Chapter 90. Don’t Play Politics

Politicians are people paid to play politics. You are not. You are a manager. You manage situations and projects. The people don’t need managing. They manage themselves. Some of them go off the rails sometimes and play politics. You don’t have to play with them. That’s like playing on train tracks. You’re bound to get hurt, bound to get run over by a train. Playing politics is using people to further your own ends, which, if you are playing politics properly, will be unpleasant, selfish, narrow-minded and petty. Playing politics invariably involves intimidating people, being sly, getting things done by lying or other dishonest means, not being yourself or true to others and generally behaving appallingly. There, I’ve said it now and I guess you know what I think of playing politics—it stinks.

You should “love thy neighbor, but pick thy neighborhood.” Try to hang out with OK-people who don’t feel the need to play politics.

Try to be involved with less popular projects because they attract less attention, less competition. Same goes for the less popular team or department. Here you can shine without having to compete all the time. Every company has people who get stuff done without back-stabbing. Hang out with these people.

Share information, always. This takes the wind out of the sails of those who do play politics. Be everyone’s friend, so no one can accuse you of being cliquey or stand-offish.

Although you aren’t going to play, you still have to be on your guard—be aware that playing politics goes on and be ready to deal with it in an appropriate way. Watch out for the hidden agendas that go on, the concealing true motives, the smear campaigns, the lying, the gossip (often malicious), the hints and subtle nuances that you aren’t up to scratch or speed, the jockeying for power and control, the whispering, that sort of thing. If you are fortunate, you will encounter very little of it and any you do can be cut sharply off. Some industries seem to breed that sort of bad behavior and you will be hard pushed to stop it. Refuse to play, and get a reputation for being a straight-talking, unpolitical being—honest, above board, open, candid, guileless, and straightforward. Nothing complicated about you.