What are your strengths and weaknesses in terms of political competence? How does political skill relate to power and empowerment? Is political skill something that should be cultivated? Explain. If you were to develop greater political skills, what would be the most ethical way to do it? Effective political skills play a vital role in personal and professional manners. My questionnaire results revealed that I am relatively strong in networking skills -7. When it comes to Social Astutenenss-5, I got a rather low score. Conversely, in interpersonal influence and apparent sincerity, my scores were rather high. At work, I am in contact with people perceived as important. There have been instances where I have used networks to complete projects and tasks. Likewise, I enjoy developing relationships and networking with colleagues. I tend to be passive-aggressive. When I'm in an extroverted group, I tend to take a more introverted stance. In this way, my level of social intelligence is rather low. Sometimes my ability to influence others is not effective. Because of these introverted behaviors, there is a certain level of discomfort associated with knowing what to say. However, I am often not fully aware of the motivations and hidden agendas of others. I tend to think the best of my colleagues and don't easily recognize that people have hidden agendas. However, I pay very close attention to people's facial expressions, feelings and emotions. By doing this, people say I make them feel comfortable and at ease. In general, people like me and I am seen as a trustworthy person. In this way, my interpersonal influence is high. I'm really interested in other people. My colleagues believe that I am sincere and authentic. I have an apparent sincerity when I communicate with others. Conger describes empowering others as an art. Additionally, empowerment is the act of strengthening an individual's beliefs in their sense of efficacy. Empowerment involves addressing and influencing people's internal beliefs. Research has identified four ways to provide empowering information to others: 1. Positive emotional support during experiences associated with stress and anxiety. 2. Through words of encouragement and positive persuasion. 3. By observing the effectiveness of others, in other words, by having role models of success that people identify with. 4. By actually experiencing successfully mastering a task. (Conger, JA, 2010). Political skills should and can be cultivated. In my experience, my superiors who demonstrated strong political skills were able to achieve more.