[Back In The Saddle]

Thought the first, from a college research paper I did a while ago. The thing we like to call politics can be usefully divided into two categories. The first is more properly termed "group dynamic." It is the unwritten, and often unspoken, rules of how a group operates. The second is the underhanded, cloak and dagger, backstabbing behavior some people use to try to get ahead of others.

The word politics is a very loaded term. In the second case, the negative connotations are well deserved and the behavior best avoided. However, the negativity of the term can sometimes lead a person to avoid participating in the group dynamic. This is almost always a mistake. Understanding and participating in the group dynamic is essential to being accepted and successful within the group. It's not stooping to something low and dirty, it's simply the way the group operates.

Thought the second, working hard to improve is important. However, it is only half the battle. The other half is getting seen and noticed and talked about among the folks who make decisions about moving people up. This can be harder than the improving part. It requires some amount of luck and often some initiative on the part of the person who wants to move up. Camps are one way to do this, as has been mentioned. I know officials around here who have phoned board members and asked them to come watch them work. I know officials who have asked the assigner to deliberately put them on a JV game ahead of board members working a varsity contest so they can be seen. Our association has a regular Saturday clinic that is a like a camp, where new officials can learn and been seen. Some of these may work for you. They have worked for people around here. You might want to ask around your area to see what works in your situation.