It's All Politics: Winning in a World Where Hard Work and Talent Aren't Enough

From "It's All Politics
Like business in general, politics is not a spectator sport. You cannot afford to be apolitical at work if you have any aspirations for advancement. The only way to avoid politics is to avoid people--by finding an out-of-the-way corner where you can do your job. Of course, it's the same job you'll likely be doing for the rest of your career.
In any job, when you reach a certain level of technical competence, politics is what makes all the difference with regard to success. At that point, it is indeed all politics. Everyday brilliant people take a backseat to their politically adept colleagues by failing to win crucial support for their ideas. Sometimes politics involves going around or bending rules, but more typically it's about positioning your ideas in a favorable light, and knowing what to say, and how and when to say it....
Keep in mind that people benefit from perpetuating the image of politics as something you either know or you don't. Ignore them. Political acumen is largely learned from observation. And then it's a matter of practice, practice, practice. When a journalist suggested that golfing great Gary Player was very lucky, he replied: "It's funny, but the more I practice, the luckier I get." The same is true of politics.

An indispensable guide to mastering the ins and outs of office politics--the single most important factor in getting ahead in your career
As management professor and consultant Kathleen Reardon explains in her new book, "It's All Politics, talent and hard work alone will not get you to the top. What separates the winners from the losers in corporate life is politics.
As Reardon explains, the mosttalented and accomplished employees often take a backseat to their politically adept coworkers, losing ground in the race to get ahead--sometimes even losing their jobs. Why? Because they've failed to manage the important relationships with the people who can best reward their creativity