When a manager throws you into a last minute high stakes meeting, it can be more than chaos – it can be a deliberate power play. You might be generous and think it's just disorganised - but what if it isn't? So many times I've been put in at the deep end and I know of people who were hoping for me to fail. So in this podcast I walk you through what that looks like, how to tell if 'they' want you to fail- who this is likely to happen to and what you can do instead.

When someone has a go at you, deliberately - how should you react? Should you just walk away and allow them to get away with it or should you say something, and if so what? In today's episode I talk you through knowing when to say something back and when not to and it's not always when the dig hurts and makes you feel bad. Power plays are rife in the workplace and the best way to handle it is to know how to step back, how not to let a dig get to you and when to say something to redress the balance.

The innocent ask of ' will you just take the notes' is preceded by power plays designed to diminish your power- not always of course- but often enough I want to draw your attention to it. So in this episode of workplace strategist explains- I talk about how that innocent request is really a power play that once asked of you in public signals to others your lower status at work. This episode is for you if you are a team lead and upwards with some sort of formal power and if you're not, your eyes will be opened to what others will do to gain leverage over your power and status.

We all know that in the main a clique is not something we should go near as they have a negative reputation and can cause damage to your career. And yet, in order to know how to handle a clique, you have to get in on the inside, learn it's secrets and use that to your own aims. So that's what I did. I joined a clique, a particularly vindictive clique, learnt how it worked and worked out how to get out of that clique without retaliation. So in this episode I share with you the two types of clique to watch out for, one is safish to join the other is not, what to do when you want to leave and the three things you must not trigger when you do.

If you're a kind and caring person, willing to support and help others, then for the manipulator you're too irresistible to not manipulate. In this episode I share my story of being manipulated - why it was so easy for them to do so, and the 4 traps we all fall into once we fall for that sob story. In the workplace there are those who wish to use our skills for their ends- so watch out for the manipulators - those seemingly 'nice' people who we don't mind helping and supporting.

Believing “If I Just Do a Good Job, It’ll Sort Itself Out” Is Exactly How You Leave Yourself Unprotected Against Office Politics. When this happens People start seeing someone else as the authority on work you actually led. I share some of my personal experiences of others taking the credit for my work, my attitude to just putting my head down and why you really need to be okay with Office Politics

By the end of this episode you’ll have one rule, one micro-adjustment you can test over three meetings that immediately protects your reputation.

Have you ever been under attack at work? Has your character been up for question? When this happens it indicates that there are plays in the background that is designed to put you down to their benefit. So in this podcast I spill the beans on what to look out for when this is happening to you. I give you three markers that warn you if your character is under attack and then what you can do to slow this down or stop it.

Every single person has issues with people to get under their skin- and we think we can simply ignore it and when we can't we overreact and that's where the problem starts. In this episode I share how to deal with a petty person, why it's not doing the usual response that most people tell you to do- and a controversial part where I tell you what the real problem is - you're not going to like that part. But when you get past that, and realised the truth in what I am saying , then you can take back control and get to the place where the most irritating person cannot get to you again.

Have you ever been criticised by your boss- or should I say given 'feedback' which really was a personal attack or a tactless remark, but as the subordinate in this position you are expected to take it? We've all been there and it's not fun. So what do you do next- if you were anything like me you'd push back in some way, not arguing but explaining or justifying why you did what you did - only for that to make things worse. Now did you know why that made things worse? In this episode in a real story the professional was told he talked too much and essentially a slap on the wrist where the professional thought the opposite. Now here's the tricky part. Everyone and his dog would tell you to tell her where to get off, leave the job, be assertive etc etc and I'm here to tell you this is the wrong solution for the wrong problem. I explain what the real problem is and then give you the awareness to know then what the real solution is- and this is the way that mistakes, and mishaps do not have a negative effect on your career.

Have you ever had a problem that the powers that be simply refuse to take seriously and even when it's proven to be a legitimate problem they dismiss any liability or acknowledgement of it? Well it's frustrating and causes all sorts of issues. In this episode which I've nicknamed "The Weeds and the Workplace: What My Landscaping Nightmare Teaches Us About Leadership, Influence, and Retention" I go through all the ways leaders and managers can try and shirk their responsibilities for legitimate problems and still try and make you the villain of the piece. I share the tactics used and how they parallel the bullying and intimidatory tactics that bad managers employ. Now I've been bullied in the workplace and I've been dismissed- this is how they do it so if you're a manager - don't manage this way and if you're a professional - learn the signs to look out for and know you are not imagining it. Let me know what you think