We spend 40 per cent of our daily life at work. The rapport we share with our colleagues often affects our competency. Make sure your relationship with your co-workers is pleasant, so you can stay focused on your success and goals. Every day when you return home, you are often asked, “How was your day at work?” It’s just not courtesy that people ask you that question. It’s because our professional relationships are directly proportional to your peace of mind and efficiency. A bad day at work can spoil your well planned evenings with family and friends. Just keep the following points in mind to make sure you build a successful professional relationship with all your colleagues. After all, every relationship needs hard work.
BE A PEOPLE’S PERSON
Be approachable. Make sure your colleagues feel comfortable approaching you with any queries that they may have. Be a good listener and hear them out. Do not jump the wagon and give out your expert opinions without giving an ear to the problem. Help them out if you can and most importantly don’t question their ability to perform. Especially if you are a senior worker, mentor your juniors and guide them patiently. Remember, all of us have gone through the ‘first day at work jitters’. Communication is the key. Sharing experiences and talking about how to help maintain teams’ rigor will help you be the go to person for your colleagues.
GOSSIP MONGERS, LOSERS
How many times have you been in a situation where something you have said has put you in trouble? That’s the result of negative gossiping. Actually there is nothing called negative gossiping. It’s plain vileness. Use your time productively. What your colleague’s boyfriend bought for her or if they have fought, is not your business. You can listen to your colleague’s emotional ranting but don’t go back to others and gossip about it. Talking about someone without their knowledge is not the right thing to do if you are looking to succeed. Sooner or later, your co-workers will find out that you are the cupid of rumours. Securing their trust should be your top priority. Office politics as they call it kills the team work and affects the entire office’s energy. Negativity has never helped career graphs. Stay away from it!
LOVE AFFAIR AT WORK
At the end of the day we are humans with emotions and feelings. It’s not in your control if you end up falling in love with your boss or a co-worker. What’s in your control is the way you handle the love affair. It may get difficult to draw a line between personal and professional life in this case. Learn the art of segregating both the aspects of life. If you are in a relationship with your boss, do not boss over your colleagues because you are romantically involved with your boss. Most importantly, please keep those steamy cabin or pantry sex for your bedroom. It may look interesting on screen, but in reality it breaks your career pyramid. For years people will talk about your sex tales at work and word of mouth spreads faster than light. Avoid being a topic of discussion.
DON’T COMPLAIN
Complaining about the errors your colleagues make to the management is just not the right thing to do. It will make things worse. Try talking to your colleague first and figure out a way to solve the problem. When you complain to your boss, in most cases he or she will advise you to go back and speak to your colleague. Why try gaining brownie points with the boss? Use the energy helping your team member instead.
APPRECIATE OTHERS
If your team member has done well, do pat him or her on the back and appreciate the efforts. It motivates one to work harder and they will strive to do better which will help you maintain the organisation’s productivity targets. This is where you can talk to your boss. No harm in diverting your boss’ attention towards a good team player. A lot of people take credit for others’ work and that’s professional plagiarism. Keep away from it!
