I'm not going to launch into a discussion about all the types of Power structures at work.  I'm simply going to share a story about Strider – my little Chihuahua.

Strider weighs 10 lbs. and hangs around his big sisters – Loosha, a Rottweiler and Kayla, a Shepherd mix – who collectively outweigh him by about 200 lbs.  Still, he dares to steal the Rotty's food (actually he only tried this once), play tug with both of them, climb all over the Shepherd, pull at her tail and otherwise act as if he was the same size and had the same power.  In fact, he's a runt who could have his ass kicked by either of them if they chose to do so. 

While out and about on our walks he clearly uses his affiliation with these big dogs to show off. He growls at every other dog he sees and if they show the slightest aggression towards him, he backs up behind the big dogs and barks as though he were inciting a riot.  It's as if he's saying – "All right girls, I've got 'em right where I want 'em.  Now you take over."

The other day I watched him and I realized that over the years I worked with a number of people who were just like Strider.  Noisy, aggressive and brave, but only because they had a strong network of supporters who would come to their aid when needed.  Without the help of the big dogs these former colleagues would have had their asses kicked, too, but with the power of the big dogs behind them, they were free to further their personal agendas and goals.  They were very good at building a strong network of supporters.

Do you know who the big dogs are in your organization?  The ones you can stand behind who will come to your aid if you need them?  Approach them with a a good idea or two that could make them look good (positioning) and make a connection on some personal level (connecting) and you may have just extended your network of people who will be there when you need them. 

Think about it —

Linda