Office Politics

"Mike, control yourself! There are better ways of expressing yourself than slapping your boss. This is unacceptable..." said Oga Tayo

"What did you just say?! Un-what? No please, by all means repeat yourself and see whether..."

Mike was hysterical. As I sat there at the meeting, I wondered if he would ever be normal again. He graduated best in his class and was a stickler for saying the truth at all times. 

I remember telling him, when he just joined the company, to find subtler ways of passing across his point, but perhaps I am just a secretary and hence not smart to understand the game. While thinking of what other career options Mike might want to consider, his voice shot through my thoughts.

"Rita had been telling me and I didn't listen. She always said you all are vipers! And that the few who are good are spineless..."

Eh? Did he just call my name?! How did my name enter the matter o? See me...

"How can I work so hard and yet you won't promote me? See Tj that resumed after me, I mean I showed the guy what excel sheets look like   though you claimed he was a super-accountant, now he's my boss!! Five years and I've only been promoted once! Five good years. So after using me you all have the guts to promote Shade and tell me if I want to resign that I can??? How dare you...?"

I was afraid he would pull out a gun and shoot someone. His anger stemmed out of his inability to understand that his bosses were tribalists, and slept with underlings, and were biased and also had favorites. He just couldn't understand that corporate politics crossed every moral line drawn by man.

The company will move on even if he doesn't. His opinion on what is fair and what isn't won't count at the end of year party, his absence or presence won't remove the toothpick from my bosses mouth. Life will go on, as it always has.

To win, he must learn the game, and then beat it.

I have to go now, I mean I could give you the hot gist of how Oga Tayo is sleeping with both married and unmarried women, even Mike's wife but I'd save it for later. I have to run now and explain to my boss that Mike had just smoked something this morning and didn't know what he was saying when he called my name.