How to Keep Office Politics From Destroying Your Success at Work
Curated from: inc.com
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Identify political players
We all start out naively assuming that all business leaders make decisions based wholly on fact and merit.
The first challenge is to develop your "political sensitivity"--observe and ask questions about how things are done in your business, where the power bases are, and who might have hidden agendas.
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Keep political players comfortable
Every individual and leader has their comfort zone--behaviors, values, attitudes, fears, and drives that result in productive relationships.
Actions outside these comfort zones will likely lead to feuds, hidden decisions, excessive arguing, counter-productive lobbying, and back-biting.
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Align with decision-makers
Before coming and launching a fully-fledged proposal at a committee or in a memorandum, it's smart to test opinion and find out how key people will react.
This enables you to anticipate counter-arguments and update your proposal to answer objections and to accommodate political realities.
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Work the network of key people on decisions
Just as you do your homework on the facts, it pays to do your homework by visiting the players in a given situation.
Effective management is the process of harmonizing individual interests with the goals of all business stakeholders.
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Identify the norms for action
Focus your powers of persuasion on the right people and the right issues.
Politically insensitive business people often try to steam-roll others with emotion, a barrage of facts, or a claim of high-level support.
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Support others
... as often as you ask for support. If you are viewed as always demanding support, but never giving it, your effectiveness will be greatly reduced, even when you are right.
Always communicate the win-win element in every decision.
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Stand firm
When your integrity and values are at stake, do not fold.
There are obviously occasions when a subtle or indirect appeal, rather than a direct attack will pay bigger dividends in highly-charged political situations.
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IDEAS CURATED BY
Griffin Q.'s ideas are part of this journey:
Learn more about teamwork with this collection
How to build positive relationships with colleagues and superiors
How to navigate office politics without compromising your values
How to handle conflicts and difficult situations in the workplace
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