21 Dirty Tricks at Work: How to Beat the Game of Office Politics

From the very first days of reading, this book seemed as though it was being written from the situations happening right before my eyes. Every daily subsequent reading seemed to have eerie parallels to the antics that I and others were dealing with in my work environment. This material has profoundly enlightened me to a way of thinking that I could never resolve in my own mind; simply because I don't think in the way of the manipulators. At every turn by the masters of deceit I had difficulty with how to understand what happened behind the scenes and deciding what my next move should be to turn things around. I had often said with many turns of events "It's bigger than all of us" with no real resolve or appreciation for the gravity. But my eyes are definitely open now. If you struggle on a regular basis with understanding what goes on in peoples minds that drive the counter-productive company politics that perpetuates constant turmoil, YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! I feel like someone has finally thrown me a life raft; no exaggeration. I am now on a mission to get this information into as many worthy minds as possible. Look out all you Machiavellian-types, it's time the tables are turned on who you are and what you stand for! - Man on Fire, 2008

Thinking that the only thing you have to do at the office is good work is naïve. Every company has people who will stop at nothing to further their own agendas. Hiding your head in the sand (or behind your computer screen) only makes you an easy target. Instead, learn about the common dirty tricks played in offices and protect yourself from becoming a victim. To outmaneuver the manipulators, getAbstract recommends reading this clever, short introductory course on office politics. Organizational experts Mike Phipps and Colin Gautrey have done the research for you, identifying the most common and insidious dirty tricks, and outlining strategies for putting up your defenses or, when appropriate, confronting the attackers. Oftentimes, simply exposing the trick reduces its potency and sends the perpetrator scurrying back into the shadows.

If you only read one book on office politics, this has to be it! Unlike so many other titles this avoids generalization and provides clear guidance on what to do about specific tactics used by others to get ahead of you. Absolutely packed with great questions that you can use straight away.

I must've read a stack of "office politics" books before I got to this one. All the bits and pieces of useful information I managed to collect from the total of them were covered in the first chapter of this book. This gets straight down to business. The dirty trick and how to counter it.