mindfulness Reduce Office Politics Four words can radically diminish office politics before they begin.
Mundane tasks and lack of pay increases are the usual responses when asking employees what they do not enjoy about their work life. Though, one of the more common responses is office politics. Status, closed-door conversations and deals, department tugs-of-war, and power struggles can damage even the most rewarding organizational missions and visions into a toxic environment that produces unneeded stress—also resulting in a loss of exceptional employees and productivity. Eliminating office politics from an organization is undoubtedly unattainable. Nevertheless, could we reduce the time, energy, and resources wasted on these plots and ruses? For leaders balancing demanding schedules, the last thing anyone wants to deal with is office politics. An office environment in turmoil can reduce pressure with one simple idea. Types of office politics Office politics exist on two levels: • •
Chaos created by toxic employees Differences in communication, opposing styles, or even performance and strategy.
Many examples involve mostly reasonable and skilled co-workers with different ideas on how a task at hand can be accomplished. However, suppose you are unlucky enough to deal with a challenging personality. In that case, there are methods to protect your future and achieve your objectives while seeking alternative ways to remove yourself from a situation. While everyday clashes for control can raise your stress levels to new heights, remember that you and your “not-so-favorite” co-worker still have one key thing in common. One of the best observations about work, separate from other experiences in your personal life, is that it all comes down to a straightforward fact: If your organization is not achieving success and objectives are not met, everyone will be terminated. This means that everyone in an organization wishes to see their goals accomplished. So, you and your adversary may argue about all sorts of other things. Still, you both presumably will want 32
