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How many times have you groaned aloud about office politics? Many people just
wish they d be judged on the quality of their work alone, not on how well they
play the game or where they stand in the political hierarchy.
Yet, those who have mastered the art of office politics seem to have more doors
open to them at work. Is there a way to win with your good nature intact,
without really playing politics? And what about focusing on your personal
character?
These are topics LinkedIn Influencers weighed in on this week. Here s what two
of them had to say.
Dr Travis Bradberry, president at TalentSmart
A lot of the advice about how to handle office politics boils down to just
don t play , as if avoiding the political system in your office will protect
you and your career, wrote Bradberry in his post How to Win at Office
Politics. It won t.
So, what s the key to winning at office politics?
Stop wishing it will go away and to start learning how to thrive in your
workplace s political environment, he wrote. You don t have to dive right
into the seedy underbelly of office politics to win the game; you win by
playing smart and knowing when and how it s worth getting involved.
First, Bradberry advised, you need to learn the lay of the land .
Your office is full of allies and rivals, and, if you watch and listen
closely, you can get a pretty good sense of who s aligned with whom, he wrote.
That includes noticing who has lunch together, who gets invited to important
meetings and who doesn t, and who seems to be the first or the last to know
about changes that are coming.
The answers to these questions define your political landscape, Bradberry
wrote. But don t choose a side yet. It s smart to understand the rules and the
players and their strategies before you jump into the fray.
After that, you should build broad alliances , he wrote. If you accomplish
this and show people across the board that they can rely on you, you ll stand a
good chance of coming out ahead, no matter which political camp is currently
winning .
As importantly, keep the goal of playing office politics in mind. You re not
engaging in office politics for fun or to be one of them , you re doing it for
two reasons: career success and job fulfilment, Bradberry wrote. When you get
caught up emotionally, you run the risk of making decisions you ll regret down
the road. Gossiping, backstabbing, manipulating and the rest are not needed to
win at office politics.
Instead, think about how you and an opponent can both get what you want. Other
advice: never pit rivals against one another or you could get caught between
two warring parties. Instead steer your conversations back to the facts: What
decisions need to be made? What are the next steps? What can I do to help
improve this situation?, he wrote.
Most importantly, You must stick to your principles, without fail. Before
taking any action that s fuelled by office politics, ask yourself why you re
doing it, Bradberry wrote. If you re motivated by fear, revenge, or jealousy,
don t do it. If it conflicts with your values and beliefs about fair behaviour,
it s better not to get involved.
Neil Blumenthal, co-founder and co-chief executive officer at Warby Parker
In a world where uncertainty and competition are both at a fever pitch, it s
easy to feel as though you have no chance of success without the professional
version of a fairy godmother to tap you with a wand and whisk you up the
corporate ladder, wrote Blumenthal in his post My Parents Were Right Focus
on Character, Not Your Career.
But, he wrote, the best mentors are those who live the kind of life you d like
to lead, not necessarily someone at the office who can help your career or play
politics for you. For Blumenthal, those people were his parents.
In some ways, the behaviour they modelled obviated a need for a more formal
mentoring, he wrote. What, exactly, where those behaviours that he watched that
helped propel his career?
Let the world in. My parents were diligent about exposing me to as much of the
world as possible. Real-world experience ranked high in their book of virtues.
My dad travelled a good deal for work, and he often managed to convert those
trips into family trips, wrote Blumenthal. Our trips showed me that the world
was full of possibility.
Motivate by example. My mother was a registered nurse for more than 30 years.
She loved helping people. Simple as that, he wrote.
Teach self-awareness. When I was a kid, my dad had an infuriating habit of
answering a question with a question, Blumenthal wrote. At the time, it felt
like torture. But to Blumenthal s father, it was a way to prompt me not to be
intellectually lazy to seek answers on my own, and construct my own thoughts
and opinions, he wrote.
Leading a life filled with happiness and success is about character, not
connections, Blumenthal concluded.