Franke James is Editor/Founder of Office-Politics.com and Inventor of the Office-Politics® Game.

Peter R. Garber has worked as an HR professional for over 25 years and is the author of many business books including: Winning the Rat Race at Work and 100 Ways to Get on the Wrong Side of your Boss.

Dina Beach Lynch, is an Ombudsman, Author and former attorney. An award-winning mediator, Dina served as the Corporate Ombudsman for the 7th largest bank in the US helping over 48,000 employees to resolve workplace issues.

Dr. Rick Brandon is CEO of Brandon Partners. He has consulted and trained tens of thousands at corporations worldwide, including Fortune 500 companies across a variety of industries.

Dr. Marty Seldman is one of America's most experienced executive coaches. His 35-year career includes expertise in executive coaching, group dynamics, cross-cultural studies, clinical psychology, and training.

Arnie Herz, is a lawyer, mediator, speaker, author and consultant nationally recognized for his practical and inspired approach to conflict resolution and client counseling.

Dr. John Burton LL.B. M.B.A. M.Div. Ph.D. is an ethicist, mediator, lawyer and theologian. John is currently located in Prince Rupert, B.C., Canada, working with Canada's aboriginal communities.

How come hardworking honest and focused individuals always lose out to pathetic scheming inefficient people and their clout?

October 2005

Dear Office-Politics,

Just going thru your website. Just one question --- how come hardworking honest and focused individuals always lose out to pathetic scheming inefficient people and their clout? I bet every person facing office politics is the simple hardworking guy who enjoys his work. Do managers go blind when they sit in the manager's chair?

Stunned

Dear Stunned,

Yes, there are difficult people and situations. How to avoid being "the victim" and find your way to success is the reward of empowerment. You need to stand up for yourself and learn how to communicate your frustration in an effective uplifting way. It sounds like your current strategy is not working for you and will keep you in a rut for a long time.

If you want to get out of your rut, I recommend you read the books "Non Violent Communication" by Marshall Rosenthal and "Emotional Intelligence" by Daniel Goleman. Both books are groundbreakers and will advance your life in an amazing way.

Write back after you have read the books and let me know how it turned out.

Thanks for writing to Office-Politics.

Arnie Herz

Arnie Herz, Esq.
Author, LegalSanity
Attorney at Law