Election Day 2014: What Not to Do When Discussing Politics at the Office

— -- intro: While Election Day 2014 may help determine the direction of the country, the day after polls close and how you talk about politics at work might influence the future of your career.

Though the election results are on nearly everyone's radar today, depending on your office environment, some people may want to avoid talking about politics altogether. And in this world of deep political divides, if politics comes up, tread carefully, workplace experts say.

But passionate political junkies, one-issue voters and the apathetic can co-exist in harmony, with some of these basic etiquette rules.

quicklist: title: Don't rub it in text:

"Don’t make any heated comments about someone’s candidate," said Jacqueline Whitmore, etiquette expert and author of "Poised For Success: Mastering The Four Qualities That Distinguish Outstanding Professionals.

Keep your temper or enthusiasm in check, she said. Nobody wants to hear you high-fiving about how your candidate won, or another candidate lost. That goes for moping around, saying the world is about to end because so and so got elected or this party swept in.

quicklist:title: Guard your online reputation. text:

Employees should keep it inside the four walls, said Tom Gimbel, founder and CEO of LaSalle Network, a Chicago-based staffing and recruiting firm.

"Don’t take opinions online and go on a rant of either the company’s counter viewpoints or that of an employee," he said.

Whitmore adds that workers shouldn't post derogatory remarks on your Facebook wall about someone’s candidate choice.

quicklist:title: Don’t have the “my way or the highway” mentality. text: Although political talk is bound to come up, don’t try to sway your office mates to switch political parties, advises Whitmore.

quicklist:title: Keep a tight lip. text: Don’t start an argument, Whitmore said.

"Sometimes you just have to say, 'Let’s agree to disagree.'”

quicklist:title: Know when to walk away. text: Don’t subject yourself to a heated discussion if you don’t have something positive to contribute, Whitmore said.

"Employees, of course, need to be smart about it," Gimbel said. "They should consider who they’re opening the topic up with and should understand the office dynamic because every workplace culture is different. At the end of the day, a healthy workplace will invite a healthy debate. If there’s an intelligent argument to be made, then it’s okay to have these conversations in the workplace."

quicklist:title: Steer clear of sensitive issues.text:

Depending on your office, these issues many include same-sex marriage, legal marijuana, and religious topics, Whitmore said.

Employees shouldn’t get aggressive, either, Gimbel said.

"If the conversation is being brought up, it should be expected that there will be an opposing viewpoint and they should be open to hearing feedback and not take it personally. This again depends on the workplace culture," Gimbel said. "Not every company will be the right environment to host this type of conversation. They should first understand their surroundings and see whether or not their coworkers are talking about it. If not, they probably shouldn’t pioneer the discussion."

quicklist:title: Keep an open mind.text: "You may learn something new by listening to others’ viewpoints," Whitmore said.

There’s a difference between good and bad water cooler talk, Gimbel added.

"Why not substitute the gossip with an intellectual debate? Embrace the election and challenge a debate around it," Gimbel said. "It changes up the day-to-day and creates a fun dialogue that’s intellectually stimulating."