That is totally false, as far as your career within a company goes. Your manager holds the reigns to your career trajectory 99% of the time. The other 1% of the

That is totally false, as far as your career within a company goes. Your manager holds the reigns to your career trajectory 99% of the time. The other 1% of the time someone else with more power takes you on as their pet project. What this means practically is that you are limited by your manager's skills, reputation, and ambition. Obviously other people can influence your (bigger, life-long) career, but as far as one company goes, this is the truth. This concept is explored wonderfully in "Corporate Confidential: 50 Secrets Your Company Doesn't Want You to Know". http://www.amazon.com/Corporate-Confidential-Secrets-Company-Know/dp/0312337361 http://www.amazon.com/Corporate-Confidential-Secrets-Company...