Are All Politicians Bad?
Whenever I talk with managers about office politics I get this apologizing, yet sometimes accusing, look saying: “What can we do? If you’re not a politician around here you do not exist”. And this is probably the case. Managers have to be politicians to do their job well. Is that bad?
Politicians are generally not highly rated, and for good reason. I have seen way too many talented people waste too much of their energy on what seems to be unproductive politics. I would even go as far as saying that some of them spend most of their time on destructive politics: caring only about their reputation, slandering others, distorting the truth, and always trying to find their way out of problems regardless of who gets hurt in the way.
Are all politicians like that? Are these characteristics inherent to politics?
Timothy Johnson rightfully argues that the answer to these questions is “No”. Not all politicians are alike. There are different kinds of politicians. There are different kind of politics.
“There are actually three general categories of politicians:
- Snakes - the backstabbers only out for their own gain and glory who will do whatever it takes to win.
- Ostriches - the avoiders who do not wish to engage in politics but withdraw completely, sometimes to their (and others’) detriment.
- Bears - the sensible politicians who engage in politics for the greater good of the team, department or company and know when it makes sense to play defense vs. offense.”
This is a great analysis of office politics. Indeed, not all politicians are bad. On the contrary. Some politics (the kind played by Bears) is necessary to manage a team, a department, or the entire company. Without good politics you will find it hard to lead people, to motivate them, and to succeed as an organization.
But this kind of politics requires special skills, a lot of common sense, and above all integrity.
Not all politicians are alike. To make it simple, let’s just say there is good politics and there is bad politics. Most people can immediately identify when they deal with a bad politician and when they work with a good one.
Each of us is responsible for the politics he practices. Being a good politician doesn’t mean you have to be a bad human being. The opposite is true. Being a good human being is a mandatory condition for being a good politician – a politician doing good.
