A discussion on free speech and the need to maintain our right to say things that upset those around us. The stifling of free speech is one of the most important issues of our time.

I have recently seen a crazy example of this: Qantas was at the centre of a scandal after posting a photo of two guys who wore black face-paint and afro wigs after they posted a photograph of the marketing stunt on the micro-blogging site. The guys were dressed and made up to look like Radike Samo. complete with Afro Wig, Aus rugby kit and face paint, They were snapped a photo with “Samo” himself. The airline however after congratulating the two fans changed its tune after an angry Twitter backlash and then issued an apology. This was not a racist action and Samo himself seems to have had no problem with it. The guys were honouring a great Aussie team member. Give me a break PC crowd… get back in your dark little narrow box.

Dr Thilo Sarrazin, former central banker and author; Dr Janet Albrechtsen, columnist with The Australian; Professor James Allan, bills-of-rights scholar; and Brendan O’Neill, pulls-no-punches journalist and editor of the popular online UK publication spiked for a closer look into the pervasive problem of political correctness.

Beware of political correctness and the motive of those that peddle it as they are attempting to “muzzle free speech, stifle genuine inquiry and destroy independent thinking”.

From this incident I developed a number of ‘LESSONS’ that I posted on Google+

Lesson 1: Respect regardless of position cannot be demanded it must be earned!

Lesson 2: Transparency of the process, particularly during times of change, is paramount.

Lesson 3: If you are in command of an aircraft carrier don’t try to turn as if it were a fighter jet.

Lesson 4: Ensure that ALL key players required for the change are fully engaged in the process.

Lesson 5: Change will always create a level of animosity and fear due to a natural tendency in all of us to wonder… whats it going to mean to me.

A number of people commented and here is an edited selection.

JS – You have to adapt to the rhythm of the team first [ before implanting any changes] and then change their pace from within.

RB – Good point, JS I think it’s necessary to start making changes where you can in such a situation, meetings, small procedures and get people used to being a little surprised.

BB – Better to slow and involve everyone who matters along the way.

TSH – The core rules with any type of change management: understanding the current environment, listening to the cultural noise and getting the requisite feedback before making any decisions. The masses really do have the final word.

BY – What was his level of commitment, really, if he wasn’t willing to stick it out for more than three weeks (confrontation comes with the territory)? Did he present his concepts in a manner for phase by phase changes or, was it an aggressive strategy?

ZK – It’s best to bring change by taking everyone on board. Show them how the new processes would make their jobs easier and transparent.

My interest in the topic increased and during further research I found a great resource in an article by Andrew O’Keeffe of “The Boss” and “Hardwired Humans” fame.

The article:

“PEOPLE ARE OPEN TO CHANGE, AS LONG AS IT IS APPROACHED IN THE RIGHT WAY. UNDERSTANDING INSTINCTS IS A USEFUL STARTING POINT”

Some of the points he makes regarding change are:

“Organisational life is harder than it needs to be. We make it harder because, mostly, our leadership practices are contrary to human instincts. Change is a good example. There is a saying that people resist change. While this might be conventional wisdom, it just isn’t true. If people were hardwired to resist change, we’d still be living in caves.”

“People are fine with change, provided it meets one criterion: that it does not involve loss. Humans are hardwired for loss aversion. This is one of nine instincts we have.”

His article goes on to list the nine hardwired characteristic we have and here is a summary:

1. LOSS AVERSION
Humans are significantly more motivated by the avoidance of loss than the opportunity to gain.

2. EMOTION BEFORE REASON
This filtering for loss is performed instantly, emotionally and often subconsciously. This is because we screen information first based on emotion (how it makes me feel) and only later (sometimes delayed by only a millisecond) on logic.

3. FIRST IMPRESSIONS TO CLASSIFY
People make instant judgments about people and situations as a way to quickly classify their experiences. People readily classify information into categories such as “good or bad”, “harmful not harmful”, “like me or not like me” and “loss or gain”.

4. GOSSIP
If a leader leaves the first impression to chance, then you are probably leaving the communication to the grapevine. People are hardwired to gossip.

5. CONFIDENCE BEFORE REALISM
Humans are hardwired to deny reality – to emphasise what is possible and to underestimate what is practical. This is the instinct that causes business leaders to plan optimistically and disregard implementation.

6. EMPATHY AND MIND READING
Humans are mind readers. We detect how others are thinking and feeling by what’s written on their face. The implication for leaders managing change is that staff will most likely accurately read your intentions.

7. CONTEST AND DISPLAY
Humans spend time, money and energy making ourselves look good. In times of change, we can fall into a primitive trap. The trap is that your actions might be, at an unconscious level, about looking good.

8. COMMUNITY
Humans are social animals. We are hardwired to connect strongest to our family-sized group of around seven people in our “village” of up to one hundred and fifty people.

9. HIERARCHY AND STATUS
Human groups function through hierarchy. When hierarchy and power are unclear, groups become dysfunctional.

If you would like to download a pdf of the full article it can be found at “hardwiredhumans” dot com in the articles-and-media section.

With the amount and pace of change that the world and of course organizations are being forced to deal with at the moment if you are serious about thriving (rather than just surviving) into the future, much of your attention as a leader will need to be focused on the issue of change and how to implement it.

Things you should not do if you are being bullied

Starting a get even campaign by trying to secretly sabotage the bully or employing physical violence to counteract verbal attacks. It can also be counter productive trying to enlist the sympathy and help of inappropriate co-workers as in my experience often onlookers will pretend support as they enjoy watching the demise of either the bully or the one being bullied.

Things you should do to counteract an office bully

The first issue is to take the stance that its not your fault. I know this sounds obvious (and perhaps difficult) however some people I have met in my career seem to internalize the problem and blame themselves for what happens and live, or just exist, with a victim’s mentality. If you take this view of life it will be hard to overcome the injustice that is being inflicted upon you. You have to overcome negative feelings and realize that you are entitled to be how you want to be, feel how you would like to feel and that no one has the right to attack your feelings or try to diminish your sense of self worth. Employers have the right to judge your work in relation to their needs however no one has the right to question your values, feelings and emotions. If you need a strategy to get you started on a more positive outlook read something (or go to a course on) “affirmations” and/or “positive self talk”. Two things to remember here, they are clichés however they are true: “the most important words you will ever hear are the words you say to yourself about yourself when you are by yourself” and that “insanity is doing the same thing every time and expecting a different result”. You must using whatever means you can put real effort into either developing (or maintaining) your positive self image,

Many will advise you to enlist support of co-workers, this however as I said previously can be dangerous. You must report the bullying  behavior to the appropriate internal or external authorities. To do this you will need to keep a record of the incidents, even as I suggested in a recent tweet go to the lengths of recording your conversations with the bully. You must document your positive work outcomes particularly if someone in a position of power is taking credit for your work. You need to get support by going to your human resources department and/or any organization in your area set up to help with these situations. Often institutions such as social services or other quasi legal entities exist to handle these types of situations. If no improvement is forthcoming you must have the courage to take formal legal action. I realize that taking a formal approach to the bullying will put your job in jeopardy however letting yourself be bullied is a slippery slope of misery that can end in disaster.

There is also some interesting perspectives and positive outcome examples at:

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/WorkingWounded/story?id=468009

Before you go to read their advice its wise to remember if all else fails you may end up by changing employers. If you need to do that here is a resume example to get you started on your new direction. I certainly however hope you do not need to use it because of being bullied. Changing jobs is a drastic action however you need to realize you deserve to work in a reasonable environment and this will sometimes mean you need to find an employer with a more positive work culture where bullying is not tolerated.

This power is derived from being able to control the flow of information, or to be able to edit and be selective about what is passed on. “The information may be horizontal, to be shared with colleagues, or vertical, to be passed up or down through a formal organizational structure”.  This type of power is often linked with position power, however those with little formal authority, clerks, secretaries and receptionists, can exert information power. I have seen customer and supplier files withheld or even destroyed by individuals that were under operational pressure in an attempt to stave off the control of a situation which was threatening to staff that were acting in an unethical manner.

Perhaps at this point we should define power

DEFINITION

The ability of a person or group to influence the thoughts or behavior of another person or group, so that he/she or they do something they would not otherwise do, assuming that the recipients of the power have some personal discretion over what they do.

With this definition we can see why communication abilities and control of information is so important to holding power

part 2 (page 3)

‘Cultural differences’ are not just a ‘locals’ and ‘expats’ or say an ‘Asian’ versus ‘Western’ problem; they are also a potentially destructive force between workgroups that have opposing ‘work-culture’ priorities and perspectives within the same organization.

As a priority all staff need to develop some overall ‘Business Competence’ and be encouraged to see their role as it relates to the ‘entire organization’ rather than see themselves as ‘a member of a department’ or as an individual that just swaps a narrowly focussed service based or a specific expertise for money. Individuals must develop ‘a customer orientation’, ‘industry knowledge’, ‘an entrepreneurial attitude’, ‘an operational development focus’, ‘sound company knowledge’ and particularly understand the ‘overall company financial result’ and the part they play in it.

Modern business complexity and customer demands mean modern organizations are more solutions driven than product driven. This complexity means more efforts are need to be undertaken by project teams made up of individuals from different functional backgrounds. Employees must buy into the idea that they must be able to switch rapidly from one task to another, to work with people with very different vocational training and mind-sets. Working in situations in which ‘the team’ is the responsible party, the manager only a coordinator, where all parties no longer have clear job descriptions and where all are required to work on several projects at the same time is today’s cultural norm.

Now you may not initially think this is a great problem however, imagine a meeting between R&D, who are interested in ‘long term visions, superior features, safety, the best product for the customer’ and the finance division who are interested in ‘cost minimization, immediate cash flow, long term profitability and the shareholders’. Add a representative of the sales department, ‘market share, need it now, the price has to be more competitive’ and perhaps a HR director, ‘they’re not trained, it’s too much of a stain on the staff and they’ll all leave’ and cultural issues will explode.

As leader/managers with an ever increasing mix of people from different backgrounds combined with ever increasing rates of change and the need for greater levels of specialisation, we all need to spend more time managing the cultural differences in our organisations. “It’s their fault,” is often heard in organizations where there is no individual or interdepartmental understanding. This divisiveness left unresolved will cause poor work relationships, lousy business interactions and will always translate into poor customer service.

YES YES THAT’S MY PLACE… WHAT DO I DO?

Read the next blog post coming soon!

Direct page viewers can go to main blog to check out other posts by clicking on the white “orglearn.org” in the header panel above!

Suffering in your career from a lousy culture or cultural management practices at work? Time to move on? Update your personal brand using the free blank resume form! Buy the way there are lots of career articles at orglearn management and career success!

As Plato puts it: “One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.”

Research shows that successful managers (those promoted) spend almost half of their work time networking while effective (do a ‘good’ job) managers spend only about 10%. When we add in time spent communicating, successful managers spend a little over three quarters of their time in what we may call “human relations activities” while effective managers spend a little over half of their time. This means to be successful only about 25% of time is spent doing ‘the real work’.

With out doubt as managers our role is to get things done through other people, so whether we seek success or effectiveness we must become human relations’ experts and I suggest, be our own best ‘spin doctors’. Wherever people are together politics will always play a part in group relations and in the interactions between individuals as each member attempts to satisfy their own needs and wants. We are all selfish after all.

So if we must all engage in the politics at our workplace how do we become more astute at the game?

Firstly we must publicize our successes. Learning how to ‘show off’ without appearing to do so can be a great asset. Try this… next time you have a win smile, whistle and dance around, show some enthusiasm… people will want to know why you are so happy and elated… well I’ve had a great day… I won this deal or I’ve cracked this problem or whatever, tell your story, (but don’t rave on, short is sweet).

POLITICS, IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT, OR CAN’T HANDLE IT… BEST BECOME SELF-EMPLOYED!

Secondly, look like a winner. View those around you that are at the top of your organisation and learn from their style. Don’t hang around with the ‘grumble group’, find out whether your company culture appreciates risk takers or avoiders, rule followers or breakers and live within these constraints. Learn the difference between form and substance, how something looks is often more important than how things really are. This even applies to dress and presentation. If the top wears dark blue suits, white shirts, red ties and clean-shaven faces you do the same. But I’ve always had a beard, my wife likes it… go work for your wife then.

Thirdly, why not make yourself indispensable. No one can do that you might say, however back to form and substance… you can appear to be. If the management believe that you can provide a service that is hard to replace you will gain a great political advantage. Example, if you have a strong relationship with a key customer’s senior personnel spend time to keep them more than just satisfied. If you are in close contact with, regulatory or government departments such as customs, tax, labour or industry, look after your contact (bearing in mind the ethics of your company). Again, if you are an astute computer operator in the IT department, fix the senior exec’s problems yourself, don’t delegate. Senior executives are too busy with the big picture to be experts in each field of the companies operation. So, pick a critical area that you have a reasonable level of competence in and make yourself the helpful expert in that field. Provide information on developments in your area and get the information to those that control your future… the bosses.

“I HAVE COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT POLITICS ARE TOO SERIOUS A MATTER TO BE LEFT TO THE POLITICIANS” – CHARLES DeGAULLE

Politics, you won’t hate it as much if you become better at ‘the game’!

Powerful allies are important for political success. Bosses are formal leaders however all organisations have informal leaders that can come from any level of the company. Don’t ignore the informal networks in your organisation and make yourself valuable or at least a neutral when dealing with such groups and never place yourself in open conflict. Remember sometimes ‘it is better to say nothing and appear a fool than to open your mouth and leave no doubt’. Similarly avoid the fringe members or powerless individuals in your organisation. In one company I worked for they where known as ‘the lemons’, they always liked ‘the way it was in the good old days’ and proffered opinions on why everything the company is doing now won’t work. This group loves an audience, will give advice and will make friends easily. They will also laugh inwardly as they recruit another to their misery. Keep away at all costs.

Power is linked to control of resources so effort must be placed into gaining as much resource control as possible. Even secretaries know the value of the key to the stationary cupboard or how devastating they can be by holding a memo back for 24 hours. Successful politics and power are inextricably linked so if you see a chance to control any company resource (crucial contacts, physical assets, expert knowledge etc) you must take charge.

“TURN ON TO POLITICS, OR POLITICS WILL TURN ON YOU” – Ralph Nader

A final few thoughts on how we can become more successful in the critical success area of… politics.

Bosses can be a pain in the butt however in reality our relationship with ‘the company’ is no more than a reflection of our relationship with our boss (and perhaps his or her boss). When people think of working in a company in terms of ‘good’ or ‘bad’, they are trying to credit the company with possessing a ‘soul’, which it does not (and never will) have. Trying to humanise a company is dangerous and in fact borders on stupid. How we fit in our company is purely a reflection of the association we enjoy (or otherwise) with our immediate ‘superiors’. Obviously then we need to be politically astute in dealing with the boss which means we must make them look good every chance we get. To flourish we must give the bosses our full support and if they are under attack from others, always take their side. If you are seen as disloyal to your current boss you will be perceived as disloyal to all others, including those you may work for in the future. Remember bosses come and bosses go, learn from the bad and enjoy the good.

Lastly, selling rather than telling is always the preferable option. If you need engage in arguments develop the skill to remove the perception of personal desire from the conflict (even though they will always be a factor). The ‘trick’ is to frame all arguments in terms of the company’s interests rather than our own. Stick to supportable facts, use your company knowledge to negotiate win-wins and never allow yourself to be seen as placing your self-interest above that of the company… even if you are. Failing in this area will lead to your ultimate demise. Lastly, always control you emotions and think with head rather than your heart.

POLITICS: THE THINKING PERSONS SPORT!

*Link for direct page viewers return to main career success blog to check out other posts!

If you are losing the political battle at work and it is time to go to a new employer take a look at the free blank resume form as you will need it if you want to enter a new political arena!

Twelve quick tips for improving your political astuteness

Don’t publicly complain about your boss or colleagues to your co-workers or to other company divisions or departments.

Remain neutral or detached from disputes between others

Don’t become part of the “rumor mill, what you hear about others from others should stay with you alone

When others complain about a boss or co-worker, don’t further inflame the situation by adding another layer of opinion

Don’t ridicule or scoff at others particularly if they are experiencing some misfortune

Question authority or policy decisions only directly to the authority or policy makers and definitely not to or through third parties… and do it with tact and diplomacy

Remember the old communication problem that what you say may not be what the other person hears and what you hear may not be what the other person means so seek clarification and ensure true understanding of the message

When you need to make a complaint or discuss a difficult situation, focus on the situation and facts and keep the resolution of the difficulty as your goal… separate the problem from the people or personalities

Don’t speculate to others on areas you know little or nothing about

Don’t claim credit for others successes nor belittle others successes

Avoid speaking when you are emotional or disturbed by a situation, go away calm down analyze the facts and when presenting the matter or reason for your of your discontent be calm factual and brief

Avoid, groaning, moaning, whining or being a “winger”, if you don’t like something come up with an alternative and suggest it to your workmates, team and/or boss