In college, friendships take on a whole new meaning. However, as time passes and we move closer to getting a job and establishing our own careers, we begin to miss those long conversations, drunken moments, wild night-outs, and college bunks.
It might be difficult to make the transition from college to a professional and career-focused phase when you first start working. Your office gradually becomes the place where you spend most of your productive time. And when nothing seems to be going right at your new job and life begins to feel monotonous, you start pining for your college days. That's when a work-bestie enters the picture, literally like a blessing in disguise.
Having a best friend or rather a very good friend at work can do wonders and significantly improve your work life. Your job appears to be a lot more fun right from the start when you have someone to chat to about your work life, share your career aspirations and dreams with, and can gossip about work and the little things going on there. So building solid relationships with your coworkers, even long-term friendships, is mostly always a good idea.
How Workplace Friendships Make You Productive
Workplace connections, as paradoxical as it may sound, might really increase your productivity. This isn't something I'm saying; it's based on a study conducted by Harvard Business Review specialists.
According to these studies, multiplex connections, which are fueled by having a large number of coworkers who gradually become friends, improved the employees' performance as rated by their superiors. People seeking advice could be one cause for this. It's much easier to ask for help if you have friends in the firm. As a result, you won't be seen as a poor performer if you do. Furthermore, having friends at work, especially in different areas, offers you access to knowledge and data through informal networks that you wouldn't otherwise have.
Benefits of Friendships in the Workplace
1. When people are friends with their coworkers, they are happier at work*
Having friends among your employees gives you the feeling of being heard and that you are not alone. At work, belonging to a group can significantly improve your mood and make you feel happy all day.
2. Friends at work support you in achieving your professional goals
Just telling someone about your goals can help you stay accountable and motivated to achieve them. Having a friend who can gently nudge you toward your goal when the opportunity arrives can spell the difference between dreams and achievements.
3. Your coworkers can be incredibly beneficial professional resources
A coworker can help you with career growth or networking activities, establish introductions, and promote your work in the office, on social networking sites, or through word of mouth. All of this can help you get the knowledge and experience you need to advance in your job. Imagine having a friend that is always willing to help you and open doors for greater opportunities!
4. Conversations with your coworking bestie can lead to creative ideas
When friendships are fostered in the office, they may transform daily casual, playful banter and discussions into creative conversations about how to help the team and the business prosper and grow. People can be more creative, exploratory, and constructive when they communicate with one another in a friendly manner.
5. Work buddies help you become a team player
A team with positive relationships among its members can accomplish more. For example, you will never consider your workweek as another ordinary week if you form relationships with your coworkers. Instead, you'll want to provide a hand to help the team attain its targets. Not to mention, happier teams are an important part of making a company valuable.
6. Having a friend at work improves your mental health
Your mental health significantly improves when you remove all of the drama and politics that typically accompany work. Taking short coffee breaks, going for brisk walks, and expressing your deep emotions will help you feel better and alleviate the stress from within.
How Employers Promote Workplace Friendships
Have you ever wondered why there are snooker tables, gym sessions, and coffee shops at offices? They not only help employees in taking a break, but they also encourage workplace connections.
Employers promote workplace friendships because they realise that it can help the employees become better team players who can contribute to the company's overall success. A company can encourage friendships and communities within the workplace using a variety of means, some of which are as follows:
- Creating employee-led support communities and groups.
- Encouraging actions of peer acknowledgement and gratitude.
- Increasing the number of projects in which people work together as a team.
- Participating in recreational and icebreaker activities with coworkers.
Are Workplace Friendships a Distraction from Work?
Not everyone finds their best buddies among their coworkers. And those who have found it have not always been able to make the most of their camaraderie.
Over-involvement in friendships can have a negative impact on performance, lead to frequent burnout, and even overwhelm an employee. Keeping friendships alive is a challenging endeavour in and of itself. As a result, the odds of becoming emotionally exhausted increase.
Workplace friendships will always have an impact on your job performance, whether positively or negatively. It may either raise your morale or detract from productivity, so choose your coworking buddies carefully, just as you would your personal friends and companions.
Now&Me Helps You Unburden All the Work Drama Anonymously
(Shhhh, your boss doesn’t have to know)
Finding an excellent work friend is no easier than finding your true soulmate, because gems are rare and tough to come by. So it's fine if you haven't found someone with whom you can be completely honest and unfiltered. Now&Me has got your back.
Wondering who we are and what we do?
Now&Me is a free community support network that is available to anyone. It's a safe haven where anyone may freely and anonymously express their emotions without fear of being judged. Release all of your work stress, talk about your daily challenges and mental health concerns relating to your work and career, and a kind and supportive community is ready to lend you a listening ear. So what are you going to tell us about your workday today?
FAQs:
1. Are friendships at work worth it?
Sometimes you meet the right kind of person with whom you can completely vibe and remain honest without having to think twice. Such connections, whether in real life or at work, are undeniably worthwhile.
2. How to manage friendships at work?
It's a mixed blessing to have a lot of multiplex friendships at work. You should be careful to strike a healthy balance between your work and socialising with your coworkers so that it does not negatively impact your work. Make sure your casual chat is productive rather than gossipy.
3. Should you be friends with your coworkers?
Yes, if you want to, then why not? Workplace friendships satisfy a basic human desire for companionship and are, to some extent, necessary. But if you feel there are emotions you need to let go of that you can't discuss with the people around you, Now&Me is the place to be.