Studies show that the average person will spend about 92,120 hours at the workplace. That’s a lot of hours!
Whether you like it or not, your workplace is your second home and your coworkers are your second family. The least you can do as a responsible member of that family is to make sure you get along with everyone or, at least, avoid ruffling any feathers.
Want to improve your workplace relationships? Here are four ways to build better office camaraderie.
1. Invest In Coworking Spaces
Today’s workplaces are looking to go beyond the four corners of the office cubicle. Literally.
In the last few years, the interest in coworking spaces has grown tremendously. Companies from startups to established businesses (like Google, Amazon, and Apple) are eschewing traditional office setups in favor of more vibrant and collaborative workspace. Why? Because coworking spaces have been proven to increase productivity, creativity, and income and improve relationships among employees.
Gone are the days of the cubicle-dwellers and cordoned off employees. Get with the trend and encourage your coworkers to do the same. Chances are, there’s an office rental just around the corner.
2. Pay Attention To Your Lighting
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that poor office lighting leads to all sorts of problems. Research shows that bad lighting leads to low productivity, drowsiness, headaches, and–you guessed it!–bad moods. No surprise there.
Do everyone a favor and open the shutters. The more natural light you let in, the better people respond.
Can’t do anything about the lighting? Take your coworkers and visit the nearest office space for rent. The majority of co-working spaces offer lots of big windows for more natural lighting.
3. Resolve Conflicts Face-To-Face
Building camaraderie with your coworkers doesn’t mean that you should sacrifice honesty and integrity for niceness. In fact, if you’re being overly nice, you’re probably hurting your coworkers more than helping them.
Have a problem with someone at the office? Sit them down in private and tell them what’s up.
Most people will appreciate the fact that you’re being honest to them, as opposed to, say, talking behind their back. Sometimes the only way to solve a problem is to speak out.
That said, any form of speaking out should be done in private so that no one gets embarrassed or put on a spot.
4. Be Nice!
After five years of exhaustive research, tracking thousands of variables and observing hundreds of teams, Google’s Project Aristotle was able to uncover the secret of team success. Two words: Be Nice.
According to the research, the most successful teams displayed high “average social sensitivity”–which is a fancy term for empathy and picking up on social cues. In other words, Google found that the most successful teams were those that acted considerately and compassionately (read: nicely) towards each other.
Next time you’re tempted to go off on a coworker, consider that person’s feelings: Are they going through something? Was it just an honest mistake? Can the problem be fixed without resorting to painful words? Or…just put yourself in the other person’s shoes. Being nice is that simple.
Make the office a better place by actively building relationships with your coworkers, bosses, and employees. After all, you’ll be spending a good part of your time with them.