Getting along with co-workers can be tough, but there are ways to make it easier.
It isn't enough to just be well respected by your co-workers. You really need to make connections and build working friendships with the people that are on your team. Friendships with your professional peers can help you further your career, provide you with great references, give you information on new job openings and, most importantly, they make your work life more fun.
Even if you have a dream of an office where everyone gets along well and supports each other, it is probably not going to happen. See, in the rest of your life, you can pick your friends. At work, it is more like your family; you don't get to chose them and you have to do your best to get along with everyone.
If you are finding it hard to get along with your co-workers, here are 5 tips to, hopefully, make it easier:
- Make time for chit-chat – Office small talk is a skill, but it can grease the wheels of friendship and it is an important part of networking. If you aren't well versed in small talk, simply ask your co-workers about their interests and genuinely listen. Ask them for their advice or opinion on a project you are working on and actually take their feedback into consideration. This will make them feel valued and comfortable around you.
- Greet everyone in the morning – When you arrive at work, just smile and say good morning to everyone you pass. By the time you get to your work station, you might find that your smile is genuine.
- Participate in office sponsored events – If your office has a sports team or is planning a community outreach project, join in. These events are designed as a way for people who work in different departments to meet up and get to know one another. Being known for your “can-do” attitude doesn't hurt either.
- Don't be so serious – Office jokes and playful teasing are just a part of camaraderie. Unless a joke is particularly offensive, just laugh it off. Some people find it difficult to laugh at themselves, but everyone loves someone who can take a joke. Of course, if you feel that the teasing or joking isn't good-natured and makes you uncomfortable, you might need to talk about it with your boss.
- Keep your cool – At one particular job, I worked with a woman who irritated me to no end. I am not sure exactly why, as there wasn't anything I could really point at, but she drove me nuts. Every day I would resist the urge to just start beating her with the oversized coffee cup she always carried around. The only way I made the situation better was by trying my best to go out of my way to be nice to her. After awhile, she wasn't nearly as annoying. It's not that she changed, but more that my attitude had.
When you are building your professional network, it's important to have relationships with many other people who work in your industry, at your level. The easiest way to accomplish that is by making friends with your co-workers and treating them as important members of your team.
What do you do when you have a particularly annoying co-worker? I would love to hear your suggestions in the comments.
By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for TechCareersBlog. AlonRetailGigsg with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.
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