Executive Blues

by G.J. Meyer

Jerry Meyer was a certified success story--the youngest-ever vice-president of McDonnell Douglas at the age of 40. At the age of 50, he was unemployed and on the flip side of that dream, a victim of corporate downsizing. His bewildering journey from corporate success to white-collar joblessness is a memoir that Fortune magazine called "brilliant, original, and raging".

Genres: Business, Leadership

245 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

G. J. Meyer is a former Woodrow Wilson Fellow with an M.A. in English literature from the University of Minnesota, a onetime journalist, and holder of Harvard University’s Neiman Fellowship in Journalism. He has taught at colleges and universities in Des Moines, St. Louis, and New York. His books include A World Undone: The Story of the Great War, Executive Blues, and The Memphis Murders, winner of an Edgar Award for nonfiction from the Mystery Writers of America. He lives in Goring-on-Thames, England. (source)

Reviews

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’ve ever been laid off this book is a must read that describes the rollercoaster that is unemployment.

“Like a lot of people I believe that how we’re supposed to live our lives is the biggest question of all. And that the old answers to the biggest questions, the answers rooted in the old beliefs, more often than not turn out to be only answers that work. And that turning to the old answers is usually the best way to get ourselves above fear, self-pity, envy, and all that. I also believe that though being a corporate executive is a nice enough thing in its way (along with being sometimes an ugly, sometimes a ludicrous thing), it has nothing to do with the big questions and even less to do with the answers.”

[Anne Michaud · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a stunningly good book, and I guess it hit me right where I live ... or, more precisely, where my spouse has lived. It's not a lot easier being on the spousal side of layoffs.

I picked up this book because I'm generally interested in work and the (implicit and explicit) social contract between business and employees. I expected it to be dry, and it is anything but dry. Filled with insight, lively writing, sharp observation and humanity. I recommend this book to anyone who is even glancingly interested in this topic. The author put into words many things I've thought over the years during the ups and downs of employment for my household.

Thank you for this personal history.