RECONNECT WITH YOUR WORK WIFE
How to maintain office friendships when you’re working from home
Put your hands up if you have a work wife. I have mine raised several times over. Work wives, company friends and colleagues that you can rely upon in good times and bad are the bedrock of happy employees – and profitable companies. But times are now hard for professional interactions. The majority of us are still working from home, separated from our work family and the hum of the shared desk, which means those quick, fun, Tv-from-last-night conversations get lost in the mix of back-to-back Zoom meetings.
This is a problem, because positive work relationships give you all sorts of professional freedoms. The more comfortable we are at work, the more confident we feel in voicing our opinions, brainstorming new ideas and getting behind change. Now though, we are being forced to work alone, so we need to work harder to find new ways to keep our team and colleagues close. Here’s my advice on how best to do it, because life and work are always better with others.
Identify your relationship Knowing what you require from your work relationships, and what others require from you, is a solid starting point. Instigate open conversations about each of your needs and become the conduit for reconnection.
Focus on your people skills Spend some time being objective about your ability to collaborate, communicate and deal with conflict. Brainstorm each word and be honest. When we notice our shortcomings, we can do something about them.
Remember to listen In a world that races at breakneck speed, it sometimes feels easier to speed through conversations – to do the talking and then be done. But when we really listen, it builds trust in others and we learn more about what is really going on.
Schedule time with others While it might not be possible to grab a coffee with colleagues, we can still put time in the diary to interact. Think of unexpected ways to connect: book clubs, wine-tasting courses and mindfulness sessions all work well. Or start a shared hobby; Strava is great for staying up to date with your team’s exercise plans, and use Linkedin to comment on each other’s posts. One-minute acts of kindness go a long way in today’s working world.
Be positive Positivity is contagious and people gravitate to those who make them feel good, so be that person as often as you can. Whatever is going on, however hard times feel, if you can lighten the mood or bring a brighter perspective, it’ll never be a wasted effort.
Appreciate, appreciate, appreciate Everyone – from the newest member of the team to those who are holding up the ceiling – wants to feel appreciated. Direct praise and honest recognition are so important, especially now, when we can feel a bit forgotten behind a screen. Make it your business to appreciate everyone you work with each week.
Avoid gossiping Office politics and nasty gossiping ruin workplace trust. Gossiping might feel frivolous at the time, but you’ll be undoing all of your good work if you exacerbate tricky situations and create animosity. Bonding with others does not rely on undermining anyone else.
Manage your boundaries Make time for others, but not too much time! Both in terms of time and energy, work relationships function best when we put some lines in the sand; company friendships can be amazing as long as we don’t share all of ourselves or all of our time. Always keep something back.