Monday Motivation: Make Friends at Work
Do you have friends at work? Studies show that people are generally much happier in their jobs when they have friends at their workplace.
This week, it might be worthwhile to try to strengthen your relationships at work: have a laugh with a friend at work, and plant the seeds of friendship with a casual coworker.
Penelope Trunk wrote an excellent blog post about having friends at work a few summers ago with a list of steps to go through to make it happen. One of my favorites in the list is this:
Find coworkers with shared vision and values.
This situation is probably most common at a nonprofit like Project: Think Different: “Everyone is linked together based on a passion for what we’re doing,” says, Raipal. “We all have a strong desire to change messages in pop culture.”
CareerBuilder on CNN.com has a great breakdown of “the good, the bad, and the ugly” of friendships at work, and it includes this should-be-obvious note:
Don’t, however mistake these initiatives as an open invitation to socialize all day. Keep your friendships in check and remember… you are at work to work!
(Socialize a bit, of course, but turning the average workday into an excuse for an office party is simply not sustainable — silly picture I chose for this post notwithstanding.)
Perhaps you’re even luckier than most, and you not only have a friend at work, you have a best friend at work. USAToday.com has an article on the advantages for business when coworkers are best friends.
Best friendships are good for business. Companies are coming to discover that, yet are at a loss at what to do about it. Group-hug Tuesdays? That idea sends chills down managers’ spines.
As well it should. No one wants to be required to befriend coworkers. Yet there certainly are management tactics that can promote the environment needed for coworkers to find like-minded peers and become friends. From the same article:
Brian Le Gette, CEO of Baltimore company 180s, is a believer in workplace friendships. The maker of sunglasses, ear warmers and gloves has a young, active workforce, and the company sponsors employees in Frisbee golf tournaments and a charitable rowing competition called dragon boat races that had 22 co-workers practicing for long hours after work.
Is all of this old hat for you? Are you a natural at making friends in the workplace? Leave us a note in the comments and let us know your tips for establishing workplace friendships.
