How good are your relationships with colleagues?
According to the Gallup Organization, people who have a friend at work are seven times more likely to be engaged in their jobs.
Ready to build stronger, happier relationships in the workplace?
People are naturally social – we crave friendship and positive interactions. The better our relationships are at work, the happier and more productive we are.
Some benefits to these great relationships?
- Work is enjoyable
- Changes are more easily implemented
- More innovation and creativity
- Freedom to focus on opportunities
- More room for promotion
These great relationships don’t have to just be with the people we work with direct each day. You want to extend them to the rest of your circle including customers, suppliers, and stakeholders.
There are several characteristics that make up these great working relationships:
Trust – This is the foundation. Trust is how you form powerful bonds that help you work and communicate effectively.
Mutual Respect – Value others input and ideas, and they will do the same. Working together enables us to come up with new ideas and solutions to problems based on collective insight, wisdom and creativity.
Mindfulness – Take responsibility for your words and actions. Don’t let your negative emotions impact people around you.
Welcome Diversity – When your friends and colleagues offer different opinions from yours, take time to consider them and factor their insights into your decision.
Open Communication – Open and honest communication is key to great relationships.
Schedule time into your day to build great relationships with coworkers and put into play the tips above if you are not already doing them.
For example, you could pop into someone’s office during lunch, reply to people’s postings on social media networks, or ask a colleague out for a quick cup of coffee.
The little things matter more than the big things in building relationships.
Everyone wants to feel appreciated. Compliment the people around you when they do something well.
Positivity is contagious. No one wants to be around someone who’s negative all the time.
Practice active listening when you talk to others. People respond to those who truly listen to what they have to say. Listen more than you talk and show you can be trusted.
Not everyone is going to be your friend and that is all OK, just be sure that your relationships in the workplace all work and are not negative and you will be in the bliss zone all the time and productive with everyone!
