If it is a 1000 word article, I'd place the keyword 2-3 times on the article, and a bunch of partially matched keywords in the mix.
If it is the anchor text for the backlinks, I am able to use anywhere from 10-20% exact match anchor text without issue, and the rest are either partial match or unrelated like click here, read more, etc.
If exact match anchor text is too high and is affecting you, just stop building links using exact match anchor text, and build either partial match and unrelated, and that will dilute your exact match anchor text ratio.