When you get along well with people, you’re creating positive relationships. And these can make a huge difference in your life and your attitude.
Managing Friendship in the Workplace
Family, co-workers, fellow students, team members, friends, supervisors, customers—think of all the people you talk to in your day. Making these interactions positive means respecting what others say and listening politely.
You can use these positives to:
- Make good relationships better
- Make new relationships easier
- Build trust
- Understand others better
- Accept others as they are
- Find win-win solutions
Paul works at the customer service counter of a building supply store. One of his tasks is to handle returns and exchanges. He sees many upset customers every day. Paul listens carefully, asks questions, and stays calm and professional no matter how angry a customer is. Paul often finds that his attitude rubs off on his customers. They calm down and are ready to work with him to solve their problems.
Like Paul, you can rely on respect and positive communication, even when dealing with difficult people or situations.
How do you work with others? We can’t always choose who we work with. But we can choose what kind of attitude and approach we bring to our workplace.
What do you bring to your relationships?
Check off the attitudes and approaches you bring to your relationships:
Respect
Respect is the foundation of the Golden Rule–treat others as you would like to be treated. We show respect when we:
- Value other people, their thoughts, and ideas
- Think of other people’s needs and feelings
- Show an awareness of how our actions affect others
- Treat the property and privacy of others with care
When you respect others, they tend to behave the same way towards you.
What are your relationship goals?
Setting goals for the relationships you have will help boost your positivity.
Think about what you would like to change in your relationships. Do you want to show more closeness with family? Show more respect in the workplace? Listen to others’ ideas more openly at home and at work? Note your ideas here:
When you write down a specific goal and the steps you’ll take to reach it, you’re creating a positive vision of your future relationships. Continue to improve your outlook by setting positive goals for your career and learning.