Building positive relationships in the workplace
29 May 2019
Did you know that according to research, people who have a best friend at work are up to seven times more likely to be engaged in their job? But, it doesn’t have to be a best friend. It can even just be a colleague that you have a good relationship with. Effective interpersonal relationships form the foundation for success and satisfaction with your job and career. The fact is, work relationships can positively and negatively affect your job satisfaction level, as well as promotional opportunities, pay increases, and goal accomplishments.
This isn’t only true for employees, positive work relationships are vital for the success of managers too. No matter your experience, education, or title, if you can’t get along with others, you will never accomplish your work mission. You see, when you build positive relationships, you become more comfortable and are less intimidated by others.
A lot of people struggle with building strong workplace relationships. But, with these simple tips, you should be able to improve your workplace relationship-building skills quickly and efficiently.
Speak positively about the people you work with
Whether you’re a junior-level employee or the person running the show, it’s important to form a habit of speaking positively to those you work with, as well as about those you work with. You wouldn’t believe how often the information that is shared gets back to the person who is being discussed. As a manager, you don’t want an employee to hear via word of mouth that you’ve got a problem with them. As a colleague, it would also be detrimental to your working relationship with that particular person. If you want to build good work relationships, don’t contribute to office gossip.
On the contrary, people love hearing positive things that are discussed about them. It’s a great way to build trust and will make that person more open to communicating with you. Positive feedback also encourages employees to progress in their work and makes them feel like a valued member of the team. If you’re a manager, you can use Mark The Job to help you to complete formal employee evaluations.
Encourage others to become involved in your activities or projects
If you’re a manager or an employee and need help, ask for it. It’s important to recognize when you are in need of extra resources and to utilize the resources that are available. More likely than not, your colleagues will be more than happy to help you out when necessary. The best part is that working together on a project is a great way to really get to know each other. As a manager you will get greater insight into the strengths and weaknesses of your employees and also have the opportunity to connect with them on a more personal level.
Share more of yourself at meetings or casually in the office place
A great way to build relationships is to let others know who you are. As a manager you can start off by saying a little about yourself and then asking employees to do the same. Sharing your knowledge, expertise, and personality at meetings will make you more approachable and help in the process of building strong relationships.
Another way to do this is to pop into a co-workers office during the day and chat a bit. Start off by greeting them, ask how there weekend was, or ask about their family. These are some great conversation starters and can be very beneficial in building relationships.
Support and appreciate others
Show your appreciation whenever someone helps you out and offer your support to your co-workers. If they’re working on a new project, ask if you there’s anyway that you can get involved. This will help to form a closer connection because you are working directly with them and helping them to achieve their goals.
As a manager it’s extremely important to be supportive of your employees. You need to let them know that you are there to help and offer them guidance along the way. Employees form stronger working relationships with managers that they know they can rely on.
Participate in activities with others that don’t involve work.
If you really want to get to know your colleagues on a more personal level, and build an even stronger relationship, you can socialize outside of the workplace. Once you’ve got to know each other at work, you are likely to discover that you have similar interests. This may lead to some outside work activities that will strengthen your relationship. Whether it’s going out for lunch or joining a paint class, this is a step towards a friendship outside of work, and will help to strengthen your work relationship too. As a manager, you could organize to go for lunch with your team occasionally or participate in an activity that interests the whole team.
At the end of the day, no matter if you’re a manager or employee, positive working relationships are essential for career and job success.