10.15.06
Declare war on your enemies: The Polarity Strategy
I’ve started reviewing Robert Greene’s 33 Strategies of War. Those of you who know me know that I’ve read each of his 3 books (he has another old book on philosophy that isn’t the same sort of instructional guide, and I haven’ read that).
There have been a couple of recent events which inspired me to review the book. Most especially some of the politics going on at the office. When it comes to office politics, I have a sort of love-hate relationship. I am a technical contributor at heart. I view politics as an obstacle to technical accomplishment. Therefore, when I play politics, it is usually to counteract a political environment, so I can get the best technical solution accomplished. I just happen to usually believe my solution is the best technical solution out there (why would I settle for a sub-optimal solution from myself?).
So anyway, the topic above is the first of the 33 strategies. The lesson is to use polarization to focus your energies (and those of your allies) against a single enemy, as a motivational tool. Identify your enemies and do not equivocate on their status. With that in mind, I’m keeping a mental list of the people I would consider my enemies at work. Not that they are actively seeking to bring misfortune to me, although in at least one case I believe that to be so, but some of them simply stand in the way of my vision of how we ought to do things.
