The workplace is where individuals grow to be mature working professionals molded by experience and exposure. Being such, the work setting is usually regarded as serious and businesslike. But people get more interested and excited in coming to work if the workplace also becomes an avenue of fun and good socialization.
Healthy and productive work relationships are not formed merely by plain daily conversation and working hand in hand on work assignments. There should be an element of interest among individuals to keep the spark of the relationship alive. People would want to look forward to reporting to work because there is a pool of nice and friendly individuals who make work a fun and exciting thing.
Part of creating high quality and healthy, meaningful relationships at work is to create a variety of socialization activities and creative ways of dealing with work. Also, working together as a team promotes a solid relationship among members. Your can try these relationship-building activities in your workplace and notice the positive changes in your people and the work atmosphere.
Small Group Discussion
Office meetings are common ordinary means of huddling a team together. So, a manager must schedule regular weekly or monthly meetings to update each other with the work progress and projects. There are simple variations in the way meetings are held. You can use it as an open forum session or a pep talk session for your members. This allows self-disclosure of individuals toward the rest of the colleagues. It also enhances open communication which is needed in a good relationship.
To break free from the conventional approach, meetings may be held outside the office. You can schedule it as a breakfast meeting, lunch meeting or discussion over coffee. And make sure to keep the atmosphere light, even if the agenda is grounded heavily on work matters.
In the meeting agenda, you may include some assignments for each member apart from the facilitator and the minute-taker. A sharing of experiences and realizations paves way for a better understanding of each other. Maybe someone can be assigned as an ice breaker to set a positive mood.
Celebrate Achievements Together
Nothing feels so better in your career than being recognized and acknowledged for your accomplishments. This even serves as a motivation of the employees to be better than what they already are and deepens their loyalty to the company. But what better way to do it than celebrate achievements together? For a successful project, delight the team to a rewarding treat. The feeling of being appreciated is more than enough to make work relationships stronger and better.
But this is not just true for achievements and successes. Even special events like an employee’s birthday is more fun when celebrated together in your office. Promotions also deserve a celebration. Throw off parties as a simple get-together.
A good strategy is to celebrate monthly company-wide birthday celebrations. Make sure that team participation is encouraged. When these situations are done together, people easily bond because they get to socialize even in the middle of work. The more you do things together, the more productive the relationships become.
Introduce Perks and Fun Stuff in the Workplace
Creativity in work relationships makes the connection meaningful and colorful. It breaks the dullness and simplicity of connecting with each other at work. Throwing off surprises on ordinary workdays invites individuals to get more interested and thrilled in coming to work.
In a team, you can assign an events organizer who will schedule the various perks and fun stuff every now and then, especially during times when pressure is building up due to a big project. You may want to come up with pizza Wednesdays or dress-down Fridays. The management can introduce a dress-your-office department contest with a specific theme.
There are many ways in building work relationships. Make sure that the activities you have come up with are beneficial for everyone and should establish a healthy connection with each member. Working is more fun when people enjoy each other’s company. This kind of environment in the workplace makes it easy for the organization to achieve the desired goals and success. But the best part out of it is the friendships that are made in your career.
