All posts by Nancy Halpern

Nancy Halpern is a nationally recognized leadership consultant and pioneer who diagnoses political dysfunction in organizations. Leveraging thought leadership and intellectual capital from over twenty years of client engagements, Nancy helps companies find solutions to the most intractable of problems – office politics. Her client list reflects her adaptability and love of business including The World Bank, Credit Suisse, Disney, Bank of America, Guardian and Novartis. Nancy has been interviewed by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Forbes, Fast Company, Inc., The Financial Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Huffington Post, National Public Radio, ABC and NBC News. She holds an MBA from Yale U., BA from Brandeis U. and additional undergraduate study from Oxford U.

Mastering the Unwritten Rules of the Game: Political IQ – by Nancy Halpern

Many of us begin new jobs with hope, enthusiasm, commitment and drive. And then something happens. We come up across obstacles we struggle to navigate. Bosses we thought were champions go silent and become unavailable. Colleagues who should be supportive thought partners seem to be hoarding information and have no time for us.

It’s easy to blame ourselves, and even easier to blame someone else. But the truth is, it’s bigger than that. When people are brought together, they inevitably compete for limited resources. The problem is that resources are always limited whether it’s additional headcount, a promotion, a manager’s attention, or a runway for your new idea. And that competition is the definition of office politics.

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