The Problem of Office Politics

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

When we join a new company, we’re all hoping for a fresh begin and clean slate. The last thing we want is to get embroiled in political intrigue, regardless of how petty it might seem. Most of us just want to do our work and move along with our lives. Even if this were so, which is rarely the case, we must still deal with “political correctness” as defined by society; we have to recognize certain protocols in our mannerisms, language, and conduct. So, even before we get started in a new job, we have to recognize there is going to be some form of politics, like it or not. I remember visiting a manufacturing company in the Midwest where a Vice President proudly stated to me, “You’ll like this place Tim, there’s no politics here whatsoever.” And I think he firmly believed it too. In reality, they had more cutthroat politics than I had ever seen before.

Whether you are a new employee or a visiting consultant, one of the first things you have to determine about a company is its pecking order. An organization chart makes a convenient road map in this regards, but it doesn’t truly define the power structure in a company. For example, a weak manager might actually draw his strength from a powerful assistant. Nonetheless, it is important to refer the fiefdoms of the company, who the key players are, and who the allies and adversaries are. Without such knowledge, you will inevitably trip into some political dispute or become an unwitting pawn in a power play. The ideal advice in the primeval going is to simply keep your eyes and ears open, and your mouth shut.

Aside from the power players in an organization, the three most common types of political animals you will encounter are the Suckup, the Radical, and the Saboteur. The Suckup (aka “Brown Noser”) essentially has no spine and is the perennial “Yes Man” to the boss. The boss states “Jump” and the Suckup says, “How High?” But the Suckup has a political agenda of his own which typically is an advancement through the assistance of the boss. He therefore bends over backwards to please the boss at the expense of losing the respect of his coworkers.

The Radical represents “the bull in the China shop” or “loose cannon” and is ideal known for revolting against the position quo, not quietly but loudly, and is not afraid of stepping on a few toes along the way. In many ways he is like Sherman’s march to the sea. Perhaps his mission is correct, and perhaps it isn’t. Regardless, this type of mortal has a trim chance of succeeding as his detractors will work overtime to undermine him. When dealing with such a mortal you basically have two choices: either join him and hope for the best, or get the heck out of his way so that you are not run over.

The Saboteur is perhaps the most vicious of the three and can probably ideal be characterized as the “conniving weasel” or “backstabber” who schemes to make the lives of others miserable. He is driven by petty enviousness and wants desperately to be seen as a power broker in his institution. Since he has no real life of his own, the Saboteur gets his jollies by undermining anybody that garners more attention than he does. Whereas the Suckup and the Radical can be dealt with politically, the Saboteur is a pest that must be exterminated.

Office politics is about loyalty and trust. At some point, you will be asked to select sides and this to me is what makes office politics ugly. I might comprehend this in government politics, but not in a company where we are all suppose to be on the same team. Politics is an inherent part of the corporate culture; some companies deplore it, others thrive on it. I guess it’s a matter of whether a company values the concept of teamwork or rugged individualism. I have found there is much less politics in companies promoting the former versus the latter. Either way, my advice to anyone joining a new company, be it a corporation or nonprofit organization, is actually quite simple: “En Garde!”

Tim Bryce is a writer and management consultant located in Palm Harbor, Florida.
http://www.phmainstreet.com/timbryce.htm


He can be contacted at: timb001@phmainstreet.com


Copyright © 2008 Tim Bryce. All rights reserved.

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The Essential Leadership Skill – Managing Office Politics

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

One of the skills that successful leaders need to master is a bit of a dirty word these days. It’s not the sort of thing they offer leadership training courses on, but it lies at the heart of most business relationships. What I’m speaking about is office politics.


When we call someone ‘a political animal’, we’re often not being complimentary. We tend to mean that they’re manipulative and untrustworthy, maybe even immoral or dishonest.


A mortal who’s good at politics, in our eyes, is someone who likes to score points over others, who tries to scramble to the top of the heap over his or her colleagues.


But politics isn’t all about manipulation. There’s more to it than that. And whether we like it or not, politics is everywhere in the workplace and a good leader needs to know how to make the most of it.


So what does politics have to do with good leadership? Well, to begin with, politics involves being aware of the effects your words and actions have on others. And – even more importantly – it also means knowing how to influence people.


In an early article, we touched on leading change as a political process, but let’s focus for a moment on your interpersonal political skills in leading change negotiating, persuading, influencing. These leadership skills are essential for success and survival.


In a way, introducing change into an organization is like running a political campaign. If you get it right, your people will support you and your decisions.


How to get your people to accept change:


1. First, set up your campaign team. This isn’t just your fellow leaders, who’ve helped you draw up the plan behind the scenes, it’s also the movers and shakers in your organization. You need to refer them carefully and well. These are the people who can influence OTHER people. Perhaps the people that you can’t reach. If the movers and shakers know about and support what you’re doing, the job will be that much easier.


2. Now prepare yourself. You and your fellow leaders have been working on the plan for a long time. You know how much work has gone into it, and you know how vital it is for your business. Now is the time to get everyone else on board. But be prepared: not everyone’s going to like it.


3. Let the debate go on. Listen to what everyone says: be careful not to spend all your time with people who concur with you. Your fiercest opponents are valuable people: they help you gauge the level of resistance, they set out the arguments you need to defeat, and, if they eventually come round to your way of thinking, they will be some of your most valuable supporters.


The politics of business:


1. Find allies in ALL parts of the organization: you can exchange vital information that you might otherwise not have access to. And you can form coalitions, so together you can influence current and future developments.


2. Intervene in the political processes of the organization: share agendas, influence decisions and decision-makers.


3. Make sure you’re not simply surrounded by ‘yes’ men and women. You need to listen to the devil’s suggests – that way, you’re less likely to make mistakes.


There’s more, of course, there’s more. But deal with office politics on a project by project basis and you won’t go too far wrong. Leadership is sometimes described as a contact sport. It isn’t so much what you know as who you know.


So let me ask you this: who do YOU know?

If you want the leadership success you deserve, get the leadership training you deserve. Download more free articles and leadership training videos from Steven Sonsino, an international business school professor and author of the Amazon bestseller “The Seven Failings of Really Useless Leaders”
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Why Politics, From Me?

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

I’m 58 years old! I am a Veteran of the U.S. Navy who worked in Top Secret communications! I am a Recovering drug Addict with over 13 years of clean time, after having used drugs for almost 30 years! I have been incarcerated many times and am a convicted felon! I am a Certified Drug and Alcohol Abuse Counselor! Does this mean anything? Not in itself, but if I may, let me try to qualify! My primary presence on the World wide web has been as the WebMaster of my Addiction Recovery site, “Addiction: Why Me?” I have had over a dozen articles pertaining to Addiction and Recovery from this disease, published on the Internet. I have had one article published regarding my Political views. I thought to myself, recently, why should anyone care what I think about politics? Well, just what does remember someone to make public commentary? Surely, some of the commentators regularly on TV don’t seem to know anything special! So, I’ll take a shot at making my case…

 

My family migrated from Missouri to California in 1958, when I was 9 years old. This move in itself most certainly changed my future and that of my entire family. Missouri is a conservative area. California is liberal and trendy. They are two very different places in our Society. Thus, ingrained midwestern values and beliefs were the root of our family, and over a lifetime, we have melted into the West Coast lifestyle and have become Californians. Thus said, on to my life as it pertains to my political views…

 

A teenager of the 1960’s, I’m sure that I am a typical baby-boomer in many ways. But, in many ways I’m not a typical or average citizen, at all! Only about 1% of the U.S. population succumbs to drug addiction. I am one of them! I am also a Veteran of the Armed Forces, also a small percentage of the population, since the WWII Vets are passing in great numbers. I am also a convicted felon. Would it surprise you to know that 1 out of 99 Americans is incarcerated over the course of a month? I don’t know the stats on those who have ever been incarcerated. Currently 2,300,000 Americans are incarcerated. That said, let’s move on to my individual case…

 

When I was 13, John Kennedy was assassinated. That event had a prominent effect on me as a person, as it did many Americans. The mystery of that incident brought politics into the lives of people who had previously basked in the luxury of the robust American lifestyle that followed WWII. Before that most citizens of the U.S. took it for granted that we had the best, most honest government possible. It has never been the same since. The Vietnam War added to the questionability of our undaunted establishment in Government and it’s many agencies. When President Richard Nixon was branded as an outright liar, a tiny more confidence slipped away. Average American belief systems were challenged by the Civil Rights movement, the Women’s Rights movement, and concerted efforts on the part of our citizenry, as a united front, to force an end to the Vietnam War.

 

As I approached the age of 18, it was a innocuous assumption that I would be drafted into the military. Each boy who was not wealthy and healthy to find an exemption of the privileged, got drafted. That part has not changed. The poor still fight the wars for the rich. The poor still do the dieing for the Capitalists. Having had many friends die in Vietnam, I reached the conclusion that the only way to refrain being drafted into the Army Infantry was to enlist, which I did. On November 17, 1967 I took the Oath to defend my country in the U.S. Navy. I was just a kid. I had no intent how prolific an effect this would have on my life. The worst thing that happened as a result of serving was that my recreational experience with drugs would turn into an Addiction lasting almost 30 years.

 

Politics came head on into my life as a Navy Radioman, working in Top Secret communications at the Commander-In-Chief of the Pacific Fleet Headquarters, Naval Communications Station, Message Center Makalapa, crossways the King Kamehameha Highway from Pearl Harbor, several stories underground. As a result of my security clearance, I became privy to all communications to the Pacific Fleet, including operational information between CINCPACFLT, the Pentagon, and the White House. I will not now and never have discussed any details of this information, as I took an dedication not to. The only exception was in fortified confidence with my Counselor in drug treatment at the VA Hospital program in Fresno, California. Even then, many details were omitted, and limited to a couple of sessions. The point being, that I found out many things that destroyed my trust in the Government. During this period, President Richard Nixon was forced out of office for basically deceiving the public and abusing his power, for political gain. I couldn’t refrain politics even if I had wanted to.

 

I re-entered civilian life skeptical of government, spiritually bankrupt, and severely addicted to drugs. My dependency started in Navy schools, with Benzedrine, an amphetamine. I eventually used drugs as psychological self-medication, also. Once addicted you use drugs for any and each reason you can think of, avoiding confronting the problems that they actually mask. The first year I was out, I didn’t work. I grew my hair out, and lived outside the norm, not desiring to be a part of anything, especially Society. I did get involved in the fight to stop the War in Vietnam, helping people beat the draft, and participating in demonstrations. In my mind, the government was responsible for everything that was wrong with the World and me. Though my thinking was very distorted, I became extremely politically aware, keeping up with the regular news, and being healthy to factually defend my positions as an anti-social personality developed in me. Marriages unsuccessful as a result of my Addiction. I lost and quit jobs as a result of my drug use and abuse. I went back and forth from a functional addict to a dysfunctional addict. I was in and out of jail. I became a pipeline welder with my own tools for the independence and high demand that prefabricated changing jobs easy. This lasted until drug testing became a regular part of the job market. I had chosen selling drugs as my profession, which prefabricated using that much easier. But, in the end the law caught up with me. After many incarcerations and many ups and downs, I just could not stay out of jail. My arrest on Jan 21, 1995, and a immoderate spiritual experience while covering a prison sentence, granted me to acknowledge that I had hit my bottom. I had lost the will to live and broke down mentally during my detoxification from Meth, in jail. I resorted to prayer and my prayer was answered. I used drugs for the last time at the beginning of that slammer term. I took my last drink on March 24, 1995. As a result of a plea bargain, my prison sentence was suspended on the terms that I serve one year in slammer and one year in a drug treatment program. I would actually only serve four months in slammer and remained in the program for six months. I entered the VA Hospital, Fresno, California, Chemical Dependency Treatment Program on April 11, 1995. As it turned out the very government that I had blamed for my problems for almost 30 years, became my saving grace. I had to seriously re-assess my political views after that. At 50 I began my quest for Certification as a drug counselor at a Say University. Tiny did I realize how politically dependent the profession I had chosen, was. After 7 years of Counseling I had a serious health crisis that took me off of work for 8 months. During this period of time the imperfectness economy under the Republican administration, resulted in a major cancellation of Grants. Drug treatment depends hugely on Allows as treatment is a financial impossibility for most Addicts. Having lost my job and my health insurance, I found myself approaching 60, in a scant job market, competing with people half my age. I am now living on unemployment insurance compensation, with no real prospect for a job. Politics are again very crucial to my life. Republicans fund wars and huge business. Democrats fund social programs and middle America. I fear it will take a robust economy and major funding for drug treatment before the market become great enough for the job competition in my field to accommodate my demographic. Meanwhile, I contribute meekly to the Democratic Celebration and depend on my Spirituality to get through, one day at a time. I sponsor a needy child through Kids International, and have several family members, also in financial distress, living with me. I have developed a completely non-profit Addiction Recovery website, “Addiction: Why Me?” and use it to keep me sane and as my way of still being healthy to help other Addicts. I feel that my experiences with the military, the criminal justice system, and my Recovery from drug Addiction, have shaped a well-informed, highly aware political position and very well developed political opinions. Of course the key word is “opinion”! I feel very eligible to comment…

You be the judge! I will quote this article as a reference in all future political articles that I submit. Thank you, CounselorDave!

I am a certified substance abuse counselor, and recovering addict, in California. I have 12 years clean time and have been a counselor most of that. I have served as a treatment program Director. I have worked going into prisons recruiting inmates for aftercare drug treatment programs. My calling is as a counselor because I love the reward of helping others to find a life, as I have after using drugs for almost 30 years.

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The Politically Incorrect Tee

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

There are political Tees, (to make a statement about the environment, democracy, freedom, war and peace or the electoral candidate you wish to support) and then there is the politically incorrect t shirt design which could be a rude t shirt, a funny tshirt, or just an offensive t shirt. Everyone wants to make a statement of some sort: teens do it to express rebellion and to be non conformist, a recently divorced man wants to make an anti feminist statement, etc. Sometimes you just want to make a politically incorrect statement for the heck of it; it can be a bit bugging that everyone around is so politically correct, everyone is so concerned about treading on any tender toes and is so busy minding their P’s and Q’s, they forget to laugh at themselves!

Witness how people refrain from calling a spade a spade: you can no longer call a retarded mortal by that term, you can only state that so and so is ‘special’ or ‘intellectually challenged’ or use similar polite and inoffensive terms. It is perhaps as a backlash to all this forced politeness that tee shirt designs such as this came to be: Arguing with you is like running a race in the Special Olympics, you might win but in the end you are still a retard!

Some environmentalist and conservationists can rather belabor a point to an extent that it can be tiresome; a lot of them do tend to take themselves and their cause rather too seriously. There is therefore that temptation to mock a mortal who takes themselves that seriously. So a tshirt design, featuring a leaping dolphin with the words, Dolphins taste like Tuna would effectively make the statement that someone is being rather tediously overzealous about their dolphin conservation program.

A newly divorced man can get away with making an anti-wife statement like I got this shirt for my wife (Awesome Trade) but I really doubt if a married man would be permitted to don a t shirt that stated something like this!

You can even make a statement that shows how fed up you are with each one being Oh – so – politically correct. Wear a tee shirt design that proclaims, quite simply, or perhaps issues a warning: I am NOT Politically correct or wear one that states Why be Politically Correct when you can Right! Then there are those tee shirt designs which basically tell people not to be too sensitive: FREEDOM I have the right to Free Speech, You have the right to be offended! We both get what we want!

Actually when one is visaged by humor in the form of funny tshirts one can't remain on their high horse without appearing churlish and is forced to unbend a little. So you can design your own t shirt, be it funny or be it any other kind to make your own individualized statement. Design a t shirt contests permit you to be as creative and as politically incorrect as you might desire! So go ahead and design a tshirt!

You can now design your own t shirt and get paid for it. Submit your designs to the ongoing design contest at Inkfruit.com and you could win cash prizes if your t shirt design is selected a winner.

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Canadian Politics: on the Road to Failure

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

We are in the midst of a political crisis, people.

6 weeks ago we spent roughly $300 million on an election that landed us in the same position we were already in. This election represented the lowest turnout of voters since the 1800s. This election left us with virtually the same parliamentary make up as before, with the same Prime Minister.

Less than two months after this wasteful display, the losing leaders have decided to form a coalition and attempt to oust Prime Minister Harper from his position. There are three doable outcomes here:

1. The coalition will be successful in convincing the Governor General to oust Harper and replace his government with the government of the coalition, with Dion (who is in the midst of losing his leadership of the liberal party) as its head.

2. The coalition will be successful in ousting Harper, but the Governor General will call an election, rather than replace the old government with the coalition government. Costing us another $2-300 million.

3. Somehow they will all figure out how to get along, and actually begin governing rather than playing political games.

It seems we are headed toward outcome #1.

The prospect of a coalition government ousting an elected government and replacing it bothers me. For a number of reasons.

Our democracy is already showing signs of failure. Low voter turnout, campaigns based on mud-slinging and attack ads rather than the issues, no strong and charismatic leaders in any of the parties, back-room deals, heightened tension between the West and the East, increased tension between French and English Canada, a divided left-center, extreme divisive partisanship not only in parliament but within the electorate, instability of parliament…. I could go on.

The point is this: our system is imperfectness us. So what should we do?

Let’s break down this unfortunate into its relevant components, and attack apiece in due course. These are the problems, as I see it:

1. Party-based politics

2. A divided left

3. Voter apathy

4. Remaining ties to Britain

5. The first-past-the-post electoral system

PARTY BASED POLITICS

As can be seen by the fiasco currently underway in parliament – celebrations serve parties, not constituents.

The existence of political celebrations in such a large, diverse country as ours, makes it virtually impossible for “parliament” to take place. Discussion is not multi-dimensional. It is not open to individual opinions. MPs repeat celebration lines, not their own views or those of their constituents. Voting activity is dictated by celebration lines, not conscience. MPs vote according to the dominant view of their caucus, not according to the will of their constituents. Politicians who are in disagreement with the consensus of their celebration risk reprimand if they act upon their view. In a majority government situation, this means that it is practically inevitable that legislation promoted by the ruling celebration will be passed without obstacle. The governing celebration holds a majority of the seats, MPs vote according to celebration lines, hence, bills espoused by that celebration get passed. This is exactly what causes so much instability in a minority government situation. Minority governments have the potential to be the most cooperative and inclusive of divergent opinions, but they also have the potential to be extremely divisive. We are currently suffering a minority government of the latter form. Harper’s government can't pass anything through parliament without strong-handing it – the left-center will band together and block any conservative legislation, regardless of its worth. They are bitter. They lost, twice, and they don’t like it. Because of this, Harper has taken a strong-handed approach to legislation. he has turned any bill he desires to have passed into a no-confidence motion so that the opposing parties, trying to refrain another pointless election which they know they will lose anyways, have to either grant it to pass, or halt it and risk the dissolution of government and a subsequent election. This is a dirty trick, but in the given climate, what other option does Harper have to pass legislation that he feels is good for the country? Without taking this strong-handed approach, he would grant Dion and Layton to literally run parliament. Which is exactly what they’re after. They’ve finally had enough of this approach, and voted down his economic plan – a no-confidence vote. They have formed a coalition in hopes that the GG will dissolve government and, rather than wasting millions on another election, replace the current government with a coalition-led parliament. This presents a constitutional crisis for Canadians.

- The conventional way to deal with a vote of no-confidence is to dissolve government and call an primeval election. However, this is not an captivating option at this time. We just had an election 6 weeks ago. An election that was called primeval due to no-confidence. This election landed us with the same government we already had. In one word, it was pointless. And it doesn’t take a genius to see that having another one now will be any less pointless.

- A constitutionally valid, but conventionally controversial, option is that the GG dissolve government and, instead of calling an primeval election, replace it with the coalition. This is looking to be the route we take.

The GG does have the constitutionally sanctioned dominance to go with option 2. But she (or he, talking historically) has always been discouraged by convention to do so. The GG is not an elected official. She is the representative of the British Monarch, and in my opinion, ought to be treated as nothing more than a formality, if granted to remain in existence at all. To grant her to decide, in the stead of the Canadian people, who is to form our government is preposterous! I don’t care what the constitution actually SAYS, it is a living tree, growing and changing to suit the times. Many constitutional principles are not espoused in words by the written constitution. These principles are what we call “conventions.” They are deep-rooted principles to guide the political process. If the GG does replace Harper with the coalition government, she violates constitutional convention. But if she calls an primeval election, she wastes a tonne of money and changes nothing. Harper will again win a minority, and Dion (or whoever they eventually replace him with) and Layton will keep digging their heels in against everything the conservatives try to do, forcing the conservatives to bust out the ol’ “strong-handed” approach that they lament and decry in the public eye. If she does replace Harper with the coalition government, this will further divide the country into the right-left camps. The coalition will divide parliament indefinitely. You’re either with the coalition, or you’re with the conservatives. We will lose the check-n-balance inherent in the opposition. With a liberal-NDP coalition, supported by the Bloc, running the government, the opposition of conservative MPs will become meaningless.

A summary of some of the main problems with party-based politics:

- Everything is ideological. Whichever celebration is in power comes at problems from a particular appearance and framework. Each celebration has it’s own economic model, its own ideology, its own morality. Problems are not solved objectively – they are solved according to celebration principles, and whichever celebration has the most seats, gets to have its principles dominate.

- MPs are supposed to represent their constituents. Their vote in parliament is supposed to represent the vote of their particular community. Instead, their vote represents their celebration affiliation, and nothing more. MPs do not represent their constituents, they represent their party.

- Voters are not encouraged to pay attention to the issues, instead, they pay attention to the philosophic leanings of their “representatives.” They vote based on whether they call themselves a “liberal,” a “conservative,” or a “social democrat.”

- Cooperation is rejected and competition is the norm. Political celebrations vie for power, in competition with one another, rather than allowing for cooperation and open dialogue.

- Celebration lines divide the entire country. They do not divide politicians alone, they divide the electorate. They pit right against left, rather than allowing different perspectives clean and equal oppourtunity to voice concerns and making decisions within an eclectic and multidimensional framework.

- The Bloc: deserves recognition in this aspect. This is a celebration that is devoted to the interests of only one domain in the country. This is a celebration that grew out of the separatist movement. It’s fine with me if they want to operate at the rustic level, but not federal. Any representative elected in Quebec, regardless of their celebration affiliation, is going to have Quebec interests at their fore. No other domain or ethnicity has its own federal party, they are represented by various parties. The Bloc creates an unequal equilibrise of regional power within parliament.

A DIVIDED LEFT

If we must maintain a celebration based system, we must consolidate the left. The coalition recently formed between the liberals and ndp bases its legitimacy on the fact that those celebrations collectively represent a larger portion of Canadian voters than the consolidated minority right. However, they received their votes as separate parties, and can't therefore claim to have received, as a coalition, the majority of votes. There is no telling what the outcome of our most current election would have been if they had been amalgamated into one larger party. They can't adopt such a situation would wield the same results. The left, if it wishes to vie for power with a consolidated right, must follow suit and consolidate itself. They can't run in elections separately and then form temporary coalitions when they lose. They either need to band together, or accept that by competing with one another for the left vote, they risk dividing the left thereby giving the united right the upper hand. By remaining divided, they essentially hand power over to the united right. If they can't accept a right-wing victory, they’re going to have to suck up their pride, place aside their differences with one another, and consolidate.

VOTER APATHY

This one is simple. People don’t vote. We’ve recently received the honour of being the most apathetic electorate Canada has ever seen. Only 58.9% of registered voters turned out this October to cast their ballots. There are numbers more eligible voters who simply did not register. This means, essentially, that only about half (or even less) of our eligible electorate cast a ballot. Statistics for the 2008 general election have not yet been prefabricated acquirable at Stats Canada, however, I believe we can adopt that the two-decades-long trend among the 18-24 demographic remains. This is a trend towards lower and lower voter turnout in apiece election. If democracy is to thrive in this country, we need to encourage young voters to.. well.. vote!

Democracy literally means “government of the people.” The “people” represent themselves in one main way – they vote on who they wish to represent their interest in parliament. Without votes, we have no democracy. As the Boomers die off, and our generation takes over, I fear we might witness the end of democracy in this country and see it replaced, as is already happening gradually, with a democratic deception which masks nothing more than a domination of the elite.

REMAINING TIES TO BRITAIN

We’ve been our own country for over 140 years. Why do we still have the Queen as our formal head of state? Why does the governor general, the Queens representative, still hold the power to call elections, dissolve governments, and replace them if she so decides? I comprehend that, by convention, the roles of the Queen and her representative are a mere formality – but the fact remains that our written constitution grants these women dominance over the affairs of our country, and who is to state that there might come a day when Britain abuses this power? It is time to cut ties.

THE FIRST-PAST-THE-POST ELECTORAL SYSTEM

…needs to be replaced. It does not wield results that truly represent the voting behaviours of the electorate. This system can and does at times elect a Prime Minister who is actually opposed by the majority of voters, enhances regional antagonism, and encourages strategic voting. The actual proportion of the vote-count in a federal election rarely reflects on the seat-count. It is theoretically doable that a celebration might win 75% of the vote-count, but only 25% of the seat-count. Something seems a tiny off about that.

SO WHAT DO WE DO?

How do we save our democracy?

I propose a complete reformation of the entire electoral process. I propose:

- eliminating political celebrations and replacing them instead with a system of independent candidates whose mandate is simply to represent the interests of their particular constituents (their district) within the larger context that includes the interests of their general constituents (Canadians as a whole), in which philosophic leanings are personal, not partisan, and conscience is their guide, not celebration affiliation.

- a system of proportional representation in which individual MPs must win a 60% majority within their district on top of receiving the most votes in general. Ballots grant for candidates to pick their top 2 choices. In the event that a candidate wins the most votes, but not 60%, the ballots of the bottom celebrations (everyone but the top 2) have their second-choice votes counted. These are combined with the original vote-count, and whichever of the top 2 candidates receives the most votes at this time wins. Unless a 60% majority is not reached in the first count of the ballots, the second-choice votes are left uncounted. The Prime Minister is elected on a separate ballot. These candidates are not formally affiliated (as in the celebration system) with other candidates. The MP and PM elections will still take place simultaneously, they will just have separate ballots.

I propose mandatory, grade 11 or 12 “Intro to Canadian Politics and Law” courses in all secondary schools to boost the interest of youth in politics and furnish them with the basic knowledge and skills they require to become effective and responsible voters, before they hit voting age. This would be a full-credit course, and would replace the half-credit “civics” course students currently take in grade 10. This course would cover the basics of how our electoral system works, why it is important to vote, the political philosophic spectrum, basic macro-economics, the Constitution and Charter, the judicial system, and basic comparisons to other nations’ systems.

I propose a ban on “negative” campaign ads. Basically, candidates must advertise THEIR platforms, proposals and ideals. They can't base their campaigns on smearing their opponents. Ads are to discuss the candidates own goals and visions, not to attack their opponents.

I propose proportional equality crossways electoral districts within apiece region, and proportional equality of electoral districts between regions. This might require some explanation:

- In order to alleviate the issues regarding regionalism, the regions must maintain approximate equality with one another when it comes to the amount of electoral districts. (Eg. It would be unfair for the maritimes to have 50 seats in parliament and the west to have 150) This is to ensure that the interests of one particular region of our vast country are not pushed to the sidelines in preference for the interests of another region

- Districts must be relatively uniform when it comes to the number of constituents represented in each. (It would be unfair for, let’s say, the city of Windsor to have the same number of representatives as Amherstburg) Districts should be divided along population lines (X-number of constituents in apiece district). A city 4X the size of another will have 4X the amount of districts.

I propose… CHANGE!

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Political Appointments: ?politics of Recycling Hands? Will Lead Nigeria to Nowhere

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

There is nothing wrong with the Nigerian political system unlike most of us assume, have you bothered to cogitate on why many countries of the world do not bother to find out whether there is anything in the wrong with their constitutional viands or not, yet these countries are doing buoyantly well  economically and politically? I am not writing to justify the Nigerian constitution, but rather to glaringly say that there are in many ways, areas we have continued to consciously maintain that the country should remain in her present situation of underdevelopment. Nigeria’s problems are too numerous to account, but let us try to mention the ones which glaringly occur.

We are all aware of the country’s problems, even our governmental people can't claim ignorance of this, and I also know that these problems are not insolvent as we can solve them but because we shy away from doing so for the fear of losing out in amassing a lot more wealth from the country’s economy. This urge amassing indefinable proportion of wealth from the country’s contract is the beginning of corruption which this day is growing larger than its perpetuators.

 For the benefit of strangers to Nigeria’s problems, I shall possibly highlight the pressing problems confronting us this day as a nation, as I do, bear in mind that Nigeria’s problems by far surpass those I shall highlight here because Nigeria is a country where nothing is just right from constant power unfortunate to death traps called bad roads. The Nigerian people have never seen the good side of life and its beauties, we all are simply inured to sufferings crowned with smile.  A friend, who traveled out of the country to Sweden, called back after precisely 2 weeks to scream to friends here that the country was like it was rugged.

Nigeria’s problems no matter how much of them I will highlight still find its grouping under bad leadership and corruption. Whereas these two vices exist side by side, bad leadership begat corruption and corruption begat underdevelopment, so obviously, underdevelopment is the grandchild of bad leadership, parented by the nation’s selfish political office holders and passed down to the generality of Nigerian kids who think nothing but how to make money. Today, very many of Nigerians can resist reading Nigerian dailies because no good news ever emanates from the country, what you think about juicy is trade of blames among the huge politicians in our land, accusations of corruption, electoral judgments, neglect of certain parts of the country, trials of ex-governors, predicaments of ex EFCC Boss, just mention them.

So we have bad leadership, corruption, denial of right to qualitative education through poorly organized admission processes, denial of right to qualitative health services and facilities through unattainable imposition of medical fees and expenses (Lagos Say falls under this category), demand of infrastructures in the country, imposition of increasing of increasing taxes on traders especially metropolis State, which sends even ordinary “pure water sellers” back to far more worst situations. All of these problems have worsened the plight of the people of Nigeria and has grossly subjugated more than 82% of Nigerians to poverty.   

One problem which by far I thought the Yar’ Adua administration could correct for good was governance with old and exhausted recycled hands which since independence has led the country to where. I feel disappointingly surprised that our government has unsuccessful to learn that this very tradition has ensured that the nation does not see improvement even when defined from any appearance of what “development” should mean. Why will a country with group of few people in the society that have run it since decades without improvement and fresh ideas record developments in any sphere of life. It is a depressing situation for the country and her citizens, because we have lost any hope that improvement will come our way with same people who have ruled us since independence and absent in potent ideas.

Nigeria with a population of 250 million people with more than 500 ethnic groups and hundreds of languages and dialects, it is the same old song and story for leadership hands. This is something most people do not speak about but it is like worms intake off our heads. In reference to Orji Kalu’s comment, while he was still a secondary school student, Olusegun Obasanjo as the then Head of State, paid his school an official visit, and in his speech pointed out that the they as the youth were the leaders of tomorrow, yet Orji Kalu would turn a full blown man decades later with Obasanjo’s return as the President of Nigeria, so what opportunity does Kalu have as the potential leader of tomorrow?

I do not know what qualifications it takes to win political appointments in Nigeria’s governmental system; qualifications do not exist in determining what political appointment anyone can get, except that it is an avenue of compensation, simply put. It is as a result of this that capable hands are never employed to work for the country’s good, and we the ordinary masses are at the losing end because when health facilities are lacking, like all al university teaching hospitals in Nigeria demand modern health facilities. Modern diagnostic equipment can't be found in most parts of the country. I hope you still recall that no Nigerian university is ranked among the 500 universities in the world.

Obasanjo ruled Nigeria twice, but his return was disastrous to the African continent as a whole, unknown to Buhari and Atiku, speaks in the Nigerian streets especially in the southern part of the nation negatively centres on what it would seem like returning Buhari or Atiku after the experiences drawn from Obasanjo’s return as the country’s president and his unsuccessful third term extension bid. Nigerians are obviously exhausted of hearing same obloquy in the political arena of the country, appearing, disappearing and reappearing. The people would like to vote in an unknown character because we think that unknown individuals are preferable to tried hands. Return of past government officials when the country has not improved are like putting a new wine in an old bottle.  

Once you find yourself in Nigeria’s corridor of power, you have probably won for yourself and family a lifetime contract, because it is only death that can do you apart with you newfound journey. Even death is incapable of separating your family from political appointment in Nigeria, because at your death, your children, kids have inherited a gift of appointment. Two things are basically wrong with the assignment of political appointments in Nigeria. Firstly, as said here once in power, one expectedly remains in power until he is no more courtesy of death, even he is thinks about to have unsuccessful by one administration, another administration that comes to power finds him useful again. His is one classifiable system of granting political appointments in Nigeria.

Today, Rilwan Lukeman, a man in his 70s has returned as the country’s Minster of finance, and the Nigerian people are wondering what again he owes us with the Minitry’s portfolio, are there no more capable hands that can deliver to the country? For Christ’s sake, Nigeria can't be absent of brains that can positively superior the petroleum sector that can effectively run the industry. Will Rilwan Lukeman construct more refineries for the country? Will he even repair the non-functional ones, something he did not think about doing for ages as the Minister of that very sector? The moment I noticed the study of Lukeman on list of ministerial nominees as presented to the senate, I surmised he was to return to his former home which is the petroleum ministry. Was your guess as good as mine? Her perhaps needed to continue from he left-off several years ago.

We also have a system, which sees individuals winning political appointments in Nigeria where criteria are lacking. A man who read Arabic or Christian Religious Studies in our University system could head our “Science and Technology Ministry”. Is this not interesting? Dora Akunyili, a medical Physician who contributed so much to the war against substandard drugs in the country lost her job in other to head Information Ministry. Envision the relationship between these two Ministries? An anti imitation drug crusader will now take up the responsibility of protecting the image of the Federal Government through publicities and unnecessary press conferences whenever the Say appears challengers by a personality like Wole Soyinka whose views against the government can't be ignored for any reason at all. Was Sam Egwu, an ex Governor of Ebonyi Say compensated with the Education ministry? 

Save your laughter for Abba Sayyadi Ruma, a PhD holder in International Relations, who now carries the portfolio of Agriculture Ministry, Was baba ever taught how hoes and cutlasses are held? Ironically Mustapha Shettima, a PhD holder in Agriculture, a very learned man, will be defending the territorial integrity of the nation as the nation’s Minister of Defence. Does this erudite agriculturalist know how a gun is held? The federal government of Nigeria at long last decided to replace is knowledge of growing and harvesting with attacking and defending diplomacies. A pharmacist, Alhaji Ibrahim Bio will head the transport Ministry. Dr. I. Y. Lame, an educationist and former principal in a secondary school will head Police Affairs Ministry, where he will be tackling insecurity. He has been promoted beyond his field of knowledge; he is obviously replacing his cane with a tear gas. Are these men who are accomplishments in their various field not square “giant” pegs in round holes? The world might be laughingly inactivity on how this men will function will record successes in their assignments.

The situation as seen above is not strange to Nigerians, where a graduate in Yoruba Literature works as a cashier in a Nigerian Bank, and a graduate in Laboratory Technology works with Power Holding Company of Nigeria. But I select to remind our politicians and political appointees that a Professor in Medicine could become an illiterate in History, and a graduate of Estate Management could become an illiterate in Electrical electronics, consequently, a Mathematics professor might just turn out to be an Illiterate where it concerns Igbo Language as a discipline. So they should not complain or pass the buck when they change to succeed since the impression is that our politicians are more concerned about wealth than making societal achievements.

It is on this note that I leave you with the question of “can this country benefit from their services when politics is always triumphing over competence and experience? (Saturday Punch, December 20, 2008)

Emeka Esogbue hails from Ibusa, Delta State, Nigeria. He is is a Historian and International Relations graduate and Political/Public Affairs Analyst.


emekaesogbue@yahoo.com

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Dealing With Employers – Reasons Politeness Is Very Important

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

ust be polite to them at all times. Read further to get more information related to the importance of being polite.

The importance of being polite can be ideal understood by putting yourself in others place. Assume you are hiring a manager for a retail store. If you meet two applicants, one who responds with respect and the other is a bit too casual for your liking, who will you hire? Obviously you would select the one who is polite. It’s well known that employers select the polite ones.

The main reason for companies to select polite people for them is that their employees can make a difference by making or breaking their business, more so when direct contacts with the customer is necessary. To keep their setting, retailers need and want employees who are polite, welcoming and warm. Employees who have an attitude that does not please the customer can cause the customers to look for other firms. Hence, it is vital that while dealing with employers, you must be polite and your attitude must be pleasing. This goes for any type of industry or company you work or apply for.

Also, it is of much importance that you be polite to everyone whom you meet. One of the main mistakes prefabricated by job seekers is this. They have a feeling that they ought to please only their employers and none else. While your politeness and concentration should be on your interviews of employer, you also have to keep other things in mind. In the event that you drop an application, you must greet the employer in a very pleasant manner. Employers usually drop in a word or two about their employees to their superiors, more so of their unpleasant experiences they had while dropping off resumes.

If you get a call regarding the schedule for your interview, your employers, most probably, won’t be the ones calling you. Their secretaries or assistants usually handle these things. This does not mean that you can speak in whatever way you wish to. You must be polite and pleasing, unmindful of the mortal you are having a conversation with. Attending other calls or being cold towards the mortal who is speaking to you on the phone will be the worst things you could ever do to yourself. Be polite and state “thank you” and other amusing words. Your ignorance towards these basic things can cause troubles at a later date.

The scenarios mentioned above are some situations where job seekers need to be very cautious about their behavior and must be as polite as possible. Politeness comes in different forms. Even a “please” or a “thank you” will suffice for important ones who look for exactly these in their employees.

Abhishek is an expert at conducting interviews and he has got some great Interview Success Secrets up his sleeves! Download his FREE 82 Pages Ebook, “How To Ace Any Interview” from his website http://www.Career-Guru.com/4/index.htm. Only limited Free Duplicates available.

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Can Astrological Predictions About Indian Politics be Made?

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

The political future of India is being hotly debated in the current pre-election scenario with questions like “who will form the next government?” and “who will be the next prime minister of India?” being uppermost in everyone’s mind.

The question bothering me, however, is that “Is it really doable to answer such questions based on astrology for a country blessed with political volatility like that of India?” There are at least ten prospective prime ministerial candidates for the upcoming general elections, of which there are a few like Dr. Manmohan Singh, Smt. Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi who nurture an unexpressed desire for the position. Some of the other doable contenders for the position include Sh. L.K. Advani, Sh. Narendra Modi, Smt. Mayawati, Sh. Sharad Pawar, Sh. Deve Gowda, Sh. Lalu Prasad Yadav, Sh. Ram Vilas Paswan.

Taking up the first question, “who will form the next government of India?,” one can easily see how national and regional celebrations have been busy promoting themselves. Even the common man can make out which of the two prominent national celebrations might enjoy a greater share of seats and which one lesser. He can also make an assessment of which regional celebrations might wage support to the national celebrations and the general political scenario at the time of elections.

When we think about the possibility of making such predictions on the basis of astrology, however, problems of a absolutely different nature arise. As, for instance, the date and time when the celebration was formally constituted are some of the essential stipulations to make any kind of astrological predictions, which are not easily acquirable most of the time. Now the question is, then how can astrological answers be sought about which celebrations would come together and who will form the next government.

Are birth details including the date, time and place of birth acquirable for all the politicians? And if not, then how can astrological predictions be prefabricated about them with any level of certainty?

As part of the research and analysis conducted by “Astrological Research Centre” in the field of politics, we observed that people have already started making detailed astrological analysis and assessments regarding the next government at the centre when no one could predict before or even after 2004 general elections, that Dr. Manmohan Singh will become the prime minister of India. In the same manner, how would it be doable to make correct predictions this time around?

At Astrological Research Centre, we believe that it is only based on a methodical study of the horoscopes of all the main candidates contesting the election from each constituency that the strength of astrological Rajayogas can be assessed for all of them. Then the mortal with the strongest Rajayoga operating can be predicted to win the elections.

Likewise, a detailed study of the horoscopes of all the prominent politicians can reveal which of them have the most powerful Rajayogas. Such politicians alone can be the promising candidates for occupying an exalted position.

After 1992 elections, our institute sought the birth details of some politicians for research purposes, and to our surprise, the details received for the then prime minister Sh. P.V. Narsimha Rao mentioned the date of birth as 28 th June, 1921, time is between 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. and place of birth is Karim Nagar, Andhra Pradesh (the letter received from PMO is acquirable for reference). Now, one can see that a period of one hour between 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. has been mentioned as the time of birth. Does an hour’s variation really not matter in making Indian astrological calculations?

Despite this drawback, we tried to establish the time of birth based on past events in his life and prefabricated a few predictions as well. We also asked for details of Sh. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, leader of the opposition as a prominent leader of the BJP in 1994. The letter received was signed by Sh. Vajpayee himself and mentioned hat he was born on 25 th December, 1926 in Gwalior at about 5:00 p.m. The time of birth was approximate and not based on a clock.

In both of the abovementioned cases, when politicians themselves are in doubt of their birth details, it would be sheer dishonesty to even envision being healthy to come up with accurate predictions and any results can only be predicted in terms of approximations.

Similarly, without a proper knowledge of the birth details of small-time as well as prominent politicians of the day, and without information of the time when different political celebrations were constituted, how is it doable to make reliable predictions on Indian politics?

In recently held presidential elections in America, Mr. Barack Obama and Mrs. Hillary Clinton fought for the coveted position. In USA, people elect their president directly from two chosen candidates, and one with the strongest Rajayoga emerges as the winner. In this case, Hillary Clinton also became a part of Obama’s cabinet, but did not become the president, which could mean that even though she also had a Rajyoga but not as strong as Obama himself.

Similar examples can be found crossways the globe, especially in places with scarce regional and small-time celebrations unlike India. Political organizations of all shapes and sizes come together in order to help form the government in India, which, from an astrological viewpoint, is further complicated by an unending confusion in birth details of most of the politicians, leading us to the inevitable conclusion that, if not impossible, it is extremely difficult to make trusty political predictions in a country with a political framework like that of India.

Taking up another example, in the last cricket world cup, a horde of astrologers, numerologists and tarot readers created media hype with predictions of India entering the semi-finals when the team was ousted in the first round itself. Likewise, before one of the matches, some tarot readers predicted that Sehwag will shine this day but soon he was out for a duck. It could well mean that the tarot reader prefabricated an assessment about Sehwag but perhaps did not study the fortunes of the bowler who claimed his wicket.

In the same manner, in order to make trusty predictions regarding the political future of India, we might have to study the horoscopes of all the candidates contesting the elections from different part of the country to decide upon who will win the elections and what would be the actual political configuration between different political celebrations of the state. Otherwise, an astrologer would be healthy to guess just as much as the common man.

It is a matter of serious debate and research in Indian astrology that “who will form the next government and who will be the next prime minister of India?” Else astrology and astrologers would only become a laughing stock for the world.

by Pt. Sunil Sharma
Director
Astrological Research Centre

Pt. Sunil Sharma was serving as assistant director from 1990 till 2002 and as director of Astrological Research Centre since then which was established in 1952 by late Pt. Raja Ram Shastri. This organization has prefabricated outstanding contributions in the field of research and individualized predictions. A postgraduate in Political Science and Sanskrit, he has been involved in original research work on astrology for past 15 years. He also launched the website (http://www.astrocent.com) of this august institution on 24th December, 2004 which makes accessible to all original research work, criticism and a host of other concepts associated with astrology in the form of research and criticism articles which are nowhere else to be found on the world wide web. Another special feature of this website is manual horoscope which is a absolutely novel concept on the web. He does not believes in computerized astrological predictions as well as calculations and has also given the reasons in his research articles on the website.

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Is a Political Campaign a Project?

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

Is a Political Campaign a Project?

I say, a resounding “YES” to the question “Is a political campaign a project?”. Why? Well, a political campaign has a distinctive beginning and end, and in between there is a lot of planning, a great deal of execution, and a great deal of monitoring and controlling. And of course there is a closing – usually with lots of lessons learned. Let us look a bit at these elements and explore if a political campaign is a project.

Project Management Processes in Political Campaigns

We live in an increasingly projectized world, and projects abound all around us. Let’s take a look at how the Project Management Process Groups as per the PMBOK map to a political campaign.

1.Initiating – How many times have you heard candidates state that they are considering running for a particular position? This is part of the initiating process. This involves assessing chances of success, introspection regarding desire to do the campaign and to occupy the office, as well as, effects on individualized life and career. Financial and organizational assets are also a major bourgeois in the initiation process for a political campaign.

2.Planning – Once it has been decided to undertake a political campaign, there is a great deal of true project planning. If you use professional project management terminology, a work breakdown schedule is clearly plays a part in managing a political campaign, as there are many tasks to be coordinated. There is a great deal of planning related to where to spend money, where to travel, what to say, and a myriad of other things, to achieve the goal of winning the campaign.

3.Execution – Putting the plan into action is a key to a political campaign. Having the feet on the ground (volunteers and paid), in action, handing out leaflets, putting out posters, organizing others, making phone calls, setting up ads, setting up engagements – all of these are part of the project execution process for a political campaign.

4.Monitoring and Controlling – Just a cursory look at what happens in national campaigns in the United Says reveals that the process of monitoring and controlling is not only of critical importance, but has gotten much more sophisticated. One example is the visual graphing of audience reaction – on a word-by-word basis – to what candidates say. Here the candidates get favorable, unfavorable, or in between ratings from listeners on virtually each word or phrase they utter! Campaign rhetoric strategy and approaches is changing constantly to try to adapt to political view and developments on the campaign trail.

5.Closing – The eventual neutral of the campaign is to win the election. Win or loose, the campaign will actually end at the conclusion of the election. Eventually, the campaign organization will need to be dissolved and the project will be “in the books”.

Absolutely, Political Campaigns are Projects!

Yes, simply thinking about a political campaign in terms of the PMBOK Project Management Processes makes it clearer than I ever thought before that a political campaign indeed is a project. In fact, I think it is a quintessential project and one that most of us experience simply by living on a day-to-day basis. Indeed, it is plausible to think about that a political campaign is even a series of projects, but that can be a subject for exploration at another time.

I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, where I went to Central Catholic High School. I excelled at football and basketball. I went to college at Princeton and attained a BS in Engineering. I then entered a career in industry, working in mining, manufacturing, metal fabricating, environmental services, and other related industries. Along the way I attained my MBA from Carnegie Mellon. After about 12 years I prefabricated a switch into the information technology field, and became a Lotus Notes developer. I gradually moved into project management in that field. Today, I am in the project management consulting field, and have several web sites, including Project Management Training Online (pmtrainingonline.com), Lean Six Sigma Training Online (leansixsigmatrainingonline.com), and a growing Project Management blog site called PMcrunch (PMcrunch.com).

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Leadership Tips — Office Politics

Posted on July 13, 2010 by ahnaf

Political Expert

 

For many years that’s what people called me.  It was not a title I wore proudly. 

 

I worked my way from entry level programmer to senior management in a massive telecom company.  I knew a lot of people, and I had a great sense for how to work within the “system”.  I understood how it could overwhelm you, and I got good at knowing when to ignore it and when to play along.

 

In the jobs I had, the most important contribution I could make over the long haul was to develop the skills of the middle managers reporting to me.  The more effective I could make them, the easier and more successful my life would be.  It was frustrating to me when I would coach people and they would respond with comments like “I could pull this off if I had your political skills”.

 

I was insulted.  I didn’t play politics!

 

Of course I did.  I just didn’t want to admit it.  When you’re running for office, political skills are an important attribute.  When you are the guy running a business office, politician is a adjudge that diminishes your true leadership abilities.

 

If anyone accused me of being an expert at office politics, I denied it forcefully.  I worked hard to get where I was, and no one was going to take that away from me.

 

Then I Changed Jobs

 

Same industry, larger title, more people, new city.  I was not well connected, of course.  But I recognized the challenges of the job and I was ready to go to work on them.  Costs were out of control and results were inconsistent.  I had to fix both.  It was prefabricated clear to me that I was being brought in from outside because the inside culture needed a shakeup.  I couldn’t move to jump in.

 

Was I successful?  Without a doubt, I accomplished more in two years in this new job than in any five year period of my career.  We downsized, actually improved morale while we were doing it, and got our operational metrics up where they needed to be.  My clients were internal, and they were effusive in their praise.  Personally, I was rewarded with a good raise and a really good bonus.

 

Six months later I experienced a career first — I was fired.  Well, alright, I was let go with a very respectable severance package.  But I didn’t see it coming, and it didn’t feel very good.  What happened?

 

When I took the new job, lots of people whispered in my fruit about the politics in my new company.  It wasn’t very complicated either.  There were old guard insiders and when outside executives were brought in the old guard eventually rejected them the way the body rejects tissue in a transplant operation.

 

I wouldn’t get caught up in that.  I had a job to do and I was going to do it.  No political posturing for me.  I was in full denial.

 

So I worked very hard and got some of the greatest results of my career.  While I was doing that, there was a change at the top. The new CEO was a former executive of the company who had left and now was coming back.  He was a hero of the old guard. 

 

I wasn’t thrilled with the board’s choice, but I wasn’t worried.  My hard work and achievements would stand up to scrutiny, no matter who was in charge, right?  Wrong.

 

Learn the Right Lesson Here!

 

The obvious lesson might be that politics are real and you’d superior play the game well if you’re going to succeed, no matter where you go.  But that’s not it.

 

Yes, office politics are real, no denying that.  As a leader, it’s important that you acquire an understanding of the political landscape in which you are working.  Not so you can play the game — so you can refrain getting caught up in it.

 

Think about the successful leaders you know, the ones who rise to the top.  The vast majority of those I know didn’t get to where they are this day by crushing their in home competition in the game of office politics.  They got there by crushing their external competitors and serving their clients superior than anyone else.

 

Along the way, they were politically aware, but not politically active.  They built relationships with everyone they could.  While others around them came and went, they thrived because of those relationships and because of their relentless focus on the end game.

 

Live in denial and the smarter politicians in your office will be deciding your fate for you.  You won’t even know it.

 

Get good at office politics and you’ll score some wins; a promotion or two, a few awards here and there.  For most, though, the game eventually catches up with them and their political nature becomes career limiting.

 

Understand office politics well enough to refrain getting caught up in the wrong debates.  Focus on clients, growth and other key goals.  Build relationships with everyone you meet.  Know the game, and then refuse to play.  That’s how the ideal rise to the top.

The organization that isn’t changing is dying. For more leadership ideas, along with strategies for managing change, visit www.thomasjodea.com.


Tom O’Dea has over 30 years of IT experience, with 20 years of senior leadership in IT and Professional Services with multibillion dollar corporations.

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