplace somewhere where everyone feels safe and people truely rise on merit, which is all good. And while there are some suggestions that are not new, I do think she efficiently categorizes different types of interactions and how to combat them with specific techniques, which is an approach I definitely appreciate and will think about in the future, when trying to handle a difficult situation.

Thank you to St. Martins Press and Netgalley for the gifted e-copy of this book!!!

I am oh so very impressed by this book. Truly eye opening and educational as someone interested in the office dynamics and ways to address employees with bias or prejudices. I have not had the opportunity to read a book like this! I loved the authors writing style and the points were clear. The personal stories included really struck me as something that I can see happening in my life and I really enjoyed the multiple responses and the way other factors were included and explained. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone as these concepts are relevant to all social situations whether in the workplace or a more personal setting. I know for me personally I have been told I am too 'harsh' meaning I say things the way they are without softening. But I will often choose silence rather than speak up and risk conflict. I have always struggled with people pleasing and in the recent years have softened myself in certain environments. This book has helped me better understand that people pleasing should never get in the way of being effective at my job and doing my best work.

Kim Scott, author of Radical Candor offers solid advice and candid stories about how to make the workplace a better, safer, more just environment for everyone.

Although the book specifically addresses leaders in the workplace, its lessons are golden for all of us.

Kim differentiates between bias (often unconscious), prejudice, and bullying, and suggests appropriate responses for each—whether you are the victim, a bystander, or the perpetrator of the problem.

The book is filled with candid stories of Kim’s own failures and successes, which makes the reader feel more comfortable reading what might otherwise be uncomfortable. (How many times have I been victim of that bias? How many times have I unthinkingly subjected others to my own biases?)

I highly recommend this book to anyone who works with other people. That’s most of us.

Practical Solutions for Injustice in the Workplace

Anyone who has worked in a corporation or even a small private company has seen instances of injustice, bias, harassment, and bullying. Often we feel unable to address these issues even though we know what’s happening is wrong. In this book, in addition to giving examples of the problem, the author offers practical suggestions.

The examples presented by the author, including her own experiences, give this book a feel of immediacy. I could understand and sympathize with the situations described. Although it’s easy to identify problems and want to do something about them, it isn’t always easy in the real world.

The author goes a step beyond identifying abuses in the workplace, she gives practical suggestions for dealing with the problems. Although not all suggestions will work in a particular situation, there are enough to give you ideas for what to do. Clearly, it will take a long time and many missteps to rectify the problems in the workplace, but this book is a start.

I received this book from St. Martin’s Press for this review.

This is not the typical book full of advice on how to be successful at work. The author actually shares mistakes that she has made and how she learned from them. This is very unusual, as much of these books focus on looking forward, not back.

Radical Candor changed the way that I give and receive feedback. But, even more powerful is that Kim Scott’s concise, direct, and story-based approach makes it a book that I can recommend to colleagues in my STEM field who would not normally read leadership books. Just Work replicates that same magic – Scott tackles tough and important topics and does so in a way that is approachable to a wide range of readers, and especially those who are just getting started on the DEI learning curve.

Scott frames the book around types of threats (e.g. bias, harassment) and the different roles that we each play in these (person harmed, upstander, person causing harm, and leader). She then introduces the reader to the tough reality that nearly all of us occupy each of these roles at one time or another, and that while we may have handled some of these situations well, some of our responses have likely left significant room for improvement. Scott does not pull punches – she shares candidly of both the challenging situations she has faced as a woman in tech and the mistakes that she has made as a colleague and leader. Her vulnerability conveys the message that it is okay to make mistakes, but we also have a responsibility to learn from those mistakes and do better.

Scott’s writing is also mindful of privilege and intersectionality – she regularly acknowledges that while she has faced challenges as a woman in a male-dominated field, she has also benefited from several forms of privilege and that the challenges are even greater for those at the intersection of multiple underrepresented identities, such as women of color.

Similar to Radical Candor, Scott uses a quad diagram as an illustration to guide readers to the culture of Just Work. I found this illustration to be less intuitive in this book compared to Radical Candor, but this does not detract from the impact of the book. The framing around types of threats and different roles provides a more complex–but highly tangible–grid to help readers understand multiple perspectives and locate the guidance that they might need for each situation.

Some reviewers have noted that experts in the DEI field may not find too much new information here. I agree, but it does not lower my enthusiasm for this book. While some fields have made significant gains in DEI, there are still far too many workplaces that lag woefully behind and where change is long overdue. Just Work serves as an excellent starting point for people in those workplaces who want to do better but aren’t sure how. This book will help them build a foundation of awareness and equip themselves with practical approaches for handling situations that threaten equity and inclusion.

In summary, Just Work is powerfully relatable. Scott shares candid instructions for how to create just workplaces, while also sharing the times that she fell short of implementing her own advice. She sheds light on the challenges faced by those in underrepresented groups while empowering us to each be part of creating the change that is so desperately needed.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley for an advanced copy in return for a candid review.

I’m a Kim Scott fan — but I missed the systemic approach I’ve seen in Radical Candor and other content from RC. As an expert in DEI, I found some nuggets valuable and helpful but overall a “process” was missing and the book seemed to capitalize on the moment of DEI instead of a central idea on DEI. Bonus points for the cheeky title and consistent cover branding, but overall, unless you’re new to DEI in the workplace (and appreciate having some of the info all in one place) — there may not be much new to find here.

I am a big fan of Kim Scott's Radical Candor, and Just Work has the same practical tips that you can really use! I've been looking for more information about how to make my workplace more equitable and this will be very helpful.

Kim Scott is one of my best mentors— and we’ve personally never met. Her book Radical Candor is one that I have recommended to countless colleagues and friends and re-read several times, and this timely follow up about creating just workplaces is likely to be no different.

The book forces you, as the reader (if you’re like me and so many of us and come from a place of privilege) to take a hard look in the mirror but in a way that’s solutions-oriented & collaborative rather than shaming (so different than the vitriol we often see online these days). It’s like tough love from a close friend or trusted coach. It also elicited lots of infuriating nods on my part as a woman who’s experienced the bias that direct women are “aggressive” or “difficult.” And yet it inspired me that maybe there is a way forward that can help us all rise as we work together to recognize and dismantle the three systems of injustice most prevalent in our workplaces (and dare I say, our culture in the US?): Oblivious Exclusion, Self-Righteous Shaming and Brutal Ineffectiveness.

“Some days you might wish she cared a little less. But she really cares. About the people and the work.” — I hope that’s how my colleagues view me, and as a result of reading this book, that’s much more likely.

Kim Scott knows how to write. She has away to keep you entertained and wanting to read more. I love how she was able to tell stories about herself even if they did not make her look the best. I enjoy when authors can get personal. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants some motivation and something worth reading.

This read was one of my favorite business books in awhile. It has some great honest points about issues in the workplace and how to overcome them. It really made me think how others have been treated in the workplace and how I have treated my co-workers. I recommend for anyone wanting to address some issues that can be difficult in the workplace, especially as a women.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley for a copy to honestly review.

I have so many thoughts about Kim Scott's new book. This is generally a sign that I need to sit with it a while more so I might come back to this review and change/add. But I just finished it so here are some of my raw thoughts.

- There's a lot of vulnerability and honest sharing of life experiences in this book. Kim shares a lot of what she experienced as an employee and decisions she made as a leader, she recounts many of her regrets at both times
- There is a structure to the book that makes it easy to parse and contextualize the definitions, roles, and actions
- She gives a lot of examples of both what not to do and what to do

And while she shares a lot of examples of where she made the wrong choice and how she regrets it, she doesn't give a lot of examples of where she made the "right" choice when her own life/career/etc was on the line. She gives a lot of examples of when she was in a consulting or power position and acted as an upstander (her nomenclature) on behalf of highlighting, correcting, and speaking up about a situation someone else was in. But not a lot of examples of her own career as an employee where she did take a risk to stand up or as a leader, where she corrected something in real time. She definitely owns up to her incorrect behavior (which is definitely commendable) but somehow it started to bother me that they were all examples of where someone else rescued her out of a situation, or she waited it out, or some other thing she says not to do - and she also readily acknowledges the person harmed (I really appreciate her not using the word "victim") should completely get to do what they believe is right for them which I totally understand. But I kept thinking that if her advice in this book is so sound, why is she herself not taking it? I couldn't tell if this was a biased view and I am sure there's a flaw in the thinking but because it kept creeping up, I wanted to acknowledge it.

Putting this aside, there are a lot of tangible pieces of advice here both for leaders and observers that I found very helpful. These are not platitudes. They are real, tangible ways we can hold ourselves and our leaders accountable, and start the journey towards change.

This book is hard to read and can be demoralizing, especially if you belong to an underrepresented group. Several of her gender-specific examples really were tough for me to read, especially where it paralleled my own experiences. But it also ends on a hopeful note, pointing out that just workplaces are possible and worth working towards.

No book on this subject will be perfect. No author will get it all right. I appreciated Scott's honestly, openness, vulnerability, and no-nonsense advice in this book. I will have to sit with it a while longer to see what else stays with me.

with gratitude to St. Martin's Press and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.