Friendship in the office
Friend or colleague? But both, of course! Fortunately it is not only possible, but frequent ...
Did you know?
Think about this: "A friendship based on work is preferable to a work based on friendship", John D. Rockefeller Jr.
According to a recent sociological study, about 20% of our friendships are made at work. The world of work is therefore in second place, immediately after school and studies, on the podium of the places where we make friends.
7 good reasons to make friends in the office
1- We spend an average of 220 days a year at work, so all the better if we get along well with our colleagues ... whom we see more often than our partner, our children and our loved ones in general!
2- A good harmony creates an additional emulation to finish a practice and make progress.
3- It is so pleasant to go to work knowing that we will meet a friend. And it gives us more energy to get up in the morning!
4- With our colleagues we share not only a lot of time, but also common concerns, projects and desires. When we talk about it outside the office, the topic quickly bores our interlocutor, while our collaborators understand us perfectly, without the need to explain the context of what worries us.
5- Our colleagues often have many things in common with us: age, training, problems (small children ...), but also different experiences (trips, outings ...), so why give up on deepening knowledge, even beyond the coffee break?
6- The world of work can be cruel: public humiliations, refused increases and a heavy atmosphere. It may be useful to have a friendly shoulder to cry on on dark days.
7- The more time passes, the more difficult it becomes to widen your circle of friends: little free time, a family to manage ... So why deprive yourself of the opportunity to forge strong bonds with new people?
See also
What you need to know, however ...
1- This friendship will have to resist the pressure and feel bad about it: other colleagues can be jealous of your complicity, gossip can spread, especially if it is a mixed relationship, and the hierarchy may not look favorably on this alliance.
2- You will have to communicate without mincing words as soon as a problem arises. Whether it is an external or work-related issue, to avoid all discords that could harm your professional or personal life.
3- Be careful, especially at the beginning of the relationship. Avoid revealing all your secrets and private life to the colleague in question before you are sure you can trust him. This precaution will avoid disappointment or the feeling of having been betrayed in the event of a separation.
4- Think about setting some limits to still maintain a minimum of intimacy. Progressively introduce your colleague (man or woman) to your friends and loved ones, and don't systematically go out with him / her. Each must respect the other's territory.
5- Friendship resists ambition badly: the relationship can become thorny, when you are put in competition for a position or if the hierarchical relationships between you change. It's not easy to ask for a raise or be picked up by your super friend who has become the Big Boss!
6- By dint of being "best friends" in and out of the office, you risk isolating yourself from others. You don't even see other coworkers, who hesitate to disturb such complicity, and your friends may feel left out when you throw yourself into a business discussion.
7- The one who brought you together can separate you. It sometimes happens that an intensely lived friendship disappears in a flash as soon as one of the two leaves. You can understand at that moment that you had few things in common, outside the office.
