When You Work With Friends There Are No Benefits!
I learnt this lesson way too quickly and it’s worth learning for everyone! You can absolutely not work with friends, relatives or people you share a social life with and sometimes I cringe at the thought of my management education which failed to teach me these important lessons.
When I had to start up forming a team of committed writer’s who would share in the love for writing and help me create that dream team, I made a big mistake and offered this opportunity to my like minded friends. To top it all I expected them to understand exactly why it is so important for me to have them on board!
With these friends on board I had an amazing team of really committed people who wished the best for me, but there was a tiny issue; they are not suddenly going to start listening to you and you can’t scream at them beyond a point can you? Those things dont happen between friends, so this sudden change will take time to sink in, if they do that is!
Eventually all conversations started becoming strained and forced, the team’s performance suffered and my fondness for the person started fading away. Every person has a different attitude towards life and work and it is not necessary that every great friend will share in your madness at the workplace.
Especially accepting this reality is important in case you are a certified nut-case like me and need everything to be perfect and people to be punctual. In a way I realized that some where down the line the mistake was my own in expecting these people who I share my daily dose of fun and laughter with to transform into the performance oriented work only relations.
I don’t say that we can’t be friends with our colleagues; but that is an entirely different relationship which is platonic and mutually benefiting to our targets and salary slips as well.
With buddies when the walls of money and position come up, you can be sure you are in for doomsday right there. The ones who have always been your equals if suddenly become your juniors or seniors and that to very specifically in an organisational structure, it does impact a lot of things; your personal relationships and your professional performance included.
I think keeping whats personal with the right emotion and sentiment and whats professional in it’s correct position is what will ensure a fulfilling life on both fronts whattsay?
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