[Back In The Saddle]

Originally Posted by Terrapins Fan

Politics-

Kissing butt. You know it exists. To deny it is a lie.

Back in college they made us write a paper about politics in the workplace. I thought it was the stupidest, most worthless waste of time I ever paid for the "privlege" of enduring. Until I wrote it.

Every organization has its politics, defined as the unwritten rules that actually determine how people interact successfully and move up and down within the organization. To sit in the dark and scream about "it's all politics" is just plain stupid. If you want to move up in the organization, learn the rules, then follow the rules.

In my, admittedly limited, experience, the rules of moving up in the refereeing world include the need to work hard, be up-to-date, go to camps, be seen consistently doing a good job, work games without regard to "playing politics", taking the games you're given with gratitude, doing things that make you stand out in a positive way, and impressing the "right" people. Oh, and there's this little thing about being able to do the job. IMHO, this is where you need to expend the majority of your effort.

If you really are serious about moving up, you'll make the changes in yourself required to work within the group's rules. If not, if you think you're somehow "above it all", if you think that changing how you do things is somehow "caving in" or "kissing butt" then you'll stay right where you are. And it will be politics that keeps you down. Or rather, it'll be your own bad attitude about or ignorance of the group dynamic that will keep you down. Or should I simplify that to simply say, it'll be you that keeps you down? The group isn't going to adapt to you.

So do yourself a favor. Stop whining about "politics" and find out what changes you really have to make to move up. Then go to work. Stop worrying about how fast or slow others around you move up. Stop worrying about whether you're getting what you think you deserve. Find out what you need to do in order to move to the next step. Then do it; and damn the torpedos!