How to be Politics Proof - Or At Least Politics Resistant!

The Solution

The focus of this article is not how to avoid office politics. Avoiding politics is not the answer. In fact, it’s not even possible. Any time you work with human beings, you are subject to the complexities of relationships, trust, credibility, communication, and the other nuances of getting other people to do what you want them to, or not do what you don’t want them to. The focus of this article, instead, is how to use “politics,” or personal influence, to your advantage; and to how to avoid possible negative consequences to yourself and your endeavors.

Safety in Numbers

Everything I know about wolves and buffalo came from watching National Geographic on TV on Sunday afternoons. But, I do know this: When threatened by wolves, herds of buffalo would arrange themselves in a circle, shoulder to shoulder, heads out, tails in. This made it very difficult for the wolves, because:

• The wolves were always in view. You can’t sneak up on a herd that has eyes in all directions
• The buffalo had their most vulnerable parts (their hindquarters) protected by their neighbors
• Sick, weak or young buffalo were kept in the middle of the circle
• The horns and hooves of the buffalo were more effective in protecting the herd when put to common use.

No matter what you do for a living, you probably rely on others, and others rely on you. Your customers, your co-workers, the receptionist, the housekeeping staff- all of these people have the potential to impact your working environment, your effectiveness on the job, and the way others see you.

Maintaining good personal relationships with these people is not only good for your quality of work-life, it is also vital to your success. If you have mutual interests (kids, hobbies, even frustration at the quality of coffee your company serves) they are much more likely to consider your interests and your requests more carefully.

This is not to imply that you should be insincere. Indiscriminate “sucking up” to people is insulting, in poor taste, and generally counterproductive. But if you genuinely like people, show it. If you can find something positive to appreciate about a person, let them know!

“If You Can’t Say Something Nice. . .”

The advice your mother probably gave you holds as true as it ever has. Negative energy, backbiting, gossiping, and other forms of social nastiness are dangerous- not only to the person you’re being negative about, but they will undoubtedly do the gossipers more harm than good.

If you hear someone speaking negatively about another person, you may initially be pleased that he trusts you enough to confide his frustrations. However, a second reaction (especially if it happens about more than one person, or happens on a regular basis) is a feeling that this person may speak negatively to others about YOU when you’re not around. Cubicle walls are thin, and give a false sense of security.

This is not to say that disputes, disagreements and misunderstandings don’t happen, or that they should be glossed over. But air them with the person you have the disagreement with, and a good rule of thumb is never to say anything about a person that you would not say to him directly.

Pure and Simple Guts

You know how there was always a kid on the school yard that everybody picked on. . . . generally speaking, the person least equipped to “fight” is the one with the greatest need to.

Sun Tzu’s recognized this in The Art of War, written thousands of years ago. Time and culture has not changed the basic fact that strength tends to bring peace, and weakness tends to bring instability.

If people see you as a person who will not “put up a fight” if challenged, someone who will not seek the counsel of others and/or raise objections to opposition, they are more likely to take advantage of you because there is less risk of negative consequences to themselves.

You’ve probably also heard it said that you don’t get what you’re worth, you get what you negotiate. Negotiation takes conviction in the value of yourself and your skills, conviction in your ability to communicate that value, and conviction that if you don’t get it, you can find it elsewhere.

In Who Moved My Cheese, Spencer Johnson, M.D. explains in a wonderful little story that includes such gems as “When you move beyond your fear, you feel free.” and “The quicker you let go of old cheese, the quicker you find new cheese.”

This is all easy to say, and harder to actually accomplish. Here are some steps that make it easier:

Keep your eyes and ears open

Listen to the constructive criticism of others. Whether you agree with it or not, the impressions others have of you can affect your career in a very real way. This is not to say you should take every suggestion, only that you evaluate it.

Subscribe to trade journals or surf the WEB to keep abreast of developments and trends in your field.

Listen for clues as to which departments, projects or skill sets are getting the most (and least) amount of management attention and funding. If you’re in one of the groups that seems to be getting singled out for being more expensive than they should be or less vital than they should be, it’s time to be cautious.

Make noise (be seen and heard in positive ways)

When times get tough and the “Powers that Be” are looking to cut expenses, they look for the least painful places to cut. If you quietly do your job, you may be seen as expendable. They won’t know what you did for them until after you’re gone and the place starts falling apart. This does not mean that you should be vulgar and ridiculous about blowing your own horn and every opportunity. Neither should you be a doormat. Ensure you are making progress reports to the decision-makers of the company, whether or not you’re required to do so.

Rather than seeing those progress reports as a regularly scheduled nuisance or piece of red tape, see them as an opportunity to highlight your accomplishments.

Look for opportunities to seek the advice and help of higher-ups. If they feel like they’re involved in your projects, they’ve personally invested in them (and you.)

Make sure you put in for every raise you’re due for.

Take advantage of whatever “employee outreach” opportunities your company offers- employee suggestions, nominating others for employee of the month, show up at company gatherings, etc. so that people know who you are and what you do.

Preserve your reputation at all costs.

Your real security is in your reputation, skills, and “network” of people that know and trust you; not in any particular job. As long as your reputation, skills and “network” are intact, it is much easier to get another job.

Reduce your dependence on the income from your primary job.

The greater degree of independence from this income, the more objective you can be in decision-making. Independence allows you to speak from a position of strength that other people will intuitively sense.

• Save a “safety cushion” of several months’ salary
• Keep your finances in order
• Don’t hyperextend yourself financially
• Develop an investment portfolio, “Moonlight,” freelance or own your own part-time business that you could fall back on. This is what Robert Kiyosaki would call “passive income” in his Rich Dad, Poor Dad series.

Your Professional Image

Although we don’t consciously acknowledge the impact of dress, demeanor and vocabulary on our dealings with people, the first impression you make (even if it’s the first impression that day or week) can have a dramatic effect on your effectiveness in getting your point across. If you’ve let your personal appearance slide, you give the impression that your performance may be slipping as well.

This is not to indicate that you should dress in pinstripes every day, especially if your co-workers are in khakis. You should, however, be in IRONED khakis. If in doubt, err on the overdressed side.

Many people kill their credibility with mannerisms or habits that they have probably never thought about. Ask a coach or mentor you trust if there is anything you can do to improve your professional demeanor and be taken more seriously. If you speak too quickly, play with a pen during meetings, mess with your hair, or wrap your feet around chair legs, you might be distracting people from what you are saying, or worse, make them think you are not focused on the topic of conversation.

Communication Skills

Being able to communicate well, on paper and in person, is absolutely vital to your survival in political situations.

On Paper (or E-Mail)

You have five seconds to capture the attention of your reader. You have more time if the person knows you and your reputation. Less if that person is extraordinarily busy and doesn’t know you from Adam. Keep in mind that most people are barraged with messages in every format- their e-mail is packed, their in-box is overflowing. You need to respect the recipient’s time and make sure you get your points in quickly and effectively.

E-mail is not as warm and fuzzy as conducting conversations in person, but it can be your very best friend in political situations because it forces accountability for what you say and for what others say back. You have a documented record of what has happened. In Bill Gates’ Business @ the Speed of Change, he recommends that all businesses make it a practice to perform negotiations and decisions via e-mail, because it speeds communication and forces accountability. Write and edit e-mails so that you make your point in the amount of space that fits on the typical screen used at your company. Use numbered or bulleted points, if possible, for quick impact.

When actually using a physical piece of paper, use a different size or color of paper, or use color in the message to make your points stand out. Stay within the realm of professionalism, but ensure that your message differs in some way from the 50 others they’ve received. Whether in paper quality, using a ivory stock rather than plain white, or printing your key points, bullets or lines in a different color, there are many ways you can use to make your message stand out. Watch this site for additional documentation tricks.

In Person

Here, you have about 10 seconds to make an impression. In the first ten seconds of your presentation, your listener has usually formed a strong and sometimes irreversible impression.

In spite of this pressure, don’t hurry. This sounds like a contradiction, but if you have formulated your message well, you should be able to present enough information in few enough words to not rush in and deliver it in a breathless rush. This is an approach that we’ve found very successful.

• Make an entrance slowly, make sure you’ve given the person time to acknowledge your presence.
• Make small talk for a few minutes if that’s appropriate for the relationship you have with this person.
• Introduce your point in a sentence or two, and inquire about whether this is a good time to talk about it or if they’d prefer you make an appointment.
• Exit quickly, indicating verbally and/or by your actions that you respect the person’s time and space.

Conclusion

You can’t get away from politics in today’s business world any more than you can get away from electricity. You can, however, use relationships to your advantage by

• Seeking safety in numbers
• Demonstrating Pure and Simple Guts
• Presenting a Professional Image
• Learning and using Communication Skills