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It is known that a friendly atmosphere and warm relations in the team have a positive effect on the work efficiency of all company employees. After all, we spend more time at work than anywhere else. And of course, each of us wants to feel comfortable and calm there. You can always share your problems with work colleagues, as well as just relax and talk about interesting topics.
However, office friendships, in addition to positive moments, can be the cause of many problems in the workplace. Dr. Jan Yager in his book "The power of friendship and how it defines our lives" carefully analyzed this question and came to the conclusion that office friendships can have both positive and negative sides.
Positive aspects of office friendship
Warm and friendly atmosphere
Now, managers of many companies are putting a lot of effort into creating favorable conditions for their employees (corporate, collective recreation in nature, financial incentives, bonuses for good work). It is also very pleasant to go to work thinking that there you will meet friends with whom you can chat and drink a cup of coffee during the break.
Support a friend
It is not always possible to find a person in the team who would be able to selflessly help you in solving any work problems. But if you do have such a friend at work, that's great! He will always come to the rescue and help out in a difficult moment. Such a friend can honestly and openly tell you about your shortcomings and give you sound advice, or cover up if you need to go somewhere, or you are late for work.
Many people get good jobs or promotions on the recommendation of their friends. There are also companies that develop incentive programs for employees who recommend their friends for vacancies.
Staying informed of all events
People who are isolated in the team, do not have friends and do not communicate with colleagues, are usually deprived of the necessary information about the company's affairs. If you have friends at work, you will always be in the know. A friend will always be able to tell you a lot of interesting and useful things. You will receive information about upcoming awards, inspections and other important events in the team.
Warning about problems
It's no secret that various force majeure situations can occur in any work process. And when something goes wrong, and you are threatened with serious problems, a friend will always warn you about it.
In this case, you will always be able to think through your actions in advance and assess the situation.
Negative aspects of friendship in the work team
Outside conversations during working hours
I always want to talk about abstract topics with my work friends. But if you spend all your working hours talking to a friend, it will certainly have a negative impact on your productivity. Especially if you work at a computer, type or do something that requires attention, accuracy and speed.
Ambiguity of management's attitude to friendship
Management is usually ambiguous about friendship in the team. Of course, he is satisfied when everything is calm in the office, there are no gossips, quarrels and quarrels. However, it treats friendships between subordinates with great caution. According to most managers, the office is not a place for friendly meetings and friendly communication. They believe that the most important thing for employees is efficient work and increasing the company's profit. And any kind of friendship is just a waste of precious working time.
In addition, the management perfectly understands that employees who are friends with each other can always cover for each other if necessary. And also hide any information from him.
Unreliable friends
It may happen that the secrets you share with each other become the property of other employees and management. So think before you talk about something with your friends. Also, do not rush to share your attitude towards management. Any of your secrets can become known to the entire team and nothing good will come of it.
Conflicts and low performance
It often happens that even the closest friends have arguments or conflicts over work issues. It can be a desire to get the same job, and dissatisfaction with the amount of wages, as well as unequal treatment by management. And as a result - disputes, clarification of relationships and reluctance to go to work. All this can have a negative effect on the efficiency of the entire team.
After all this, the question arises: should you have friends at work? Of course, you need to make friends, communicate with colleagues, and try to maintain good, warm relations with everyone. However, we should not forget that there is a certain ethics and subordination in relations between employees. It is also not necessary to share your innermost thoughts and secrets in the work team.
