By Dr Renate Volpe

Ever since I was a young professional facilitating leadership programs for management and executives I took delight in using my qualification in psychology and translating what I referred to as the “secret armory of the psychologist” and translating it in simple, entertaining and teachable formats to corporate employees and the man in the street.

I could never understand why such valuable information about people was not shared and remained the secret domain of the professional psychologist.

Generally speaking people had to hit a crises in their lives prior to becoming privy to information on how to manage their emotions and how to relate effectively to the people they spent their lives surrounded by.

Recently I encountered this passion once more. I delivered an inaugural version of a new leadership program entitled "The Games People Play". The workshops objective is to enhance Political Intelligence for corporate employees.

My personal “kick” came from the fact that during this one day workshop I had begun a process of effectively taking the power from a “few politically minded and powerfully astute people” and shared these skills with a roomful of ordinary people, who at the end of the day felt less confused, and were more empowered to return to the workplace with an enhanced sense of meaning, power, purpose competence and resilience.

How are politics in the workplace defined?

Politics are those actions taken within an organization to acquire develop and use power and other resources to obtain ones preferred outcome in a situation in which there is uncertainty or lack of consensus about choices.

Dysfunctional politics generally:

• Maintain the status quo.
• Promote group think.
• Advance the individual agenda at the expense of others.
• Avoid, confuse or prevent custodianship of assets people and relationships.

Healthy politics may:

• Advance the organizations agenda.
• Are appropriate and future orientated.
• Enhance individual resilience.
• Enhance sense making, meaningfulness, manageability and goal setting.

In summary political intelligence is:

• The ability to read the environment.
• Staying focused on goals and action steps.
• Recognizing where the power lies.
• Identifying the true motives and hidden agendas of others.
• Maintaining a sense of humor.

If we consider that leaders are astute players of politics, the good news for us is that being politically smart is not a character trait, but rather a skill that can be mastered. Each of us has a natural political style that can be made more effective. For those of us serious about our careers, political acumen is an essential competence in the world of work.

Always remember that your ultimate challenge is to learn how to play the game whilst simultaneously trying to change and improve the rules.

Dr Renate Volpe is a leadership coach and author. Should you be interested in becoming more politically intelligent, visit the diary on this site for more info on the one day workshop.