Having been in a fairly corporate environment for the past 3 years, I’ve learned a few things about how office politics works. I’ve had great mentors along the way who have taught me a lot, but there are some things I’ve had to learn on my own through trial and error. Below are a few things I’ve learned from my experiences.
- Don’t share any personal details about yourself with colleagues that you don’t feel comfortable with the whole company knowing.
- This includes what you share on social as well. Think twice about sending the 2:00 AM Snapchat to one of your colleagues (or anyone to be honest).
- They say don’t compare yourself to others, but your colleagues are your best measuring stick.
- It’s no secret that the top performers within companies are promoted. With that said, identify who the top performers are and strive to be better than them.
- Office politics happens, but results trumps politics 100% of the time (at least in tech).
- Age / tenure as a means for promotions is dead. You’re promoted based on ability and success.
I could probably add another 20 things to this list, but the 3 examples above are things I found to be most important. The biggest thing to keep in mind is that office politics exist so people can play certain cards to gain some type of advantage (promotions, pay raise or recognition). With that said, don’t get caught up in the gossip, try and have fun and make sure you do your job to the best of your ability.