We work in the same office, sometimes share the same work space and are together eight hours a day with those we work with, how can you keep from getting too personal? Maintaining good relationships with those you work with is essential in creating a great work environment, but there is that fine line of where sharing too much personal information may end up causing problems. How can you have good relationships at work without sharing too much? Keep your work life fun, simple and create personal boundaries that you do not cross. You can share a lot about your life, like hobbies, family and friends without going into too much detail. Learn to leave any serious personal issues at home and if someone asks if something at home is not going well, you can thank them for their caring interest, but state you would rather not bring it to work with you. Letting your coworkers know what you did over the weekend is great, just keep it light and share the positive highlights. Avoid discussing any negative issues about other coworkers or the boss, if you have problems at work with someone take your grievances to the correct person who is designated to help you with such issues. If someone comes to you and wants to share personal issues it is perfectly alright to let them know that as much as you care about them you make it a practice not to get involved in co-workers personal life as it can damage relationships and that is something you do not want to happen. Once you tell someone something personal or vice-a-versa there is always that chance that it will not stop there. Find common ground topics to talk about, like current events in our country or in your town. Helping one another out at work creates common bonds and allows for work related discussion about events of the day or problem solving. It is possible to be close to your coworkers and develop great relationships without being involved in each others personal life, even to the point of supporting each other during times of personal crisis, we can show caring without knowing specific details. This is a good topic for employers to talk about with their office team as sometimes it is hard for coworkers to have the conversation themselves. By understanding the danger of sharing personal information in the workplace everyone can then focus on building a positive environment where co-workers and employers can function without that added stress. Keeping relationships light and fun at work allows the team to work through the tough times easier and enjoy their co-workers more every day.
9/25/12
“Many hands make light work” John Heyword
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