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Systems of Work Place Behaviour |
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Office Politics: Systems of Work Place Behaviour
Sitting at the boardroom table, I was slipping into a state of restlessness and frustration. I was tuning in and out of the conversation because I was consumed by the thought… "Why doesn't Karen just come and say what is really going on. I am tired of having to guess about what she is really thinking!"
Politics in the office has a way of negatively affecting the morale of a team or even multiple teams. It can slow down productivity because avoidance can become the easy response to tension caused by the machinations of office politicians.
Let us take a deeper look at the office politician. He is predisposed to avoiding addressing real issues, giving you a response that can make you feel good instead of engaging you in a healthy discussion. Sometimes, the destructive behaviour can be based on personal agendas like career progression, personal biases or other insecurities.
To be honest, it is really easy to slip into avoidance mode because we sometimes want to maintain some semblance of peace. Moreover, while we many of us choose our battles, it can serve you to develop skills that will help you navigate the landscape of office politics. Whether or not you are a team leader, here are some helpful hints:
1. Courage is the first step in disassembling the political games in the office. Don't confuse this with fundamentalist confrontation. What I am referring to is using probing and listening skills. This can be supplemented by freeing yourself of personal biases that can remain objective throughout the process.
2. You can use distinctions as a tool to help you to ascertain what is really going on
3. Seek the facts. Determine who has full responsibility to the project/decision and get your information from the horse's mouth. In other words, don't accept second hand information from an office politician.
4. Release your feelings of frustration and focus on objectivity by seeking relevant facts.
There is no easy route for navigating or putting a stop to office politics. While we can all contribute to dismantling dysfunctional systems of politics, leaders within an organization have numerous opportunities to choose to perpetuate or dismember the systems of inauthentic behaviour. What do you choose to do?
Yvette Bethel
President
Organizational Soul
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