Yahoo!Finance is getting desparate to recycle this article, but I'm afraid that I am correct that you are their Rosie O'Donnell. Well then keep up the good work! Giddyup Girl!

There's a very basic answer for this: Yahoo pays bills and brings in a wider audience. Writing is Penelope's job, not an interesting hobby. If I could get signed on as an advice columnist, then I'd put up with anonymous insults too.

All jobs have their less savory aspects. Being a writer involves lots of very public criticisms. It sucks, especially when your critics have nothing of value to say and resort primarily to personal attacks. But that doesn't mean that the author should retreat and effectively quit her job because she doesn't like her audience. On the other hand, it's definitely permissible for the audience to "fire" an author by ignoring her.

Which brings me to a roundabout point that Penelope may not really appreciate me bringing up. (Sorry! Can't resist!) Yahoo is not going to fire Penelope for having low reviews. Yahoo is in the business of attracting eyes; so long as Penelope generates interest, then she's going to be kept as an employee. The same goes for her blog. Websites are labeled as successful or failures based on how many people visit them. (There are exceptions, but you have to be a true social pariah to merit being dumped despite high page views.) If you really disagree with Penelope and deeply believe that she should have no authority whatsoever as a role model, then don't look. Don't generate arguments and get people visiting a post several times a day to look at new comments. Just shake your head quietly and don't come back. Because every time you visit here and every time you leave a nasty Yahoo comment, you generate a little more publicity. And publicity is what keeps the wheels turning.

Brief Digression on Why Comments Are Superior Here: Take a random polling of 100 Yahoo comments and tell me how many of those actually contain constructive input (whether negative or positive). I'd estimate that 90% of the comments on Yahoo can be summarized as either "Penelope is so right" or "Penelope is so wrong". Both are equally useless to someone who wants to open up a dialog. Good comments directly respond to the piece at hand or to previous comments. Constructiveness is a function of content density, not polarization.

All true, Kathryn. One more thing. A reason the comments are so good here is that someone would put into their comment a "Brief Digression" section of their comment. Such good writing. I love that.
–Penelope

I have to admit, this is the second article I've read and so far, I agree with most of the Yahoom readers….many of your tips can get people reprimanded or even fired from normal jobs. I understand that not everyone holds down "normal" jobs, but you are reaching out to a variety of people and I bet most of them work in traditional places.

Maybe if you prefaced your articles with "These are things I hope our professional society will take into consideration for the future." maybe people would be less inclined to tell you how wrong you are.

It's one thing to dream and hope and it's another to act like this is how bosses and companies are NOW. Most college grads following your advice to the T may be confronting a not so friendly work place once that grad starts implementing your advice.

Bottom line, I don't understand why you continue to write articles for Yahoo Finance if you have nothing good to ever say about Yahoo readers….

Attacking the writer and not the material is a sign of ignorance. I appreciate dissenting views when they are presented based on the material itself and not Penelope's personal history or character. (If you want to question her ability to write an advice column based on her work history, I hope you also question the current President's ability to lead a country based on his resume. Oh wait, we don't do that with men, just women.)

I don't agree with everything Penelope says and I like her blog all the more for that reason.

Remember all those [insert topic] for Dummies books? Absolutely worthless. Imagine how futile a "Facebook for Dummies" book would be. (although I'm sure it's in the works.) Instead people just try things and see what happens. That's how you learn. So we don't expect some great oracle to deliver the perfect advice to us. Instead, we need people who will stir the pot, keep the conversation going, and expose us to ideas we had not considered before.

1. Wardrobe: Think sassy suits and fitted blouses a la the females on TV shows like Boston Legal. Showing some skin doesn't mean wearing a mini-skirt or halter top to work. Nowhere in her article does she advocate straying from a conservative professional attire. It's important to look neat, clean, fashionable, and professional in the workplace. Women today can do this without wearing a formless bulky suit (unlike our mothers).

2. Sexual Harassment: Come on people. Do you really think P is saying that you should turn a blind eye if you are groped, ogled, threatened, or otherwise seriously harassed? The fact is that the most common forms of sexual harassment (which has a VERY broad definition) are not serious and may even be unintentional. Think sexist office jokes, sexist questions or comments on your personal life, and innocent flirtation (if it's unwanted it's legally harassment). These things should be brushed off or playfully but pointedly checked. If you make a big deal of it, complain to your boss, or otherwise throw a fit, you'll be labled a bitch/prude and cast out of the office social network. NOT good for the career.

Work Ethic: Hello? No one is saying not to work hard! She said to RELAX because many women tend to work themselves ragged while overlooking other important things that will advance your career (like getting to know your boss, chatting with peers, bonding with the admins, etc). Many women spend years holed up in their cubicles while glaring at their male counterparts who seem to always be goofing off, responding to ridiculous group emails, and playing mini-golf in the boss' office (this all happens on a daily basis at my financial firm). They keep their heads down working feverishly and then wonder why they haven't been noticed and promoted like those "slacker" males.

* * * * * * *
Yes. To all this. Liz, thank you for a great interpretation of the post.

-Penelope

Not that she needs me to defend her, but making a living as a professional athlete is a TREMENDOUS accomplishment. Founding a company and taking it to IPO is something VERY few people have accomplished. Becoming a nationally syndicated author with multiple book deals is HIGHLY UNCOMMON. Each of these requires skills, work ethic, and intelligence that is well beyond avearge and I think it's a tremendous blessing to hear brutally candid insights from someone with her experiences – even when I disagree with those insights.

Say what you will about her advice, but to dismiss her career as average or meaningless is ignorant.

And I love the simpltetons that rip her business knowledge simply because she decided to move to Madison, WI. Quick fact: there are more Fortune 500 CEO's to come out of Madison than any other university in the country. Harvard is 2nd.