WorkPlace Politics

Politics exists wherever there is leadership. At home, at church, at work, and so on. Politics in the workplace is unavoidable; but, if left unaddressed, it may bring a company to its knees.

A long time ago, I consider everyone a friend. However, after being subjected to office politics twice by people I consider friends, I now refer to coworkers as "colleagues," and neighbors as "neighbors."

Office politics develops when individuals abuse their positions of power to attain personal goals, often at the expense of their coworkers. Why take a colleague down only to prove you're worth the win when the purpose is to lift the organization, not take a colleague down?

Colleagues take advantage of each other's flaws, faults, or naiveté to further their own goals. 

Politics in the workplace manifests itself in the form of:

1. Seeing a coworker make a mistake on a project and then reporting them to your manager and volunteering to fix the problem."

2. Taking a shot at a coworker

3. Using a colleague as a bargaining chip

4. Jealousy

5. Nepotism

6. Forming nefarious alliances against coworkers

7. Spreading stories or gossiping about others

8. Withholding crucial facts on purpose

Some workplace political red flags to be aware of include:

There is a lack of cohesion in the workplace.

I take orders from the boss, no one else

Takeaway:

Politics in the workplace, whether favorable or negative, is unavoidable.

Employees are being influenced away from the company's mission and toward their personal goals.

The impact of office politics on the workplace

It's difficult to focus in a setting when everyone wants to see you fail and point fingers at your blunder.

It has a significant impact on interpersonal connections. Politics causes friends to become enemies. People cease assisting one another and, more crucially, they stop trusting one another.

Office politics exacerbate workplace conflicts and tensions. Employees despise their jobs and regard them as a burden.

The job is an excellent environment for mental health deterioration.

There are a few options for dealing with it.

Supervisors/Leaders

• Employees should be credited and promoted appropriately.

• The spirit of collaboration should be encouraged

• Stop the spread of destructive political behavior.

• Do not engage in office gossip—will there ever be an end to gossip? However, it is all up to you. Quit making derogatory remarks against a member of staff

• Avoid isolating yourself from coworkers (distance often leads to negative power dynamics).

• Political behavior ought not to be tolerated.

• All team members must be held accountable.

• Everyone should be treated equally, this crops up self-doubt

Staff

• We can all agree that we've worked with leaders who have little to no knowledge about their roles. You believe you put in long hours and they receive a higher credit alert, therefore you want the tables to change.

• Subordinates are responsible for 80% of workplace politics. They rarely feel like leftovers. Because their words have no weight, they are rarely invited to crucial gatherings.

Some leaders see this happening and let's be honest, most of them followed the same path to the top.

Rather than putting a halt to it, they turn a blind eye and allow colleagues to compete, resulting in employees going above and beyond to increase profits for the company.