Imagine working in an environment that’s anything but friendly. It would be challenging to build meaningful relationships, concentrate on projects, or excel due to workplace troubles. Not getting along with those on your team affects every area of your work life, especially the work itself, which could end up costing you.
Whether you work for a remote company or walk into an office every morning, it’s crucial to build positive relationships with your colleagues. If you work fulltime, you’re required to interact with and be around them at least 40 hours a week. That’s a lot of time to spend feeling uncomfortable and disconnected from someone and won’t aid you in excelling in your career.
Let’s look at three ways you can build rapport with your colleagues so you can enjoy a better work experience.
1. Offer a helping hand
Building rapport is all about creating a positive connection with someone regardless of how long you’ve known them. Rapport creates space for people to meet and become comfortable around each other, even at work.
A great way to build positive relationships is to offer a helping hand to your colleagues when they need it. Too many employees adopt an individualistic attitude when it comes to their work. They only care about their own progress. If you can change this way of thinking and show your coworkers you’re all about teamwork, it’ll come back around to help you in the future.
If you know a colleague could use your help on a project or another work-related task, offer your assistance. It shows you care about others, want to watch others succeed, and have your best interests at heart. It encourages your team to get to know you better and they’ll see you in a positive light for being so helpful.
2. Ask questions
If you don’t like putting too much attention on yourself or don’t know how to steer the conversation, remember that people love talking about themselves. You can use this to your advantage by asking your colleagues questions about their lives and continuing the conversation based around them.
When you ask your coworkers about themselves, it shows them that you’re interested in hearing about their lives and you want to hear what they have to say. A lot of people have stuff on their chest they want to talk about but they don’t have many opportunities. If you present yourself as someone trustworthy who listens to others, it’ll be easier for people to share with you.
You don’t need to ask them super personal questions either, which may be inappropriate for the workplace. If anything, you can ask them about their work operations and what brings them the best results. Ask them how they created that website or increased revenue by 13 percent to get them talking about their accomplishments and steer the conversation in the right direction.
3. Get to know them outside of work
If you set a goal to know someone’s authentic self, meet up with them outside of work. It’s easier to have honest, genuine conversations when you don’t have to act professional and worry about your image.
Whether you go for a walk, grab a drink, or share a meal, open yourself to the idea of hanging out with your colleagues outside of the workplace. If it’s someone you easily share conversations and ideas with, then being around each other in a different setting shouldn’t be an issue.
Being outside of work takes the pressure off of both parties and lets you bring your most authentic selves to the table. It’s easy to break free of worries and restraints when you’re in a different setting with your coworkers. It’s also easier to get to know the real them that you may not always get to see.
Conclusion
If you want to excel in work, you must take the leap and get to know those you work with. You don’t have to be best friends, but creating positive, friendly relationships with your coworkers makes your life easier. It gets rid of uncomfortable feelings and helps both parties excel in their work endeavors. How will you work to build rapport with your colleagues?