The workplace self-interest loop

Workplace politics are everywhere. We’ve all hopefully had a few good jobs and great bosses — but we’ve all worked in places that Wharton (UPenn) would equate to “chimp rape” too. There are major anthropological reasons for this, but we often ignore those. “No time, rushing to my 12:15!” Rather, we let workplace politics boil up and overwhelm us. At that point, the only option is “excessive anger all day” and/or “leaving this specific job.”

Now look, a quick word on workplace politics in general. They arrive because the real goal of work (besides “making money for those invested in you”) is (a) to seem relevant to others and (b) to not seem incompetent. At this intersection, most people are concerned with what elements of work they can “control” or “own,” as opposed to, well, doing quality work. Many middle managers are like this. The end game doesn’t matter. It’s whether they “controlled” the process. Now add in one more factor to this workplace politics pie: work is still made up of humans (for now). That makes it a fairly emotional place. But, we try (usually fail) to make it a logical place by choking everything in process. Humans have legitimate reactions to things. If your boss makes you cry, that’s legit. Someone tells you that you did something wrong, that’s emotional. No HR process is going to swoop in and “save the day” there. You’re fooling yourself if you think that.