You have to build a base of power without anyone showing you how to do it. The dynamics of politics are conflict, compromise, and change. The political world is charged with the passion and the drama of community building. The time horizon is so different for staff. Long term associations are difficult to build on conflict.
Harmony is more conducive to building relationships and problem solving.
Compromise and negotiation are appropriate for making choices about values. But cooperation and continuity are essential to run the long course. Politics and administration are really different ways of thinking, and someone needs to translate in order for the partnership between council and staff to be effective. In council-manager government that person usually is the city manager. The city manager must take the passion of politics, the stories, the conflict, and disparate thinking of the council and translate them into problems to be solved and policies to be developed in order to productively engage staff.