Master Politics, Master Your Fate - How to Deal with Office Politics

Office politics are a sad reality that we all must face, whether we are working in a government office or the corporate arena. People have to suck up to a boss and say a few well-rehearsed words to get out of a sticky situation. There are people you should side with in order to be on your manager's good side. You need to befriend, maybe even seduce a secretary so that you can get better deals on your office lunch, supplies, and even your vacation leave days! Adding to the complicated mess is the gossip that preys on every office, and that can destroy work relationships and whole careers.

If you are not prepared for such complexities, then you might as well live up in the mountains and be a hermit, because politics and gossip permeate into all aspects of our lives. To combat the sad reality of office politics, you need a few tips to follow and cope.

- Steel yourself and prepare yourself for the harsh reality that is the working world. No matter how hard you try to close your eyes, no matter how fast you run and well you hide to avoid it, office politics is real, and will continue while there are people who are prepared to use desperate measures to get ahead. No matter how much beeswax you stuff into your ears, and no matter how many times you hide under your desk to avoid hearing it, office gossip is real, and will continue while there are people who delight in listening to it.

Although this tip sounds like an obvious step in surviving the workplace, it is actually very difficult to follow. Will you be able to resist the urge to poke fun at your uptight boss while his back is turned, and while your officemates discuss how he can womanize or gamble his life away? Will you be able to resist the urge to accept a bribe or voluntary sexual favor from an officemate who needs your help to encode, translate, or calculate something, simply because he or she is too lazy to do it? Will you be able to stick to your guns when all the Wild, Wild West is firing away?