cover image The Anti 9 to 5 Guide: Practical Career Advice for Women Who Think Outside the Cube

The Anti 9 to 5 Guide: Practical Career Advice for Women Who Think Outside the Cube

Michelle Goodman. Seal Press (CA), $14.95 (223pp) ISBN 978-1-58005-186-6

Snappy and practical, this guide to quitting your job at the ""e-mail-saturated, meeting-happy cube farm"" will prove indispensable to any young professional itching to strike out on her own. Goodman, a successful freelance writer, aims her book at women between 25 and 35, but young men will likely find her advice (always send a thank you note after an informational interview; play it cool if you snort coffee out your nose) just as relevant. From ""sussing out the gigs"" to guidance on taxes and health insurance to battling ""the inertia that binds one's derriere to the sofa like a tongue to a frozen flagpole,"" Goodman covers all the aspects of going solo. A ""Show Me the Money"" section at the end of each chapter gives readers money-saving tips (eat all the food in your fridge before it ""liquefies or grows spores""), and checklists covering steps readers must take before becoming self-employed. Goodman's advice is applicable to a broad range of careers, though the non-profit and international travel chapters are useful primarily for pointing to other, more in-depth sources. Goodman's tone is realistic-taking into account the obstacles facing a generation burdened early by debt-but she retains a sense of humor, making this information-dense guide an encouraging, buoyant lifesaver.