Ash may not burn your hands like fire, but it chars you black, so don’t handle it.
Recognize a politically charged atmosphere -
- indirect/controlled/manipulated communication. people/actions/decisions are judged as good/bad. relationships & alliances are built upon secrecy.
- mundane is overblown, significant issues are minimised. resistance to policies ranges from passive to overtly destructive.
- conflicts are behind the scenes & are unacknowledged. when things go wrong,rather than seeking the causes of problems, people blame each other.
- decisions are made by small powerful cliques. information is disseminated by gossip. employees lack direction on what is expected of them. rosy promises of future distract people from an unhappy present.
Be politically astute – manage how you are perceived-
- do unto others the way they would want.
- talk about your strenghts & how well you can relate to company’s needs.
- honor your gut feelings & intuition: if something doesn’t feel right to you, don’t participate.
- become known as the “get it done” type & manage others perceptions to the point you get credit for the good work you are doing, but don’t put appearance ahead of substance.
