Friends at work are different from friends we've known longer from different circumstances. We get together at the office, gossiping at the pantry, going for lunch together, or even going for drinks after a long day at work. But do work friends meet on the weekends? Do work friends get involved on a personal level as much as our other friends?
One of the most successful strategies of team building is by being on good terms with coworkers. This can be very beneficial to all employees involved as it can form a foundation of confidence to achieve work goals. Having friends at work actually can increase job satisfaction, performance, and productivity. Team members that get along even on a personal level tend to respect each other more, hence being able to work side by side better to boost engagement, improve cooperation, motivate employees, change the company culture itself, and generate higher quality of work. It's important to have great connections and trust with coworkers to work more effectively at work. Regardless of how draining the work itself can be, having a great support system at work would lift up our mood and also improve productivity.
However, not many people are that lucky to find work friends regardless of how much "team building" and "family culture" is being pushed as the company's culture. Some company culture can be very toxic, involving backstabbing, gossip, unhealthy competition, or mistrust, especially if these traits are normalized in the environment. It can be difficult to make friends if there's this fear of being backstabbed or ratted out to the supervisor, therefore some people prefer not to interact as much with coworkers.
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To increase engagement within a company, usually each team has their own form of team bonding outside of work. It can be celebrating one's birthday or having dinner together. But the question remains the same-does this type of bonding work for most people? There is no one definitive answer to this, as it's unwise to generalize since all companies have different work cultures and types of employees. Some people really do be friends with their coworkers outside of the office environment, hence team bonding outside of work is something they're looking forward to. But it can also be the opposite for others who prefer to just go home and end the day. Team bonding remains a necessity as it provides a space for employees to engage outside of work to improve teamwork. Once people know one another better, the relationship dynamic can be adjusted based on their personality to make work easier.
Not all people want to interact with people they work with outside of the office space, regardless how close they are at work. Work friends are still work friends, and to make them actual real life friends is a challenge itself for some people. There's competition and professionalism involved in work friendships, hence it's difficult to separate those factors when we interact with them. The topics in conversation usually revolve around work and its people, and when it's running dry, not many want to reveal anything personal.
Team bonding has its own pros and cons, but there's no harm in having such an event once in a while. It's nice to interact with people you work with that would understand your struggle since they might experience the same thing. Furthermore, they might know how the management works as they also work under the same company. Especially with recent circumstances where we're forced to work virtually, it's nice to socialize with coworkers in real life for a change of pace and not through the screen everyday.
