7 Things You Should Know About Politics

Tom's latest eBook has been released on Amazon: "The 7 Myths of IT Integrations". Tom is also a Program Director for a large Midwest corporation and has been an adjunct faculty member at Walsh College. He has managed global web initiatives, data center moves and large multi-million dollar programs.

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politics (pol/i/tiks): How people treat other people, which defines the principles of a proper social system.

Politics have been around as long as mankind has been able to communicate with one another. The moment the first caveman envied the impressive club that another caveman was using and tried to negotiate a partnership, politics was born.

Politics are rampant in our families, our communities and most especially in the workplace. As you forge your career, you will undoubtedly encounter politics that will help you--and politics that will frustrate and anger you. Used well, politics can propel your career and enable your goals and objectives; mishandled, and much like trying to make your own fireworks in the backyard it can burn you pretty badly.

So here are seven things you should keep in mind about politics:

1. Stroking Egos -- Some people you will encounter will have a poor self image, some will have a normal self image and a few will have an inordinately inflated view of themselves. Big and small egos can be especially tricky to deal with. You have to learn to support each of their egos while attempting to accomplish what you need to achieve. It takes a skilled hand to be able to manage egos (and the people behind them) in such a way that you preserve the relationship and achieve results at the same time.

Think about what the other ego has to gain …

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