In today’s hyper-connected, highly technological workplace, co-worker relationships are more important than ever. A recent Gallup poll found that 30% of employees have a best friend at work, and these employees are seven times as likely to be engaged. They’re also better at engaging customers, produce higher quality work, and exhibit higher levels of wellbeing.
Here are four easy ways to create camaraderie.
Listen up. Dale Carnegie’s 7th Human Relations principle is to, ‘Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.’ An easy way to improve camaraderie is to simply lend an ear. Some people just need to get a few things off of their chest. By actively listening, which is a sign of emotional intelligence, you can better understand your co-worker’s predicament and offer words of wisdom.
In his best-selling book, How to Win Friends and Influence People Dale Carnegie wrote, “You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” Listening to what co-workers have to say demonstrates that you are interested in—and care about them. While listening is a little act, it pays huge dividends in terms of building trust and camaraderie. Sometimes people just want to vent vs. find a solution, so listen up to determine whether they want your advice or just need to vent.
Offer to help a co-worker when OOO. Everyone knows how stressful taking time off from work can be whether it’s to vacation or recover from an illness. Offering to help cover for your co-worker while he or she is out of the office shows that you care about the person instead of being competitive with them. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “The only way to have a friend is to be one.” Think about how you would like a co-worker to help while you are off from work, and offer similar support. As a bonus, the next time you are out of the office, you most likely will have someone to willingly support you.
Value others’ time. Everyone is limited on time, so make every effort to attend meetings promptly and prepared. Should a discussion or meeting end early, avoid filling the time with superfluous conversation. If you surmise that an email would address the reason for scheduling the meeting in the first place, send an email with the necessary info and close with an offer to discuss further if need be. Showing that you value others’ time reinforces trust and respect, hence improving camaraderie.
Express humility and appreciation. Dale Carnegie’s 2nd principle is to, ‘Give honest, sincere appreciation.’ Showing gratitude has been proven to garner affection, demonstrate humility and even improve a person’s well-being. Being honest about your own limitations helps build strong bonds with co-workers because they see that you are humbly self-aware about your shortcomings. Asking for their help and thanking them for it demonstrates that you are open to their ideas and reinforces mutual respect.