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“I hate that place, it’s so political.” “Magaling sana iyan, pero na-pulitika siya.” In the Philippines, office politics can be especially bewildering. We prize harmony and getting along—“Makisama ka naman!”—and bend over backward to avoid direct confrontations. We hate giving negative feedback, sometimes lying rather than tell a person something unpleasant to their face. Yet we don’t hesitate to talk about it afterwards. Plus, many offices are either family businesses, or run like them, creating a pseudo-family climate where emotions, personal sentiments and non-work matters are considered just as valid as work-related ones.

All of which can make you feel confused, not to mention disillusioned. Why can’t your good work be enough? Because if you deal with people, you’ll deal with politics. Even if you mostly work alone—in sales, freelancing, research, etc.—at some point you will need other people’s help to get your projects funded, completed, recognized, and implemented. When you have two people, you’re going to have two points of view.

Wake up and smell the coffee. You don’t have to run manipulative (like Sigourney Weaver in Working Girl or Demi Moore in Disclosure) or become an attention-starved caricature like Ally McBeal’s Elaine. But you can’t afford to be naïve either. Burying your head in the sand won’t make you look noble—just clueless. Know the terrain, or you could be find yourself unpleasantly surprised.

Get Used to It
When we think of “office politics”, we think of it as scheming, manipulative behavior. But just as every office is not a backstabbing snakepit, neither is all office politics is bad. As important as being good on the job is understanding the environment you work in. The game goes on with or without you, and you can either manage it or let it manage you.

In their book, Princeton Review’s Work Smart (Random House, 1998), career counselors Marci Taub and Michelle Tullier suggest that “If you insist on pretending that politics doesn’t exist, or rebel against it, you’ll only succeed in sabotaging your best work efforts. Focus your energy on what’s happening in your workplace. Once you know how to get what you want, you’ll build positive working relationships and get your work done.”

These basic questions should help you play politics while still getting a good night’s sleep:

How do things get done? Who gives the directions (the boss) and who controls what actually gets done (still the boss—or her assistant/secretary?)

Are there feuds or factions simmering? How did they start? How do they affect you? And how can you avoid being forced to take sides?

How does information circulate? Aside from memos and other official communications, who starts the grapevine? When you get chismis, is this person a good source or not? Would they have their own reasons to spread a rumor? Learn to sort out the nugget of real information at the heart of all speculation.

New Girl on the Block
You may think “I don’t have an agenda—I just want to fit in and do my job!” That is your agenda. As a newcomer, you have to fit in and find your place—not just within the work process, but more importantly, within the group. You may not actually have much to do at first, so use the time to keep quiet and observe.

DO be friendly and enthusiastic, but not irritatingly so. Smile a lot and introduce yourself, but don’t assume that everyone’s your Brand New Friend. DON’T assume that everything will be the same as it was in school or at your last job. You may have been a star there, but here you’re The New Girl. They’re figuring you out, and you’re the doing the same. Accept that it will take a while.

Supergirl or Sipsip?
If you’re genuinely interested in your job, you’ll want to show your interest and enthusiasm. But we’ve all met someone who spends too much time sucking up and quickly becomes the office joke. There are two things that make the difference: why you do it and who has to hear about it.

DO go the extra mile to make everyone’s jobs easier, not just your boss’. By all means, put in hours or take on more work if you can—but don’t keep bragging about it.

DO help, and be genuinely friendly to your whole team, not just your superiors. And don’t insist on telling everyone about it.

DO document your extra work, but DON’T insist on bragging about it. Make sure you have a record of your achievements (copies of reports, etc.) in case you want to ask for a raise or a promotion. Remember, though, that it’s for your own personal reference, not for comparing yourself to other people.

DON’T hand out fake or insincere compliments. Keep offering to do favors or errands for your boss that aren’t work related; shower people with gifts for no reason; try to put yourself ahead of everyone else by making the boss your buddy.

DON’T act as if you’re very close friends, when of course you’re not. Lastly, DON’T think your boss can’t tell. Making sipsip doesn’t make you seem smarter—just more insecure.

Talangka Mentality
In some offices, crabs are always in season. When people feel powerless and trapped (things are changing too fast, or their comfortable jobs are suddenly being made more challenging) they resort to the “talangka mentality”, dragging down others who succeed. At first, you may feel you have no choice, that it’s “us against them” or that it’s career self-defense. Not the case. You know the cliché win the rat race, and you’re still a rat. Remember too, that if they’re doing it to someone else, they’re doing it to you, too.

If you see it around you and it makes you uncomfortable. Don’t join in—it’s not about how down and dirty you can get. Be politely uninterested, but don’t lecture or get holier-than-thou. People will feel you think you’re superior, and you’ll be next on their target list.

If people enlist you in their scheming, politely beg off, plead extra work or just say, “Sorry, I don’t agree.”

If you’re on the receiving end, make the crabs feel included in your success. Share the credit, even if they actually did little or nothing to help you. That way they won’t feel so compelled to drag your down.

P.O.P. Culture
Office politics are the same worldwide (sleaze knows no bounds). But there are some little wrinkles that are so Our Very Own:

Sige na, subukan mo lang! Being forced to buy tocino/cosmetics/underwear/insurance from the boss’ secretary (or wife!).

People who feel like the office is home and officemates are family. In our “family ties” culture, we tend to expect the workplace to be a bigger version of home—the slippers under the desk, the hair in curlers, and the way people feel entitled to make chismis about other people’s private business, and the feeling that grown adults should compete like children for their parents’ favor.

Kamag-anak, Inc. Presidential administrations come and go, but the owner’s relatives will always be with us. If you resent them it’s understandable, but unproductive. Give them the benefit of the doubt, work with them as you would anyone else. Find reasonable ways for them to justify their existence. Who knows—they may actually be good for something. Don’t put your boss in a situation where he has to choose, because it probably won’t be you.

Chismis. Lunchtime or ladies’ room talk is part of what makes the office a community. But some topics are harmless (weekends, families, things you can bond or laugh over, opportunities to help) and others are really harmful (nasty personal rumors, private life). If people gossip about a close friend, or say things you feel are unfair, stand up for the other person—politely but firmly. Say “You don’t know if that’s true,” or “I’m sure she has a good reason for doing that.”

Ganyan talaga rito. Are there some office practices that make you uncomfortable, because you feel they’re unethical (kickbacks, etc.) or just plain unfair? Before you jump to conclusions, find out all the facts. What are the circumstances? Is there something you don’t know? Don’t feel compelled to participate even if everyone else does. Then speaks privately to your boss about how you feel; if the differences are irreconcilable, ask for a transfer or start looking elsewhere.

Bata-bata. Are you finding yourself becoming the boss’ trusted ally? A mentor can teach you a lot and bring you opportunities you’d have difficulty finding on your own. You may genuinely believe in her, or you must just spot a free ride to the top. Just remember hitch your wagon to a star, and when the star goes out, so do you. Make sure you have a back-up plan—one that lets you shine on your own.

Office politics is just part of working in a team to get things done. You can manage it, or let it manage you. If you spend your whole day worrying about what you do and don’t know, you’ll be too busy to actually do your job—and no amount of politics will get you ahead with that.