A lot of people, particularly women, complain about office politics.  Many simply choose not to participate in “playing the game.”

But the reality is, corporate politics do exist and they are a huge part of a successful career. Not playing the game is simply not an option.

Unwillingness to play politics often leads to finding oneself the victim of politics. Not paying attention and/or ignoring the politics around you not only makes you vulnerable to accidentally being caught in the cross-hairs, it makes you an easy target for politically savvy maneuvers.

A painful career lesson taught me that even though “I” was not playing politics, politics were being played all around me … and “I” was the one being played.

When someone mentions office politics our minds automatically jump to Dark Politics, the nasty underside of corporate life comprised of backstabbing, unprincipled and unethical behavior, and a fundamental lack of trustworthiness. I will never advocate for participating in dark politics as it’s the wrong approach and says nothing good about those who participate. 

I do, however, strongly advocate for being politically savvy, which is the more positive and proactive side of corporate politics.

What do I mean by politically savvy? This is simply being able to navigate the environment by:

• Building relationships
• Anticipating and avoiding the landmines
• Being sensitive to how people and organizations function
• Using influence and finding advocates to ease things along
• Being able to see the maze that you must navigate to get something done

Below are a few tips that you may find helpful as you begin playing politics:

Play by Your Rules:

Sit down and draft out your rules for playing politics. You should define what your boundaries are and what you will / will not do. At the end of the day, you need to be able to look in the mirror and feel good about yourself and your actions.

Understand Your Influence:

Take a moment to map your sere of influence. Start by listing out the people in your professional sphere whom you may need to influence to get things done.

• Above – executives and leaders higher than you
• Below – team members in your span of care and key contributors that your team relies on
• Beside – peers and stakeholders

Then identify who you have the most and least influence with (I use a bulls-eye with the middle being those who I have major influence over out to those whom I have no influence with). This map will be essential as politics is all about influence. 

Figure out the Unwritten Rules: 

Many leaders new to a role, particularly women, regularly break the unwritten rules because they are unaware of them.  If they are aware, may not see them as danger points.

Each company has unique rules / norms that have developed over time. Unless someone tells you what they are, you won’t know what they are …. until you break them and make people mad. It’s much better to ask what those unwritten rules are before you step on that landmine.

Keep Score:

We want to help others whenever we can. It is good to do favors without the expectation of something in return. BUT as you do so, remember that one day you might need a favor.  It’s okay to keep track of who you’ve helped and when necessary, cash in those favors in the future by asking them reciprocate.

Soft Sell over the Hard Sell:

We often want to have a fully formed solution before we present it to others. But by doing this, you shoot yourself in the foot politically. You need to know what the vote will be before you present your idea.

So first, throw something out casually to see how people react. Don’t hit them with a strong, fully formed stance or solution. Adjust your plan based upon the reactions that you receive and figure out where your support and opposition lie.

Timing is Everything:

Pay attention to what other people have going on.  This allows you to know if / when you need to hold back before moving forward with what you want. When you know what others’ front burner issues are, you better know when to talk, when to push, when to ask for a favor, and when to wait.

Pay Attention to How People Treat You:

People teach you how to deal with them by how they treat with you.  Mirror back behavior in some ways … they are teaching you how to politically maneuver them.

Watch Your Back:

Don’t play Dark Politics, but always be aware of what is happening around you!  

Be the Adult: 

As most of us well know, corporations are plagued by immaturity. The game of politics can bring out the most “middle-school” behaviors. So as you play politics, remember to BE THE ADULT … always and without exception.

I talk more about this in an earlier post:

Be the Adult: The Not so Easy Basics of Maturity in the Workplace