Dr. Benny A. Benjamin, Ph.D.
Ascending
the Ladder
9 Biblical Lessons for Reaching Your Career Goals and Thriving at Work
Jacob's ladder, Joseph's résumé, Moses' burnout. The oldest stories we know, read through the newest science of careers — for readers of every background, faith, or none.
Available in paperback and Kindle.
81
bite-sized chapters
5
Books of Moses, from Genesis to Deuteronomy
0
religious background required
The unconventional lens
Ancient stories.
Modern workplace.
Whether you study the weekly Torah portion, grew up with Sunday school, or simply know these stories from culture, Ascending the Ladder meets you where you are. You don't need to believe anything to benefit — only to be curious about work and life.
Each chapter pairs a familiar narrative with proven frameworks from vocational psychology — Donald Super's life-span theory, the personal SWOT analysis, Krumboltz's planned happenstance — alongside insights from classical rabbinic interpreters.
“Can the Bible really help me advance my career?”— the question the book sets out to answer
Burnout
Yitro watches Moses judge from dawn to dusk: “You will surely wear yourself out.” The first lesson in delegation.
Toxic bosses & workers
A new Pharaoh “who knew not Joseph” and Korach's revolt — what to do when the people around you change the rules.
Imposter syndrome
The spies saw themselves “like grasshoppers.” Self-efficacy, not circumstance, decided the outcome.
Networking
“Mention me to Pharaoh,” Joseph asks from prison. Proof that you can build a network anywhere.
Career transitions
Abraham's “Go from your father's house” — leaving comfort zones and family expectations behind.
Chapter & theme explorer
Nine rungs. Eighty-one lessons.
Search for the challenge you're facing, browse by part, or switch to the weekly Torah reading view.
Showing 81 of 81 chapters
- 1
The earth was “void and desolate”
The emerging career identity
Career Identity
- 2
“And God saw that it was good”
Performing a personal SWOT analysis
Career Identity
- 3
“No longer will your name be Yaakov”
Finding your career identity
Career Identity
- 4
“Dan, a snake by the roadside”
Making the most of performance evaluations
Career Identity
- 5
A failed mission?
Resilience and grit at work
Career Identity
- 6
The priestly garments
Impression management at work
Career Identity
- 7
Imbued with wisdom, knowledge, and talent
Multiple intelligences
Career Identity
- 8
Each by his banner and family ensign
Designing your coat of arms
Career Identity
- 9
“We looked like grasshoppers to ourselves”
Self-efficacy as key to achievement
Career Identity
- 10
“Who are these men with you?”
Tell me who your friends are…
Career Identity
- 11
“It is not in the heavens”
Can a person really change?
Career Identity
- 12
“Isaac dug anew the wells”
The challenges of continuing a family business
Life-Career Development
- 13
“Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe”
Career development as planned happenstance
Life-Career Development
- 14
Lighting up
The career task of lifelong learning
Life-Career Development
- 15
Keeping the embers burning
Maintaining motivation at work
Life-Career Development
- 16
A forty-year wandering
Career as “journey”
Life-Career Development
- 17
“His eyes had not grown dim”
Approaching retirement and beyond
Life-Career Development
- 18
“By the sweat of your brow”
Coping with career uncertainty
Coping with Change
- 19
“Leave the Ark!”
But is it okay to stay in my comfort zone?
Coping with Change
- 20
“Go from…your father’s house”
The family’s impact on career decisions
Coping with Change
- 21
“Protect me on this journey”
Adapting to career uncertainty
Coping with Change
- 22
“A new king arose over Egypt”
“A new broom sweeps clean”
Coping with Change
- 23
“Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh”
Leaving your comfort zone
Coping with Change
- 24
I’m not a speaker
Don’t you see my “wooden leg?”
Coping with Change
- 25
“Eat it in haste”
Transformational change in the workplace
Coping with Change
- 26
“Open your eyes!”
Discerning change in the workplace
Coping with Change
- 27
“The Lord blessed the Sabbath day”
Taking planned time off
Meaning and Purpose
- 28
Spinning goat hair
Passion or purpose?
Meaning and Purpose
- 29
“Leave your gleanings for the poor”
Purposeful work and volunteering
Meaning and Purpose
- 30
If you see one, do you see them all?
No, each is uniquely motivated!
Meaning and Purpose
- 31
“Our children, our wives, our flocks”
Striving for work-family balance
Meaning and Purpose
- 32
“Man does not live by bread alone”
Spirituality in the workplace
Meaning and Purpose
- 33
“Rejoicing [together] in all your endeavors”
Collective joy at work
Meaning and Purpose
- 34
“You cannot ignore it”
Organizational citizenship behavior
Meaning and Purpose
- 35
“Don’t look (too far) back”
The résumé paradox — “What have you done (lately)?”
Job Search & Interviewing
- 36
“Mention me to Pharaoh”
Career networking: you can do it anywhere (even in prison)!
Job Search & Interviewing
- 37
“This is what you say to Pharaoh”
Job interview coaching
Job Search & Interviewing
- 38
“This is a stiff-necked people”
“What are your weaknesses?”
Job Search & Interviewing
- 39
“Just because we have no brothers?”
Getting a lift from your elevator pitch
Job Search & Interviewing
- 40
“My father was a fugitive Aramean”
Tell me about yourself
Job Search & Interviewing
- 41
“This is the sign of our covenant”
The psychological contract at work
Workplace Dynamics
- 42
Jumping in
Going the extra mile (extra-role behavior)
Workplace Dynamics
- 43
“Moses and the Israelites sang this song”
Gratitude and celebration in the workplace
Workplace Dynamics
- 44
Oppressed but engaged?
The benefits of workplace relationships
Workplace Dynamics
- 45
“Strange fire before the Lord”
Compliance or innovation?
Workplace Dynamics
- 46
Isolated for seven days
Solitaire, anyone?
Workplace Dynamics
- 47
“Clear out the old”?
The multi-generational workplace
Workplace Dynamics
- 48
Raising the wick
Empowering the next generation
Workplace Dynamics
- 49
“If only you would hear me out!”
“Getting to yes” in the workplace
Communicating at Work
- 50
“Shall we return to Egypt?”
Conflict resolution at work
Communicating at Work
- 51
“Now, these are the names”
Meta-communication and the sweetness of a name
Communicating at Work
- 52
“What did this people do to you?”
Cognitive reframing in the workplace
Communicating at Work
- 53
“Something like a plague has appeared upon my house”
R-E-S-P-E-C-T in the workplace
Communicating at Work
- 54
“What’s that got to do with the price of tea in China?”
Brainstorming at work
Communicating at Work
- 55
Recite, bind, and write
Inculcating the message through multichannel communication
Communicating at Work
- 56
“Listen, heavens…let the earth hear”
People hearing without listening?
Communicating at Work
- 57
“Let her be the one”
Headhunting and scouting for talent acquisition
Leadership
- 58
“Can you interpret my dream…now?!”
Organizational consultancy
Leadership
- 59
“Tell your sons and your sons’ sons”
Preserving the organizational culture
Leadership
- 60
“You will surely wear yourself out”
Burnout, consultancy, and delegating
Leadership
- 61
Twelve precious stones
Limits to workplace diversity?
Leadership
- 62
“So Moses blessed them”
Marking accomplishments
Leadership
- 63
“When a leader sins”
Dealing with failure
Leadership
- 64
“Come with us… we will be generous with you”
Retaining talent then and now
Leadership
- 65
“Did I conceive all these people?”
Leadership overload and burnout
Leadership
- 66
Revolting subjects
Dealing with toxic workers
Leadership
- 67
Between a rock and a hard place
Managing generational diversity
Leadership
- 68
“An inspired man”
Job description of the next leader
Leadership
- 69
Moses, the orator
Leaving the organization… thanks for the memories
Leadership
- 70
“Be strong and be determined”
Participatory, autocratic, or situational management?
Leadership
- 71
The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
The high cost of workplace favoritism
Ethics & Responsibility
- 72
“And here’s to you, Mrs. Potiphar”
#MeToo in the workplace
Ethics & Responsibility
- 73
“The midwives feared God”
Ethical challenges in the workplace
Ethics & Responsibility
- 74
“Do not oppress a stranger or exploit him”
Protecting precarious workers
Ethics & Responsibility
- 75
Gold-plated inside and out
Integrity in the workplace
Ethics & Responsibility
- 76
29 talents, 730 shekels
Accountability in crowdfunding
Ethics & Responsibility
- 77
Getting past first impressions
The halo effect at work
Ethics & Responsibility
- 78
“I heard it through the grapevine”
The price of gossip at work
Ethics & Responsibility
- 79
Sending the goat “off to the wilderness”
Scapegoatism in the workplace
Ethics & Responsibility
- 80
“Do not…put a stumbling block before the blind”
Transparency in your career
Ethics & Responsibility
- 81
“Hear no evil, see no evil?”
The buck stops here!
Ethics & Responsibility
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Get the Introduction and Chapter 1, “The emerging career identity,” free as a PDF.
Dr. Benny
A. Benjamin
Psychologist · Career counselor · Author
About the author
Where workplace science meets ancient wisdom
Dr. Benny A. Benjamin holds a Ph.D. and has spent his career at the intersection of organizational and vocational psychology. For many years he served as head psychologist of the National Israel Employment Service, where he was exposed daily to what he calls “the always fascinating interface of life and work.”
Raised in Kansas City, Missouri, by parents who taught in a synagogue school, he grew up with the weekly Torah portion at the family table. Decades of career counseling — including published research on career counseling with couples — convinced him that the Five Books of Moses speak directly to the questions people bring to work today.
Ascending the Ladder is the result: a bridge between two unlikely domains, written for job seekers, managers, HR professionals and study groups alike.
Speaking & workshops
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Burnout, leadership, generational diversity
Synagogues & faith communities
Parsha-based career study series
Universities & schools
Career identity and job-search skills
Conferences & associations
Keynotes on meaning and purpose at work
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Dr. Benjamin will reply personally.