WORKPLACE SPECIAL ....HOW TO WIN IN OFFICE POLITICS

HOW TO WIN IN OFFICE POLITICS

Understand how it works, learn the rules and play the game.

Why do you hate office politics? It is about unwritten rules and interactions about who gets the resources, the promotion or the boss’s favour. As it is unwritten, you find it unfair. Yet office politics is unavoidable. Any group of people will try and establish power and authority through interactions. Good politics increase trust and thus the speed of work and collaboration. Bad politics drain energy and disengages you from work. Hence, you should understand how it works and how you can act or respond.

Understand

Before you play the game first understand the players. Ignore the organisation chart and look at your environment with fresh eyes. Where is the power? Who are skilled and who gets killed? Who wields authority and how? Who are the brains, the influencers and mentors? Who are respected and who are feared? Are there informal groups and what is the source of attraction or conflict between them? You will not have all the answers immediately but when you are keen, the unwritten rules will become obvious and you will be ready to play!

Relate

Relate to people across the organisation. As a human, you need interactions with people to survive and get work done. Establish multiple relationships across levels in the company through your defined role and by volunteering outside your comfort zone. Your output will build professional bonds and your natural affinity to certain people will build friendships. This creates and maintains your circle of influence, which is the foundation of power. Do not ignore your bosses. You have to learn from them to grow. Seek advice, thus creating a mentor relationship beyond a reporting one.

Focus

Focus on the reason why you are in this job. You need it to build your career and earn. Maintaining focus helps you avoid negative politics that sap energy and risk your job. Reminding yourself of what is critical keeps your survival instinct activated and you can sense how others perceive you and how your actions impact them. Accordingly, you can understand their professional and political agendas. Work and communicate so that both parties can survive and win together.

Separate emotions

Separate emotions from facts in discussions. Do this with your own emotions and those of others. Develop the habit of listening well to seek information before you respond. Once you have done that, focus on facts when you speak. This helps in side-stepping rash words stemming from your own agitation, calms down the other person and helps you avoid taking sides.

Be value based

You always have a choice—irrespective of how intense the politics. The best choice you can make for your peace of mind, sustainability and survival is to know your personal value system and principles and to act and speak accordingly. Your acceptance and influence amongst people depends on how sincere you are seen to be. Sincerity comes from being honest and consistent about your principles. Your detractors may not like your position but will respect you, while people who like you will support you. Whenever a situation or conversation makes you uncomfortable ask yourself how it fits or conflicts with your values. Your mind will clear up and you can make the best choice despite the temporary discomfort.

Sell

No one else is responsible for your career or promoting your growth. So apart from doing fabulous work, you owe it to yourself and your employer to make sure that your performance is known to the right people. This is your brand of good politics where you take charge of selling yourself correctly. Make yourself and your work visible to your team and boss so that they can take correct decisions and you get rightful credit. Learn to communicate your output and plans regularly. You can benchmark your performance against the average without indulging in the bad politics of pulling down or criticising others.

Plan

Plan your communication in advance for both scheduled and sudden opportunities. For a project meeting, plan on what you want to achieve, what are the conflicting interests of different parties, what objections you would face, where can you tap support and how will you communicate in each scenario. Think through elevator responses for when your boss walks around and asks you how things are going or an antagonist corners you in public with uncomfortable questions during lunch hour.

Fight or flight

Know how to fight and when to flee. When someone tries to sabotage you, fight by responding firmly with facts. Keep such interactions humorous to diffuse situations. If someone is spreading gossip, ask the person why he is annoyed with you. Be open if the criticism is honest and be ready to clarify or escalate if it is dishonest. Talk to your professional friends often about such situations to remain grounded. If the current politics is too toxic, know that you still have two choices. You can quit and join a more empowering workplace, or you can choose to start your own business and avoid employee politics for good. Be nice when you leave and don’t burn bridges.

ET212FEB18