“They only tell customers what they want to hear.” Or, “They really don't know much, but they're great schmoozers.”7 But those young managers who saw the same senior people up close and actually worked with them came away with a different story. They recognized, instead of political skills, an important ability to communicate with clients in a way that didn't threaten or irritate them but made them feel important. They saw an ability to bring together people from feuding groups. They saw an ability to synthesize points of view in ways that moved people forward. They recognized the skill
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