Importance of relationships in the workplace
Many full-time employees spend more of their waking hours with co-workers than
they do with their spouses and families. With such a large amount of time being
spent at work with co-workers, it seems only fitting that a good relationship with
the team would be advantageous to all involved. As such, it is vital that individuals
within any organization feel connected and supported by peers, subordinates,
leaders, and allow employees the opportunity to build quality relationships with
their co-workers.
Benefits of working in a team gives everyone a chance to explore their strengths
and exchange helpful information, since everyone has a different asset they can
bring to the table. What you have learned from your individual experience is
entirely different from your coworkers, which helps maximize shared knowledge
and blend complementary strengths. When working as a team, it is important to
acknowledge that you came to success as a team, instead of individually. “We did
it” instead of “I did it”, because although most of us like to believe that we are
independent, we are all inter-dependent.
Relationships in the workplace are a byproduct of two primary factors:
interaction, how often two people connect and communicate, and relatedness, or
how much two people have in common. Relatedness cannot be discovered without
some degree of interaction for obvious reasons; if two employees never interact,
they never have the opportunity learn about their common interests.
Here are some reasons why it’s important to develop positive workplace
relationships.
1.
When people get to know each other well, they start to establish trust and respect
for one another. So when you can trust your coworkers, you’ll start to rely on each
other for innovative ideas and to collaborate on important tasks. Reaching out to
your coworkers and offering to help them, it will make them return the favor
when you need it, and this way, teamwork is established!
2.
Being more connected with your coworkers will help you find a greater
satisfaction in your job. Over time, this can lead getting a promotion for example,
so those positive relationships will be even more important. Building positive
workplace relationships is great component of being successful in your career and
you don’t need to be completely extroverted in every situation, but you should
make an effort to get to know the people you work with on a daily basis.
3.
Although you are at work to do a job, it will be a much more pleasant and fulfilling
experience if you enjoy the company of the people on the team. Happy employees
work harder and are naturally more productive. Being more engaged in your work
and more connected to those around you, you will try harder not to let your
coworkers down. And they’ll work just as hard not to let you down.
But, like in every situation, there has to be a disadvanatge as well.
Workplace friendship also come with costs, the biggest perhaps being distraction.
Impromptu discussions and extended breaks for socializing may slowly steal time,
making it more stressful to complete work when we are focused. Having friends at
work could also trigger a higher rate of emotional exhaustion; keeping up with
more and deeper relationships could be tough. Those relationships can also be the
source of stress when new opportunities, like promotions, present themselves. It’s
much more likely that we’ll feel envious of people we’re close to.
Overall, the positives of having a best friend at work appear to outweigh the
negatives. By approaching it thoughtfully, managers and individuals can tip the
scales toward even greater gains. If done right, business can benefit from being
personal.
From my personal experience, every workplace that I’ve had was different, the
environment, the people, the energy. My goal was to get along with everyone, but I
am not the best when it comes to making really strong friendships, even though my
perspective changed a bit over the years. My main focus was my work, just getting
the job done, and going home, not as much interacting with my coworkers. I could
see them chatting and laughing together, making plans outside the workplace, but I
was never interested in those things and I was just trying to keep it professional
by simply being friendly, not friends with my coworkers.
My biggest fear was to reach out for help from my coworkers. Asking for help was
difficult, it would make me question my own abilities, sometimes create anxiety. I
was never reaching out to anyone, I would just take the matter into my own hands
and figure it out myself. For some reasons, I was perceiving the request for
assistance as a sign of weakness. I did not want to bother anyone, and I did not
want to be perceived as incompetent or lazy,even if it was a struggle to come up
with a solution to my problem, I would much rather have it that way than simply
asking for help..But I realized that the stress brought by this kind of setup can take
a toll on my productivity and mental and physical health and this affected me and
the workplace negatively.
Nowadays I tend to be more open and get to know my colleagues better. I realized
it could feel encouraging to have someone at work that you could talk to, exchange
ideas, or open up about your life in general. By collaborating with my co-workers,
I gained more knowledge and insight,which totally flips the idea that asking for
help makes you look weak. It made my job less stressful at times and gave me
more motivation to work. I realized how important it is to stay engaged with the
person helping me trying to solve a problem. Watching what they are doing, asking
questions and taking notes I learned how to tackle the same issues in the future
situations.
As a fun fact, The Great Work Study showed that 72% of people who receive
awards for their work ask for advice, help, insights, and opinions from their
coworkers. In essence, asking for help and advice creates better, stronger, more
successful results than not asking for help.
Fortunately, I have never had a bad experience with someone at work until now but
I know that it is possible to encounter a colleague who I won’t be able to relate to
as much and the reality is that not all work relationships will be sweet and rosy but
I think that with a little effort they can be workable.
In conclusion, it is important to realize that a working relationship is different from a
personal relationship. All jobs require interaction with others at some point and even
though the relationships you build with colleagues and managers may not be as intimate
as those you have with family and friends, they are nonetheless crucial.
*Friends can act as a support network, which has a positive effect on mental wellbeing
while also opening doors to new career opportunities and contacts