After my Good Morning column ran yesterday about my old boss, Sheila, I received several e-mails from other professional women sharing their experiences with bad behavior at the office.

One reader sent me a link to this great article "7 Ways to Handle Your Dysfunctional Office" from Monster.com. I admit to employing a few of these strategies myself and can say that they really work.

On the topic of bad work manners, check out the story "Fire at Will" on the cover of You, Inc. today. It's all about how "bad employees can trash office morale," and, unfortunately, I can attest to the truth of that article as well. Been there, done that (and quit that).

I recently asked a respected newsroom colleague to mentor me. He graciously agreed and gave me a homework assignment right off the bat -- read "Now, Discover Your Strengths" and take the online test to discover what my natural God-given strengths are.

I picked up the book and was intrigued by the concept -- it was a positive approach to making the most of your talents and strengths (a welcome reprieve from discovering, dissecting and "fixing" our weaknesses that all the other books drone on about).

As the authors write:
"Unfortunately, most of us have little sense of our talents and strengths. Instead, guided by our parents, our teachers, our managers and psychology's fascination with pathology, we become experts in our weaknesses and spend our lives trying to repair these flaws, while our strengths lie dormant and neglected."

The way to get ahead in life (and probably the secret to a happy life) is to focus on your strengths. What are the things that come naturally to you? What do you do better than anyone else you know? Do you have the opportunity to do what you do best every day?

(From the online synopsis) "At the heart of Now, Discover Your Strengths, is the Internet-based StrengthsFinder® Profile, the product of a 25-year, multimillion dollar effort to identify the most prevalent human strengths. The program introduces 34 dominant "themes" with thousands of possible combinations, and reveals how they can best be translated into personal and career success."

Basically, you read the book, take the online test (you have to buy the book to get a "code" to take the test) and they will give you your top 5 strengths based on your answers to the 1/2 hour test.

My top 5 were no surprise to me as they are the things I know most about myself:

1. Empathy. I am (sometimes annoyingly) tuned into other people's emotions. I can sense what people are feeling whether I know them well or not. It was eye-opening for me to realize that not everyone has this ability and explains why sometimes I am flabbergasted at the poor choices other people make in hiring, choosing a partner, etc. I can tell when someone walks in the door whether they are the right person (for a job, for a partner, for a friend, etc.). I've known forever that I was good at "reading" people, I just never labeled it a strength.

I was relieved to read the authors stress that empathy is not to be confused with sympathy."You do not necessarily agree with each person's perspective. You do not necessarily feel pity for them -- that would be sympathy, not empathy. You do not necessarily condone the choices each person makes, but you do understand."

2. Harmony. I've long thought my peacemaker tendencies came from being a middle child. When it comes to arguing, fighting and debating -- well, I'd just rather not. You'll never find me stirring the pot. About Harmony, the book says: "In your view there is little to be gained from conflict and friction, so you seek to hold them to a minimum.You can't quite believe how much time is wasted by people trying to impose their views on others."

Right on. Shut up and get to work, already.

3. Communication. Frankly, I'd have been mortified if this wasn't in my top 5. Without a doubt, this is what I know I was born to do. Fortunately, I found a way to get paid to do it.

4. Achiever. This is so me that it made me laugh out loud. "Achiever describes a constant need for achievement. You feel as if every day starts at zero. By the end of the day you must achieve something tangible in order to feel good about yourself. And by 'every day' you mean every single day -- workdays, weekends, vacations. You have an internal fire burning inside you. It pushes you to do more, achieve more."

Bullseye again -- just ask my poor husband who wants nothing more than to rest and relax on the weekend when I want nothing more than for him to help me check chore after chore off my never-ending household "to do" list.

5. Discipline.The book says, "You instinctively impose structure on your world. You set up routines.You focus on timelines and deadlines.Faced with the inherent messiness of life, you want to feel in control. The routines, the timelines, the structure all help create this feeling of control."

Funny, I always considered my disciplined nature an annoying personality trait -- I frequently refer to myself as "anal" about things (like getting up every day to run at 5 a.m. no matter what the weather). Who knew it was a strength? Well... probably my bosses who enjoy the fact that I never miss a deadline (and are hell-bent on making sure my writers don't either).

Not only do I impose order and structure on myself, but I try to impose it on everyone else on a weekly basis in my "Get it Together" organization column in Saturday's House to Home... which I just realized takes advantage of at least three -- if not all -- of my strengths.

Hmmm ... what else could I be doing that taps into my strengths?

Guess I better finish the book first.

Unsure where you're going...what you should be doing...do you hate your job? I'd highly recommend checking out this book.

There was an interesting article in the October issue of Working Mother magazine about the work-ethic clashes that can occur when women from distinctly different generations work together.

Here, in a nutshell, are the generations (excerpted from the article):

The oldest workers, typically called Traditionalists or Veterans (ages 62 to 77), expected to work in the same company for their entire career and leave with a gold watch and a pension, says Stephanie Marston, a family therapist and workplace consultant.

Baby Boomers (ages 43 to 61), the largest generation, are the group that forced the workplace to include more women and multicultural employees. The vast size of this generation, with its willingness to rebel against societal norms, gave it unprecedented power and influence. Boomers are workaholics who "live to work" and believe that you earn your stripes by putting in face time.

In contrast, Gen Xers (ages 31 to 42), the smallest generation, place less value on hierarchy and loyalty to a specific organization. They "work to live" and believe that work, although fulfilling, should not define one's life.

Then there's Gen Y, also called Millennials (ages 13 to 30), the techno-literate children of the Boomers. After watching their workaholic parents get downsized from high-powered jobs, they're more devoted to their own careers than to any one company.

Says Marston: "The four generations all have different work ethics and value systems. That doesn't mean the younger generations don't work hard. They just work in different ways."

These dissimilar approaches to work can cause confusion—even resentment—among women of the four generations.

An AOL Finance article "Worst Things to Say at Work" caught my eye this morning.

It's dead on career advice -- particularly the "It's not my job" phrase (a colleague and I have a special name for those kind of co-workers -- he or she is a "notmyjobber").

"It's not my fault" is another huge workplace phrase pet-peeve of mine. I don't care who's fault it is...fix the problem...now...then we'll talk about how it happened. Offer solutions not excuses. Or, as my mentor says, "strive at all times to be a part of the solution."

Are you a numbers girl? You can earn your CPA from Clarion University without ever having to go to campus for classes. Check this out:

Students can prepare for CPA exam online with Clarion University program Anyone interested in becoming a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in Pennsylvania can now become eligible to sit for the CPA exam in one year by taking online courses through Clarion University. Classes begin May 12.

This 24-credit program enables students to prepare for the CPA exam at their convenience, without ever having to travel to the Clarion campus. It is designed especially for people who cannot travel to campus due to distance, job commitments or family responsibilities.