Issue No. 3: Meditations on Power

On Acquiring Influence in Public Institutions

Power is perhaps the most misunderstood force within public institutions. Many imagine it resides in titles, offices, or signatures. Yet those who have spent long enough inside governments and international organisations discover another reality. Decisions are rarely shaped solely by those who possess formal authority. They are often influenced by individuals whose judgment has become trusted long before their position became senior. Junior consultants or staff who work for Senior Officials often end up wielding significant influence overtime. This is because their advice becomes more valued as they build their credibility. This is despite their institutional position.

Power should therefore not be understood as domination over others, but as the capacity to shape outcomes responsibly. Detached from integrity, it becomes manipulation. Detached from competence, it becomes theatre. Detached from service, it becomes ambition without purpose.

The reflections that follow are not prescriptions but observations gathered from institutions where policy, diplomacy, and politics intersect. They are offered not to encourage manipulation, but to illuminate realities that honourable public servants ignore only at their own expense.

I. Cultivate Credibility Before Visibility

The inexperienced official seeks recognition. The wise official seeks reliability.

The most influential people inside institutions are rarely those who speak most often. They are those whose judgment is sought before important decisions are made.

Promotion seldom creates influence. More often, influence explains promotion.

II. Study the Invisible Institution

Every organisation possesses two structures. One appears in the organisational chart. The other exists in memory, relationships, reputation, and trust. The first determines reporting lines. The second determines outcomes. The public servant who understands only procedure becomes an administrator. The one who understands people becomes a statesman.

III. Speak Less Than Your Knowledge Allows

Words are a form of institutional currency. Spend them carefully. Most meetings reward neither silence nor constant speech. They reward discernment. The individual who intervenes only when they can improve the discussion gradually acquires authority beyond their position.

IV. Become Indispensable Without Becoming Irreplaceable

Dependence creates resentment. Usefulness creates influence. Cultivate such consistent competence that others naturally seek your counsel. Power acquired through insecurity disappears with changing leadership. Power acquired through trusted judgment often survives every reorganisation.

V. Protect Your Integrity More Carefully Than Your Position

Treat everyone with respect, from your superiors to your subordinates. Never seek to make others weaker, intimidate or conduct yourself with an air of superiority. Intimidation may have been condoned by the famous Machiavelli in his novel, the Prince where he states that it is better to be feared than loved. I would disagree with that assessment in the modern era. While being feared might be effective in the short-run in terms of getting people in line, it does not lead to long term loyalty and may quietly breed resentment. If a leader, mistakenly attempts to intimidate the wrong subordinate, that resentment could eventually lead to his downfall. History has taught us that the strong do not necessarily win against the weak. Great powers often lose because they assume strength guarantees victory. For example, Napoleon lost the Russia campaign while he was at the height of his power. Russia refused to fight on Napoleon’s terms. It traded territory for time. Other examples include the Roman empire vs the Germanic tribes or the classic battle of Athens vs Sparta.

Every institution eventually tests its people. Not through dramatic moral crises, but through ordinary compromises. The temptation to remain silent. The temptation to flatter. The temptation to claim another’s work. The temptation to sacrifice principle for immediate advancement. Titles can be restored. Reputations occasionally repaired.

Integrity, once traded repeatedly for convenience and treachery, is seldom fully recovered.

The strongest form of influence belongs to those whose advice is trusted because it is known to be independent of personal ambition.

Closing Reflection

Power is not accumulated in moments of triumph. It is accumulated in hundreds of ordinary decisions that few people notice at the time. Every conversation, every memorandum, every promise honoured, every confidence respected contributes to an invisible reputation from which influence quietly grows. Those who pursue office first often spend their careers defending it. Those who pursue judgment discover that office eventually seeks them.