They Praise You in Public, Plot Against You in Private: Chanakya on Office Politics

There’s a special kind of betrayal that doesn’t come with shouting. No slammed doors. No warning signs. Just a polite smile, a nod, maybe even a compliment. And by the time you realize something’s off, it’s already been done, your reputation, your credibility, or your peace… quietly handed over to someone else in the form of a “concerned message.” You’re not imagining it. These people exist. Chanakya wrote about them centuries ago. He called them “hidden enemies.” The kind who pretend to stand beside you while slowly pushing you off balance from behind.


If you were to choose between an evil person and a snake to keep company with, opt for the snake. Because the snake will bite you only in self-defense but the evil person will put a bite for any reason and any time or always.

• This isn't just about choosing the lesser evil. It's a warning: Some people weaponize civility. They don’t hiss. They document. They don’t argue. They escalate, quietly, strategically, and always in a way that leaves no fingerprints, only yours.

They act calm post-conflict. Say they’re “mature,” “solution-focused.” Meanwhile, they've already flagged your delay to leadership, with a timestamp, a screenshot, and a twisted summary of your words. You think the silence means it's over. It's not. The storm just moved from public view to private inbox.
They weren’t cool-headed. They were cold-blooded. They don’t fight back, they report. And while you were drowning in deliverables, they were polishing their pitch: “Just sharing this for transparency…”


Too much of anything is bad. One should refrain from ‘too much’.

• Overpraise is not kindness, it’s currency. The moment they praise you too much, assume they’re buying goodwill to later sell you out. The overly sweet are often secretly sour. They're not giving you credit, they're building your pedestal so they can kick it.

You’re suddenly a “great communicator.” Wow. You’re flattered. Until you find out that came right after they forwarded a message where you “Came off a bit too confident" and “misses the larger picture” to cover for them. They’ll praise your leadership, when you’re breaking your back fixing a mess they created during what’s marked as “work from home” (Except it’s just leave in disguise).
Every week, different excuse, different days…it’s not a problem, it’s a pattern. They dump their work. You stay late. They party. You patch holes. They’ve mastered the corporate equivalent of “you do the group project, I’ll do the presenting and take the A.” Except they get the salary hike too. Because you’re too busy surviving to play strategy. And they? Strategy is the work.


Learn from the mistakes of others…you can’t live long enough to make them all yourselves.

• This is about spotting patterns before they become your downfall. They don’t just make mistakes, they script them into sob stories. And you? You become the villain in their redemption arc. The smart move isn’t sympathy, it’s strategy. Watch and learn… or be the next “learning.”

Their targets aren’t met? Oh, it’s because they’re planning a wedding or or the stars not aligning. They need a raise, they’re “struggling emotionally.” Meanwhile, they’re the ones trying every wrong move in the book, then dramatically whispering to the right people how someone else could be a ‘stronger fit’ than you. Basically plotting your exit like it’s a corporate thriller. (Too bad they still flop.)
They don’t lack skills. They lack ethics. They’re not bad at work. They’re good at blaming the world for it. And framing you as the one “acting distant lately” while only sharing parts of the story that serve their script. It’s not incompetence, it’s weaponized vulnerability.


There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth.

• This is not introversion. It’s calculation. Some people don’t want connection, they want control. They reject you just to later rewrite the story as rejection by you. Their isolation isn’t pain, it’s performance. And you’re just another prop in their solo act.

You tried. Invited them for lunch. Made space during breaks. Sent the memes, started the conversations, extended the hand. They declined. Politely. Repeatedly. Then came the complaint: “I feel left out by the team.” Funny how silence can later be framed as exclusion. Funny how opting out becomes your fault. Some people don’t reject connection, they store it as evidence. They’ll isolate themselves, then turn that isolation into a story where you’re the villain.
Because sometimes, it’s not about wanting to belong. It’s about wanting the power that comes from claiming you don’t. Because while you were planning team dinners, they were plotting a narrative where you look like the clique and they look like the outcast hero. Reminder: When no one seems to get along with someone, ask yourself, is the whole team the problem… or is this person just good at the solo martyr act?


The biggest guru mantra is: Never share your secrets with anybody. It will destroy you.

• They borrow your time, your trust, your tactics and leave you bleeding success you built. They’ll laugh with you, but leak your weak moments when it’s time to climb. With them, every overshare is ammunition. Every secret is leverage. And you? You were just their shortcut.

This is the person who always "forgets their wallet," laughs at accents, gossips when people leave the room, and never shows up when the real work begins. They talk big. Do little. Call themselves the “hardest worker,” They’ll pretend to be the overburdened perfectionist, while you’re picking up their slack on weekends. They’re not building a career. They’re building a brand. Off your back.
They get the credit. You get the burnouts. They know how to use people, as favors, as shields, as stepping stones. They don’t want to grow with you. They want to leap over you.

Just because they smile doesn’t mean they’re kind. Just because they compliment you doesn’t mean they don’t envy you. And just because they act unbothered doesn’t mean they’re not quietly burning your reputation at the backend. This isn't drama. This is survival.
So watch the ones who hug the tightest and talk the softest. They’re not being kind. They’re being careful, with their mask. Chanakya saw this coming centuries ago. And you? You’re finally seeing it too.