The Solution To It All

 

New Hire Fumbles Power Move!


Know what kind of power get things done effectively. Picture a new coworker, Olivia, fresh and eager, in fact a little too eager. Wherever she is she goes out of the way to please, cajole, or flatter someone, anyone to gain their approval and attention in order to push things through and get things done. It begins to be a point of note that this new coworker is getting too friendly and desperate to be liked and none of her projects are going through. This can’t really be that bad though could it?




Thenikscape, "Ai Generated Woman Work From Home", Pixabay, May 10, 2025, 
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/ai-generated-woman-work-from-home-9587009/


Ok, let’s talk about politics and not the red vs. blue kind. Work politics is the kind that applies the leverages of power to the workplace. How can you or anyone get anything done at work? By the correct use of nine power tactics. These can be remembered by the acronym PRICE CLIP:

  • Personal appeals
  • Rational persuasion
  • Ingratiation
  • Consultation 
  • Exchange 
  • Coalitions
  • Legitimacy
  • Inspirational appeals
  • Pressure coalitions

A Better Way to Leverage Power


Which ones was Olivia leveraging (or at least trying to?) There may be more than one. Which power tactics do you often find yourself using or trying to implement?




TungArt7, "Ai Generated Women Business People", Pixabay, Oct 14, 2024,
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/ai-generated-women-business-people-9116708/


It is not enough to motivate by personal appeals or ingratiation like Olivia as doing. There aren’t bad but there are better ways to use power tactics which experts find most effective. Ineffective power tactics are legitimacy, pressure, or exchange.  These are called hard tactics because of their abrasive effects. 


The Solution To It All


The best thing Olivia should have done? That's simple. Rational persuasion has been shown to be the gold medal in all around effectiveness with people both above and below you. The silver would go to consolation or inspiration appeals for those more below you. 

So the next time you want to move levers in your organization, remember the power tactic of rational persuasion.







This blogpost was created by Group One

Victor- I wrote the content of this blogpost.

Kate M- I helped with royalty free pictures and citations.

Kate S- I helped with design. 

Heidi- I helped with brainstorming.

Blake- I helped with proofreading.















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