I got a friendship request from one of my co workers, we’re cool at work and seem to relate well. But is it really advisable that I become their friends on social platforms?
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I got a friendship request from one of my co workers, we’re cool at work and seem to relate well. But is it really advisable that I become their friends on social platforms?
I consider work to be a bad place to try to make friends for; work is a competitive place in the same way school is, except that at work, everyone is playing for keeps, or at least for their paycheck. coworkers generally prefer to keep others at arm’s length, lest they be facing off against their buddy for a promotion, or to be the one who doesn’t get axed in a layoff. People love to talk, this is not to say one can not/should not get a regular friend at work. Some of my better friends are coworkers & former coworkers. Just know that it’s not typical though, the best way you can tell they are a real friend: the friendship lasts after one or both of you leave the company. -and that person is not a factor as to why you are no longer working there.
It really depends. In a corporate environment, you have to be careful. Often snakes wear suits in this part of town. I personally wait until I no longer work with a person before adding them to social media. If you truly can’t wait that long and think your bond is strong enough already, wait at least 1 year. You don’t know what could change before then. I have this policy because I’ve met some snakes in suits. Sometimes people can’t differentiate work and play. Sometimes they mix up the definitions of professional and personal. In one job I had, I wasn’t very popular because I was doing my job without performing any personal favours. I treated everyone the same, regardless of whether they were my friends or not. And some people took that the wrong way. So much so that they printed posts from my Facebook feed and showed it to management. Those posts referenced stressful times at work without mentioning the company or any names. Needless to say, they definitely weren’t getting any personal favours out of me after that!
In a corporate environment, you just can’t tell what a “friend” will do until you’re no longer working together. If you are truly “friends”, your relationship will transcend the boundaries of work. If not, it’s a good job you’re no longer working together, isn’t it?