Comments on: How to Exploit Your Employer

By: mammolastan

mammolastan — Wed, 14 Jan 2015 20:48:00 +0000

I’m posting this comment on the clock, right now, learning personally valuable life skills.

By: Antara Man

Antara Man — Wed, 25 Jun 2014 08:07:00 +0000

A very good advice, James. As I am now in such a situation I agree with your tips. Thank you. I have a question: when you are a self-employed who do you exploit, yourself?

By: KB

KB — Tue, 22 Apr 2014 20:07:00 +0000

Awesome article! I recently discovered your blog after re-reading your article in Tech Crunch: Cheat sheet for starting a company. Although I work for an awesome startup in a great role, I am always thinking about how I can get out and do my own thing. This is helpful in motivating.

By: Rob

Rob — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 23:11:00 +0000

“It’s very clear in a capitalist economy that The Man needs to exploit the workers.”

I’m exploited by the government taking over 40% of my annual income. I feel as though my boss is doing me a huge favor by giving me the most money for my time. The US isn’t even close to a capitalist economy. In a true capitalist economy, no one is exploited.

By: Andrew R Long

Andrew R Long — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 20:07:00 +0000

Hear hear. “Every single employer-employee situation on the planet works this way: You need people to work for less than what you’re making. Not only that, you need them to expend maximum effort and if along the way, they burn out, then you need to squeeze every last drop of productivity out of them before they finally collapse and must be replaced.”

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 17:50:00 +0000

Linked back this from your more recent post “Life Tastes Better….”. Great, common-sense and ‘all too true’. Keep calling a spade a spade! Sincere thanks for sharing your experience and life lessons…..

By: KarlCapital

KarlCapital — Mon, 02 May 2011 03:43:00 +0000

I missed how this is really exploitive: (1) participate in customer service, (2) work harder then the average, (3) give the boss credit for everything, and (4) develop your skill set (making you more potentially valuable to your employer). The only thing that does not benefit your employer as well as potentially yourself is to shop around your resume — but I’d say that is a wash because you probably are earning market wages anyways.

But, after all, you’ve admitted that you see yourself as the boss rather than the worker so I can understand how you would want to turn your worker’s “exploitive” temptations to your benefit. After all, isn’t that the best con — when the mark thinks he is the con artist?

By: Wizo

Wizo — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 00:10:00 +0000

Hey James, great post. Is it possible you could expand on how to exploit the boss, I am in a situation with a boss who has major bipolar and regularly screams at me and other employees for things out of our control. Another trick of his is to threaten us with termination so that we stay quiet and don’t talk back to him. I understand it is my choice to stay at the job, but at the moment I am finding it difficult to get work so my leverage is low. Luckily I am now starting to do the things you talk about, including writing down ideas. Hopefully I can leave this job, I have managed to save up $100,000 but not sure what to do with it yet. Hopefully I can direct it to a good idea I have when I come up with it. Thanks

By: Doc

Doc — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 16:12:55 +0000

Twice when I worked for a Fortune 50 company providing remote IT support the firm demanded I move 1000 miles at my expense away from my family. The issues causing the move were more political than practical and I surmised I would be constantly in conflict with jealous coworkers who resented my working remotely.

Both times the Navy Reserves had requirements for my occupation (field Corpsman)
First time was local supporting young Marines in training
Second time was an all expense paid trip to Al Anbar Iraq supporting young Marines fighting

I figured conflict with people who were trying to kill me than jealous coworkers was preferable and though I saw much conflict with tragic results the enemy was easier to get along with when we were not fighting than my coworkers.

Moral as James’s blog is
Always have a backup

By: KJP712

KJP712 — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 02:06:52 +0000

Some times while trading,I will still look over my shoulder to see if a Supervisor is watching me.Then seeing that I am alone and it is quiet,a smile appears on my face.