It pays to build good relationships at work

It is necessary to have an amiable relationship because chances are that you will one day need their urgent assistance. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Had it not been for colleagues who came to my aid and completed my work for me, I would not have been able to meet my deadlines.
  • In the long run, it pays to grin and bear their unprofessionalism because you never know when you might need them, as unhelpful as they are.

The last three weeks have taught me just how important it is to invest in a cordial relationship with colleagues.

No doubt, this is a trying period for organisations as they fight to keep afloat in an economy ravaged by Covid-19. For the first time, most companies are having their employees work from home, a measure that has not been without hiccups, as every new challenge portends.

My first two weeks of remote working were frustrating, thanks to persistent network and system hitches that made it almost impossible to do any work.

Had it not been for colleagues who came to my aid and completed my work for me, I would not have been able to meet my deadlines.

It is then that it occurred to me just how important workplace relationships are — I realised that though you need not be bosom buddies with your workmates, where you hang out after work or get invited to their children’s birthday parties, it is necessary to have an amiable relationship because chances are that you will one day need their urgent assistance, and when that time comes, you will bank on them picking up your phone call.

Several times in those two weeks, I called around seven colleagues who, thankfully, readily came to my rescue, never mind that they had their own deadlines to meet.

VALUABLE CURRENCY

Had they not picked up my calls or declined to come to my aid, I would have had no other option but to go to the office to complete my work.

Working from your living room is certainly not like working in an office setting. Before Covid-19 came and challenged how we do everything, especially work, all I needed to do was walk to a colleague’s desk to bounce off a story idea, consult, or ask for a potential source’s number.

To do that now, you have to call or text or WhatsApp, hoping that the person on the other side will respond speedily.

If you get along, they will respond, but if you don’t, it is highly likely that they will sneer and let their phone ring out as you hope in futility that they will pick up.

That “good morning” I said to a colleague as I walked to my desk, or the polite chat about the weather I had with another at the water dispenser, or the helpful feedback I gave another has turned out to be valuable currency that I am cashing in on when the need arises.

It pays, I have learnt, to invest in your relationship with co-workers. Even the grumpy one that seems to always be in a bad mood needs to be handled with care because at the end of the day, he or she plays a role that somehow feeds into your role.

BE THE BIGGER PERSON

I deal with such individuals by refusing to react when they’re being difficult or unreasonable, by being immune to their grumpiness and waiting patiently for them to come around; they do come around eventually.

If they take too long to become agreeable, I look for someone else who can assist me rather than get into a confrontation.

Other than a nasty personality, I have learnt that these ‘toxic’ colleagues are probably going through a crisis in their life; therefore, it is important to cut them some slack.

In the long run, it pays to grin and bear their unprofessionalism because you never know when you might need them, as unhelpful as they are.

The writer is Editor, Society & Magazines, Daily Nation; [email protected]; @cnjerius