Education & Work Optics,office politics

Hi living roomers, looking to get advice on learning material to get better at business optics and office politics.

The whole “whether other people think you do good work” and crafting narratives to keep the perception positive, regardless of the actual work done.

People and emotions arent my strong point. My role at work is largely analytical, without much presentation opportunity.

Have you come across any material, books, or advice you can share?

Thanks

 

Watch a few episodes of The Office.

 

It sounds a bit like you want to get more recognition for the work you do? Is the aim to be considered for a raise or a promotion? Or to be seen as an expert?

 

Someone once told me to treat everyone like a customer. Your boss, clients, colleagues, the cleaners.....try and deliver whatever the request happens to be on time and under budget. Could be as simple as cleaning out the office fridge to doing the financials for the past 13 years...doesn't matter.

People soon realise that you're reliable and useful and generally good things tend to happen.

 

You have to play the game.

Some people are naturally good at it,
Some aren't and need to work on it.
Some are just hopeless and need to be polite and stay under the radar

 

The first thing you need to do is to observe your organisational culture. Look at the people who are recognised. How do they behave? Then look at people who are promoted. How do they behave?

For example, in my organisation, the people who get recognised are loud to the point of being obnoxious and get recognised even if they do **** work. The people who get promoted walk over everyone else to get there. They are pushy to the point of being rude. It's not my style so I can't progress.

 

What is your work environment like? Do you have daily meetings / stand ups?

- Always speak something at a meeting, never stay quite even if it is just a question
- Talk to every one around you at least once a day, again even if it is just a chit chat
- Keep reminders about everything, desktop notes / todos etc.
- Provide updates to your manager on a more frequent basis, do you use slack ?

keeping adding stuff guys...

 

My question is why and what results you want to achieve?

 

Depending on the jobs, if it mostly technical jobs there isn't much of that stuff, you mostly solve problems and carry out technical work.

You will get recognised if the task is difficult and other people cant do the work but you seem to breeze through it.

if you just like everyone else and the task can be done like everyone else then it politic play

I know a guy at work, he is like a walking machine, he doesn't do the presentation, he rarely talks in the meeting but when he talks everyone listens and shut up because when he said something it either important or explain highly technical stuff to the crow

he writes codes like his natural language he knows
so much and everything seems like a walk in the park for him and most people would struggle to get it done. He commands his own salary because everyone knows without him when **** hit the fans they need him

 

If you are after a book to help gain insight and some skills to highlight recognition of your efforts then an EQ (Emotional Quotient) might be of assistance.

Emotional Intelligence 2.0 : Jean Greaves : 9780974320625

 

Just be good, if not great at your job. People will notice. Go above and beyond the norm.
Make yourself invaluable and get great results for the organisation.

If you want to be perceived as good, when you aren't, I can't help you with that. I don't think anyone can help you with that.

 

It sounds to me they want to be perceived as good when they are. That's harder than you think in some work places

 

That's not how I read it here:

 

There are people who are really good at this. Not really something you can learn from book though.

 

Always carry a manilla folder around the office with you. People assume there is something important inside, and makes you look busier than you really are.

 

Hehe... "Carry a Clipboard"....
This was the thing told to me in firewarden training. Wardens carry the clipboard to help them look like they are in charge. Ditto with wearing the helmet. So when you tell people to move, they will move. This was over 10 years ago now though..... I don't know what wardens get told these days!

 

A manila folder might make you look like you are still in the nineties!

 

Yeah... modern equivalent... carry your laptop everywhere instead? Makes it look like you are forever going to a meeting.

 

@Zoolander having recently been promoted and having received great reviews from everyone in the office, I have been wondering about what exactly I have done right.

I've realised that I've just been 'nice' to everyone. I've gone out of my way to help everyone in the office even if it doesn't have much to do with my role. Never been someone who gets angry when people ask questions. In addition to that I do a good job, not necessarily a great job in MY opinion but because I'm nice to everyone, it comes across as I'm doing much better than I actually am.

I do consciously try to make my immediate superior look good though. Because if I make her look it, that indirectly makes me look good and come promotion time, she will put in a good word. And I put everything else aside and respond ASAP if I've been requested to do something by the top boss.

Though I must say, I'm lucky to be in a good work place where people are genuine.