6: Politics of Power
There are various definitions of "power," and the concept is greatly misunderstood and misapplied. In one sense, it is merely the capacity to perform or act effectively; in another sense, it is the ability to dominate others to compel them to act against their will.
The first notion of power is positive: it focuses on personal capability and effectiveness in accomplishing things that are meaningful. In this sense, every person has power - and in hierarchical organizations, there is greater power among the lower ranks: people who do things have power, those who organize and direct their power have none.
The second notion is negative: it focuses on the ability to influence rather than the ability to achieve. A tyrant focuses on this sort of power - his desire to control surpasses his desire to achieve anything other than the dominion of others.
Left to their own devices, most people will use their power (in the previous sense) to accomplish meaningful things, and in order to exercise power (in the second sense), the tyrant must compel them to act in a way that is contrary to the accomplishment of meaningful things.
The author presents a quote from Aung San Suu Kyi (Nobel laureate for her work in promoting democracy in Burma): "It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it ... fear or the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it."
Methods of Power
The power a person has is derived from how much they control - and therein is the source of conflict. In a work environment, the lowest level of workers have power, by means of direct control, over the actions they take in their environment. The management has power only by means of indirect control, to encourage or discourage workers to act in certain ways, and to reward or punish them after an action has been taken, as a means to influence future behavior.
The basis for power between superior and subordinate are established by the organization's structure in terms of its hierarchy. The actions necessary to a business are grouped and categorized (operations, accounting, etc.) and then people are assigned to perform these actions, and others are assigned to direct and coordinate them.
(EN: I would say "culture" rather than "structure" as one drives the other, and it also provides the means of power: the "tools' by which a superior may encourage, discourage, reward, and punish his subordinates are defined and furnished by the organization as a product of its culture.)
The conflict between superior and subordinate over power derives from the subordinate's desire to act in an effective manner and the superior's desire to control his action. (EN: It's often not as sinister as attempting to interfere with employees taking effective action, but a different idea about which actions are most effective or which goals are more important.) When a boss wishes to control behavior, he uses reward and punishment; when an employee feels he is being coerced into ineffective action, he learns to work around the system in various ways.
The author touches on the notion of actual power being different from formal power. "Legitimate" power reflects the actual influence a person has. If may come from their position on the org chart, but it may also come from reputation, personal network, or other means.
A tyrant (mistakenly) assumes they have power that extends beyond that which is given to them by virtue of their position - but the power that is conferred by formal position and authority is extremely limited. Unless there is trust and mutual respect, the employee will not recognize as legitimate any form of influence outside of formal authority.
The author also touches on charisma: the ability of an individual to have influence over others without any sort of formal authority over them. Many leaders assume they have charisma, but it is purely the choice of the subject: you cannot compel someone to admire you; it is their choice to do so. It's noted that average-performing managers with high charisma attract a following of highly devoted subordinates - people seek to follow them, even if the other conditions are poor.
Sycophants understand the consequences of charisma (admiration) but not its sources. As such, they seek to gain charisma by trading in flattery: they show favor to subordinates who such up to them, and seek to gain favor by sucking up to their own superiors. Though generally, tyrants are more concerned for their own welfare (sucking up to their superiors) than having a positive influence on the employees below them.
Power also comes from knowledge and capability, and this is often the strongest form of power. A highly knowledgeable and skilled person has great personal power (the ability to get things done) and others will generally defer to them because of it.
The knowledge and power of the employee are a shield against the tyrant's attempts to control. Ultimately, the "star" performers in a given department are responsible for the effectiveness and productivity of the group, and the tyrant recognizes their value - and more importantly, knows better than to obstruct or offend them.
The micromanager presumes to exercise the power of knowledge, and employees resent micromanagement to the degree to which the micromanager does not have a legitimate claim to such power: that is, he directs them to do things they know to be counterproductive.
Tyrants will also attempt to withhold power by withholding information for the same reason: an employee who has incomplete information is forced to trust in the knowledge of one who has it - and in this way, the tyrant seeks to blind the worker, as a means to gain blind obedience.
Interpreting Power
Attributing power to people when it is not justified is a common mistake. An organization that rewards and promotes employees for the wrong reasons gives formal power to those who have not earned it, and do not know how to wield it. An employee who toadies to a superior who has not earned it contributes to the power of such a person.
Tyrants seek to exploit such mistakes: ultimately, the power he seeks is to compel others to obey him, and he feels that he has been effective when the do so, regardless of the reasons. He may, in fact, feel all the more successful when he can exercise power he has not earned.
A few examples are given:
- A boss who is abusive toward his subordinates believes that he has power over others who accept his abuse.
- A boss whose order is followed unquestioningly believes the he has power over others who refrain from pointing out flaws in the order
- A boss whose employees sit and passively listen to whatever he says feels he has power over others who withhold their input
- A boss who feels the size of his office reflects his power in the organizations feels that the trappings of power are influential
- A boss who can get things to which he is not entitled and has not earned feels he has the power of persuasion
Each of these behaviors is often accepted as evidence of power - but taken out of context, they do not necessarily represent or derive from having any real power at all.
Controlling Power Flow
Considering the sources of power and the way they can be misinterpreted gives an employee a "distinct advantage" when dealing with a tyrant.
As an employee, consider what your role is - and what it is not. Your personal power extends only to those things over which you have direct control and it is unreasonable to expect, or for others to expect, that you have power over anything that is not. This is useful in setting expectations according to those aspects of the job over which you will have power, and deflecting criticism over parts of the job over which you have no power.
As an employee, you can also attempt to target areas of similarity. You will likely not agree with everything a boss has to say, even if they are not a tyrant, but you can be attentive to and focus conversation toward those areas in which you are in agreement and demonstrate that you value mutual goals. (EN: This sounds reasonable, bit I expect that over-applying this concept is the way of the toady.)
It's also important to consider your associations: the peers with whom you choose to become involved. People often seek consensus to validate their own conclusions, and if you associate with and trust the opinions of those who themselves have a victim mentality, the more likely you are to adopt the same attitudes.
Exercise
The author provides another "exercise" that asks the reader to jot down notes about three situations in which they felt powerless and three in which the felt empowered, then consider the similarities between the situations in each category, and the differences between them.
It is expected that, by doing so, the reader will be able to identify factors and patterns of behavior that contribute to their sense of personal power, and to seek ways to leverage those actions that make them feel more empowered.