Rat's Skills: Making Friends and Betraying Them

A cynical, satirical breakdown of the unspoken tactics used by corporate climbers — dubbed 'rats' — to advance their careers through politics rather than competence. The post outlines eight concrete 'rat skills': talking without saying anything, finding scapegoats, reading between the lines, inventing obstacles, identifying resource owners, making friends at all costs, abandoning self-respect, and embracing incompetence. The author argues that genuine technical talent is a liability in large organizations, and that the path to the top requires fully committing to political maneuvering and betrayal — or accepting you'll be used as a stepping stone by those who do.