Communication Breakdown

It is not easy working in an office. Presumptions, politics, whispers and drama all run rampant. It is unhealthy and distracting; it deters employees and the company from success. Put the differences aside and work. Unfortunately, personalities often clash derailing the productivity of the department. Is it possible to work with someone without liking them? Yes, it is possible. Is it easy? No. Why? Why can’t personalities be set aside for the day to accomplish something?

It could be that it is human nature to be cordial, make conversation and get to know others. Throughout this process, people learn more and more about what they do and do not like, what they are good at, what they struggle with. This may lead to a friendship. Does this friendship benefit you or the company? Below I am going to outline a hypothetical scenario.

You start working at a new company and quickly are befriended by Scottie Joe. Now that you are friends with Scottie Joe who is an avid Backgammon player like yourself, you feel obligated to stick up for him. He is funny and shares a lot of common interests but is not great when it comes to completing his work correctly and/or time.

Great! You are helping your friend and coworker. You are teaching him how to do his job right. Wait, shouldn’t Scottie Joe know all of this in the first place. I mean, he was hired because he was supposedly capable of performing the job requirements. He also worked here for twice as long as you. Now you find yourself doing all of your friend’s work because you don’t want to see Scottie Joe leave. He has a family to support, bills to pay and Backgammon to play.

Just behind Scottie Joe sits Susie Q and you two never really saw eye to eye. She does not like the same baseball team as you, has political standpoints that irk you and God forbid does not play Backgammon. She does her job and does it one hundred times better than Scottie Joe. In fact, anything would be better than your friend Scottie Joe because he has gotten comfortable with you doing all his work.

I understand this is a silly example but who would you rather work with? I would choose Susie Q as an employer or an employee. We seek friendships and similarities with the ones we find ourselves around. A large part of that is superficial. Who knows? Maybe the more you try to learn about Susie Q, the more you will like her. She may be more intriguing than you initially gave her credit for. We all have to be more open to others and set the differences aside.

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