Office politics can weigh heavily on the dynamics of friendships fostered in the workplace. Depending on your roles at the company, competition and jealousy over a promotion can jeopardize friendly ties with a co-worker — even if you thought you were BFFs.
As a good rule of thumb, it's always best to approach friendships at the office cautiously, but in many cases, co-workers easily become fast friends since they have so much in common. Still, despite coffee breaks and lunch dates, camaraderie at work doesn't always last. Many bonds formed within the confines of the office can be transient and easily threatened with a major — or even minor — shift in the office makeup. Layoffs and terminations, promotions, and even, an office affair are all things that have wreaked havoc on once-fond office friendships. So, tell me, have you ever had an office friendship go awry?
Photo courtesy of MTV
Luella
Paul & Joe
Aminaka Wilmont
I've avoided the issue altogether by not really being close friends with anyone at work. I just never really got close enough to go beyond just being acquantances, so that makes it easier to avoid sticky situations.
1Absolutely.. it was awful. You go from being great friends with a group, to being outright uninvited.
One girl came in, and thought that she should have my job. She wasn't qualified for it, and didn't have the expertise, but it didn't stop her from hating ME for having it. She bad-mouthed me, made up stories and turned the group against me. Says alot about the other people who I thought were friends too.
Oh well. After a while you get over it.. but it still makes things awkward in the office.
2It goes both ways, I'm still friends with people I meet at work over 20 years ago (including my husband) but was friends with others that didn't turn out so well. And it can make things awkward in the office. Now, I'm friendly but not great friends with the people I meet at work until one of us has left the company.
3I keep my office friendships in the office, and my outside friendships outside, and it's worked pretty well for me so far. Then again, I haven't really been in the work force that long.
That being said....if one of my friends ended up as my co-worker, we'd definitely set some boundaries, and make sure that we follow that so we can maintain our friendships both in office, and outside. Might be tricky, but it is possible!
4Post New Comment
Please share your opinion with our community, but make sure it is on topic and follows our Community Rules. We moderate comments and prohibit personal attacks, threats, spam, lewd images, or the promotion of your personal website.