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Dilbert #26

Thriving on Vague Objectives

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I think that idiot bosses are timeless, and as long as there are annoying people in the world, I won't run out of material.—Scott Adams

Dilbert and the gang are back for this 26th collection, Thriving on Vague Objectives.

Adams has his finger on the pulse of cubicle dwellers across the globe. No one delivers more laughs or captures the reality of the 9 to 5 worker better than Dilbert, Dogbert, Catbert, and a cast of stupefying office stereotypes--which is why there are millions of fans of the Dilbert comic strip.

Dilbert is a techno-man stuck in a dead-end job (sound familiar?). Power-mad Dogbert strives to take over the world and enslave the humans. The most intelligent person in Dilbert's world is his trash collector, who knows everything about everything.

Artist and creator Scott Adams started Dilbert as a doodle when he worked as a bank teller. He continued doodling when he was upgraded to a cubicle for a major telecommunications company. His boss (no telling if he was pointy-haired or not) suggested the name Dilbert. Adams is so dead-on accurate in his depictions of office life that he has been accused of spying on Corporate America.

128 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2005

9 people are currently reading
119 people want to read

About the author

Scott Adams

281 books1,257 followers
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Adams was born in Windham, New York in 1957 and received his Bachelor's degree in Economics from Hartwick College in 1979.

He also studied economics and management for his 1986 MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

In recent years, Adams has been hurt with a series of debilitating health problems. Since late 2004, he has suffered from a reemergence of his focal dystonia which has affected his drawing. He can fool his brain by drawing using a graphics tablet. On December 12, 2005, Adams announced on his blog that he also suffers from spasmodic dysphonia, a condition that causes the vocal cords to behave in an abnormal manner. However, on October 24, 2006, he again blogged stating that he had recovered from this condition, although he is unsure if the recovery is permanent. He claims to have developed a method to work around the disorder and has been able to speak normally since. Also, on January 21, 2007, he posted a blog entry detailing his experiences with treatment by Dr. Morton Cooper.

Adams is also a trained hypnotist, as well as a vegetarian. (Mentioned in, "Dilbert: A Treasury of Sunday Strips 00).

He married Shelly Miles on July 22, 2006.

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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Profile Image for RKanimalkingdom.
526 reviews73 followers
September 4, 2019
5/5

Absolutely Hilarious! I just love the cynicism in Dilbert. In this installment, we follow Dilbert and co. as they deal with moronic bosses who can’t give them a basic task with definite start and end points. What seems like a sturdy project crumbles with various cuts and increased expectations until it becomes nothing more then, vague objectives. Sassy, sarcastic, slightly nihilistic, and obviously realistic, this series is a must read for all. You will not regret it.

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©thescientificdetective2019

Profile Image for Valerie.
2,031 reviews183 followers
September 24, 2009
I had to fight my son Ian for this one. I pointed out that since I paid for it I got to read it first. I was reminded of how my mom belonged to the Stephen King book club when I was about 13 and I used to read the books before she got home from work. She grew resigned to it. This one had some laugh out loud moments, and a Turing test reference.
Profile Image for SKP.
1,110 reviews
January 28, 2023
Dilbert is always amusing. I found quite a number of standout strips in this book. Anyone who has worked in an office with a boss they aren’t very fond of, and a variety of co-workers can find something to relate to in these books.

The one thing that I find slightly annoying is that different sources have the Dilbert collections in different orders, and some of them even have them in 2 or 3 separate collections. I don’t really care —I’m reading them in the order that Amazon has them listed, and so far it hasn’t made much difference. All of the Dilbert books can be read as standalone books —they do not really build on each other except that there are some characters that were not in earlier collections, but that isn’t a big deal really.
147 reviews1 follower
July 12, 2020
Another great Dilbert book

The Dilbert books never fail to amuse and for me this is one of the best ones. Definitely a recommended read.
Profile Image for David Erkale.
293 reviews2 followers
July 18, 2025
Thriving on Vague Objectives is a more recent Dilbert collection, collecting comics from 2005. Notably less humorous than it was in the 90s, but I guess the cartoon had a toll on the comic.
Profile Image for Marie.
48 reviews
February 16, 2017
Usual funnies from Scott Adams. Being a cubicle dweller, I can totally relate to almost everything.
Profile Image for Hannah Belyea.
2,693 reviews38 followers
December 21, 2023
Dilbert and his...colleagues...are desperate to find some sort of meaning in their work, but between the empty promises of their boss and the empty gaze of their fellow employees, the only meaning to their lives seems to come at lunch break. Adams speaks to all cubicle suffers in another funny, colourful and downright cruel splash of reality. Someday Dilbert may find more meaning than the one between two slices of bread...someday...
Profile Image for Duane.
1,448 reviews19 followers
November 20, 2010
You just can't go wrong when it comes to work humor and Dilbert. Filled with tons of comics that will make you laugh out loud at all the crazy things we put up with on a daily basis. A great book for a laugh.
Profile Image for Little Timmy.
7,305 reviews57 followers
January 23, 2016
We all might have started out like Calvin with a great view of life. But after hitting the workforce we all somewhat become Dilbert. Everyone knows someone like one of the characters in the strips. Highly recommended
Profile Image for Jimyanni.
597 reviews22 followers
May 21, 2010
Almost all Dilbert books are hysterically funny; this one may well be the best one yet. There were many, many laugh-out-loud strips here.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews

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