No, this is not a second coming of Niccolò Machiavelli. It is just that sometimes it is prudent to take action to remove powerful opposition – for all the right reasons.
When this is on the agenda with coaching clients, what we are doing is evolving a clear strategy and plan of action to substantially shift power towards them. This means that others will lose a significant amount of power when my client succeeds. Which means, the stakes are high.
If you think this is something you should do, bear in mind the main pros and cons.
Pros
- Move more quickly towards your goals.
- Reduce negotiation and consultation time, effort and resource.
- Minimise challenge to your plans.
- Consolidate / increase your power and influence.
- Minimise future disruption.
Cons
- Someone is going to get hurt, and it may be you.
- Loss of respect/credibility with those left behind.
- Creating enemies out of opponents.
- Entrenching opposition, unwilling to negotiate.
- Fanning the flames of political activity.
- Making other people more wary of you, especially peers and superiors.
- Missing the opportunity for a bigger long-term win through collaboration.
Proceed with Caution
If you do think this may be the way to go, you need to be very careful. In particular:
- Keep Quiet: Share your ideas only with your most trusted friends and mentors. You are contemplating taking drastic action with high stakes, so it may be useful to have an element of surprise available to you.
- Options: Make sure that you have fully evaluated all of the options, such as collaboration, consultation, negotiation, etc. That doesn’t mean you have to actually try all of these things first. What you need is a clear analysis fed with accurate political intelligence.
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- Ethics/Motives: You also need to check in with your own sense of right and wrong. Many will regard such dramatic action as wrong. In some situations, it may end up with your opponent being fired, losing their livelihood, or worse. So, at least in my book, you have to be clear that you are doing it for the right reasons.
- Political Analysis: Inevitably, you will proceed with an element of uncertainty. However, you need to work hard to make this as small and insignificant as you can. You’ll need to be able to predict responses and head them off.
- Manage Expectations: In particular, engage with your senior level supporters, advocates and mentors to take their counsel. Then be sure to keep them in the know as you proceed. Their support could be vital.
- Plan Carefully: An element of flexibility is required. Make sure you have all of the mitigating and contingent actions in hand or ready to be deployed.
- Minimise Harm: Causing unnecessary suffering is not a good idea. In the short-term it may help you move faster, but in the long term you will end up suffering. Even if you have removed an opponent there will be plenty of witnesses remaining ready to stick the knife in.
- Manage Communications: Get ahead of the game and make sure you have this area planned out. How are you going to message what you did and why? Who are you going to communicate this to and when?
While it would be easy to say that this is not the way things should happen, the fact is that these things are going on all the time – because they get the job done.
Providing you are only doing it when absolutely necessary, you work hard to minimise the personal consequences for those affected and are working for the good of the organisation, it ticks all of my ethical boxes.
If you need to know how to do this while managing down the risks, just get in touch and let’s talk (email now).
Colin Gautrey
Provocative Coach/Mentor | Specialism: Impact and Influence
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