Perception

Being a hard worker is not always the best thing for your career.  What I've found among office politics is the fact that you have to learn to play the political game, and play it well.  You also have to socialize well in order to be perceived as a team player.  Keeping your head buried in your work, effectively completing your job, can ruin your chances for advancement if others complain about it.  It shocks me that the business world prefers to award those who play the game well rather than award those productive workers who don't have time to socialize.  It is what it is.  You just have to know how to manage others' perception of you along with working hard.  Once that is done, the sky's the limit!