Hi Friends,

Sharing with you an interesting blog posted on http://www.talentequity.in/blog/?p=61

In these times of slow economic recovery, many of us are finding it difficult to hold on to our respective jobs. Work pressures, stretched working hours, stringent quality checks and - clubbed with all this - workplace politics. Ethically speaking, just how desperate are we to save our job?

You need to be aware when someone is gunning after you. After all you don’t want to loose your credibility, a promotion or your job. You need to identify and fight back the people who indulge in workplace politics. A few signs that you should keep a lookout for, are:

1. Your mistakes and weaknesses are exaggerated in front of others.
2. You find yourself caught in the playing the blame game.
3. Meetings are conducted without you being invited or informed.
4. You don’t get the information which you should be normally be getting directly.
5. Your private information becomes public knowledge.

If 3 out of the 5 mentioned situations seem familiar to you, you may be getting dragged in politics at workplace. So how does one survive? Below are a few things that one should keep in mind:

1. Keep your cool. Being too emotional works against you.
2. List all situations. Prepare a note of all such incidents where you think your colleague is playing mischief.
3. Introspect. Review each of the incidents objectively. Do you see any logic? If you are confused, it is always advisable to speak to your confidante at work or a senior (a person who is removed from the situation and would be able to guide you). This helps you in seeing the correct picture.
4. Discuss with your boss. You have your list of incidents, viewpoints and patience with you. Share your fears with your boss. The boss may call in for a dialogue with you and your colleague. Be prepared.
5. Face your adversary. Prepare yourself, choose the right assertive attitude and share your observations and ask for an explanation.

It is most likely that the person will back off and will be careful about their behaviour after the meeting. And trust me, your boss/ colleagues will respect you for that.

It has been observed that when we stop, think and act on a situation we are likely to win. So go ahead, face and resolve workplace politics and make the workplace a reason to look forward to and not sulk. Growl :)

For more blog posts - http://www.talentequity.in/blog
Keep your feedback coming :)

Best

Sanjay