Navigating company politics can feel like walking through a minefield.
But what if there were career cheat codes that could help you move up faster?
These strategies might sound problematic, but they work.
Problematic Career Cheat Codes: Company Politics Edition
Understand Selfish Desires
The only way to influence people is to understand deeply what they want:
- Your coworker doesn't actually want to hit their KPI. They're insecure and need validation.
- Your boss doesn't want to create stakeholder value. They want approval from their boss.
If you can figure out what the real deeper desire is, you hold the power.
Work Loudly
It's not how hard you work, it's what you work on:
- Focus on visible projects with quantitative impact
- Never do extra work without mentioning it
- Make your efforts known, especially if you're remote
Be Dramatic
Dramatize your ideas, your work, and your results.
Yes, that means you have to brag. Being humble won't get you noticed.
Read These Books
These books give you the frameworks to navigate relationships and power dynamics at work.
- How to Win Friends and Influence People
- 7 Rules of Power
Mirror Your Circle
Mirror the tones, writing style, formality, and dress style of people in circles you want to infiltrate. But here's the trick: you cannot lie or fake anything about yourself or that will be obvious and you'll look desperate. Instead, find qualities that already match with those people and lean into them.
Hop Strategically
The best way to climb any hierarchy is by hopping. Job hop, hop departments, hop between social circles at work.
At some point you're gonna encounter people that fight aggressively to keep the status quo. Just know when your efforts are gonna be futile and hop.
I teach strategies like these in my courses. Learn more on my Work With Me page.
Conclusion
The key takeaways: understand what people really want, work on visible projects, dramatize your achievements, learn from the right books, mirror the people you want to connect with, and hop when progress stalls.
The people who get ahead aren't always the hardest workers. They're the ones who understand the game and play it strategically.