Dealing with the so-called Inevitable – “WORK POLITICS”

We human beings are complex animals, all our actions are inter-related and done with a sense of mutual benefit which we aim to get it from others. In short, these actions impact other people in the surroundings. It would have been really delightful if we could ever do anything without thinking / worrying about others or their whereabouts.

Our actions give birth to the so-called “POLITICS” and their presence in the office creates “OFFICE POLITICS”.

Yes, we like it or not, it is present in every organization in all forms.

All offices are political in nature to some extent, simply because we humans bring our personal emotions, needs, imaginations, ambitions, and insecurities into our professional lives. Everyone wants to be successful, and grow in his or her professional career but we have colleagues/bosses who might not agree with one another’s approach to achieve a common goal. Everyone wants to be the best in the eyes of his or her seniors/ bosses – his or her own self-goal. Office politics arise when these differences of personality, mindsets, and opinions become difficult to manage.

This article throws light on how to deal with such difficult situations and people.

Let us look at some points…

1.      Understand/ Analyze the OFFICE CULTURE – We generally react early without analyzing the place we are in. We should always try to analyze the workplace before coming to conclusions or passing any comment. What kind of people are there, what are their groups, who likes whom or who might not like the other person. How do the seniors react to situations of favoritism or etc? It doesn’t take much time by just listing out the points from the various reactions – like who supports boss publicly too much, etc. All can be understood by only being a SILENT OBSERVER. Be smart enough to be an OBSERVER.

2.      Examine yourself – Introspect yourself – very important point. Just to understand how much you have understood your organization and their people, in short, the very environment of your existence. Is your own view or perception right or not. Understand your weak and strong points in such scenarios. Prepare your own FIGHTING WEAPONS – the Fight Mechanism.

3.      Finally, try to untangle how the influence mechanism streams between different people, different groups, different hierarchies and whether there are any interpersonal conflicts or examples of bullying. In short, understanding the ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE.

4.      BUILD YOUR OWN NETWORK – try to create your own set of friends and colleagues and share your experiences with them. This gives a perfect idea of others thought process also. Develop your PEOPLE SKILLS / INTERPERSONAL SKILLS. Be helpful to all.

5.      TRY TO FIND A MENTOR – get assistance from either somebody within the organization or outside the organization explaining all the situations. This would give you a wider picture and better understanding of situations.

6.      KEEP YOUR MIND COOL. – be brave but not Naïve.

7.      FOCUS ON POSITIVE THINGS – to create value for the organization. Take initiatives for new projects, new ideas and thus creating discouragement for political behavior.

8.      NEVER STOP LEARNING – engage yourself to learn your job more, so that you don’t fall into any trap.

9.      CREATE OPEN COMMUNICATION – communicate clearly to all and be honest and brave enough to express your views. Know when to speak, where to speak and with whom to speak. At the same time promote your colleagues or co-workers wherever they deserve. Recognize or appreciate good work. GIVE RESPECT & GET RESPECT.

10.  IGNORE those negative energies. Your positive deeds should be able to neutralize all the negative energies and would create a protective shield around you.

 

SOME COMMON FALLOUTS

1.      Don’t Rush to Conclusions – never misread any situation or state of position in the organization. This may lead you to trouble.

2.      Don’t be Personal – don’t get tempted of others situation and relate with them and react. We at times tend to relate moments when we were humiliated or insulted.  Even if we get over with such situations by winning them and get to feel really good about it for the time being, but we’ll have to pay the price later when we may need help from this person in future.  Always remember “What goes around comes around”, especially at the workplace.

3.      Don’t follow Favoritism – focus on the business objectives and don’t take side with either of the parties who are in opposite opinions – even if you like one better than the other. Place all such views on a common platform and ensure an open communication among all parties so that no one can put you in the bracket of “BLAME GAME”. By not taking sides, one can not only deal the direct conflict resolution in an objective manner but will also build trust with the different parties in conflict. ALWAYS REMEMBER to work towards THE BUSINESS OBJECTIVES.

4.      Don’t try to change the system – Understand and accept the fact that there are fallouts in every system and so alone you cannot change the system rather be tactful enough to follow the above points to avoid and save yourself from falling into the traps.

 

Be Alert – all the time be alert to understand the environment around you.

You can’t avoid office politics. It’s a fact of life. You may have negative feelings about it – you may like it or not – We all have to live with this bitter truth.

Enjoy Life and Be positive and Spread Happiness.

Keep Learning and Reading.

All the Best to all the readers.

Thanks for reading this article.