Ways of improving interpersonal relationships at workplace (Management-1 27March 2021)

Ways of improving interpersonal relationships at workplace:

 

1. Employees must communicate with each other effectively for a healthy relationship. Remember a problem shared is a problem halved.

2. Interact with your co-workers more often. Discussions must be on an open platform where every individual has the liberty to express his/her views and opinions. Written mode of communication is one of the effective ways of communicating at the workplace. Make sure your emails are self-explanatory and do mark a cc to all related employees. Ignoring any of your co-workers might hurt him and spoil your relationship with the individual concerned. Avoid hiding things from your fellow workers.

3. Even employees from a different team can be your friends. Talk to them. Greet them with a smile and a “Hi” whenever you meet them. An individual must not take things to heart at workplace.

4. Team leaders and supervisors should conduct morning meetings with their team members. Do not make the meeting too formal. The employees should be allowed to bring their coffee mugs. Let them interact with each other. Morning meetings go a long way in breaking the ice among employees and improving interpersonal relationships at workplace.

5. Do not favour any employee just because he is your relative or you know him personally. Favouritism spoils the relationship between superiors and subordinates.

6. Take your team out for lunch, picnics or get together once in a while. Let the employees bring their families as well. Ask your team members to exchange contact numbers amongst themselves for them to interact with each other even after work.

7. Greet your colleagues on their birthdays or anniversaries. Send them a nice e-card and do ask for a treat. Such small initiatives go a long way in strengthening the bond among fellow workers. Important festivals must be celebrated at workplace for employees to come closer to each other.

8. Individuals should be motivated to work in teams. Work must be equally allocated to team members to expect the best out of them. No employee should be overburdened. People working in teams are friendlier and adjust with each other better.

9. One needs to be a little more adjusting and compromising at the workplace. Don’t expect everything to be done just the way you like it. You will have all types of people around. Avoid fighting over petty things. Do not always look at the negative side of things. Accept people as they are. It is essential to look at the positive side of an individual. Being flexible at work always helps.

10. Avoid being jealous. Leave your ego behind the moment you enter the workplace. Appreciate if someone has performed exceptionally well. Remember only hard work and nothing else pays in the long run.

11. Stand by your colleagues when needed. It is only you who can create a healthy atmosphere at the workplace.

 

Tips to improve interpersonal relationship at workplace.

 

1. Do not treat office as your home. There is a certain way of behaving at the workplace. It is essential to be professional at work. Never misbehave with any of your colleagues. Leg-pulling, criticism, backbiting is a strict no. It is better to avoid someone you don’t like rather than fighting or arguing with him/her. Your office colleagues can be your friends as well but one must know where to draw the line.

2. An individual should not interfere in his colleague’s work. Superiors must formulate specific KRAs (Key Result Area) for all the employees and make sure job responsibilities do not overlap. Overlapping of job responsibility leads to employees interfering in each other’s tasks and eventually fighting over small issues. One should be concerned only with his work rather than trying to find out what the other employee is up to.

3. Give space to your fellow workers. Giving space in fact is essential in all relationships. Overhearing anyone else’s personal conversation is strictly unprofessional. An employee must not open envelopes, couriers or letters not meant for him. Such practices lead to severe displeasure among employees and eventually spoil relationships.

4. Do not spread baseless rumours at workplace. Even if you know something about someone, learn to keep things to yourself. Discuss it with the individual concerned in private rather than publicizing the whole thing. Organization has nothing to do with anyone’s private matters.

5. Pass on correct information to others. If your superior has asked you to share some information with any of your colleagues, make sure it is shared in its desired form. Data tampering and playing with information spoil relationships among colleagues and lead to confusions at the workplace.

6. Do not share all your secrets with your co-workers. You never know when they might misuse them. Even if you do, make sure you are doing it with someone you trust blindly.

7. Leave your ego behind. Do not bring your personal tensions to work. Think before you speak. Making fun of colleagues is something which is not at all expected out of a professional.

8. A team leader should not scold any of his team members in front of others. It might insult him/her. Call the individual concerned either to your cabin or conference room. Avoid comparisons among team members. The employees must be strictly judged according to their work and nothing else. Employees doing well should be suitably rewarded.

9. Stay away from nasty politics at workplace. Do not try to harm anyone. It is absolutely okay to appreciate someone who has done something exceptionally well. Avoid being jealous. It will harm you in the long run. There should be healthy competition among the employees for a healthy environment at the workplace.

 

Interpersonal Relationship Skills / Qualities

A strong association between individuals sharing similar interest and goal is called as interpersonal relationship. It is important to have trustworthy colleagues around at the workplace.

One needs to know how to interact with fellow workers. Let us go through some interpersonal skills an individual needs to inculcate for a healthy relationship with co-workers.

1. Stay positive at the workplace. Do not crib over small things. No individual on this earth is perfect. Do not always find mistakes in others.

2. Respect your colleagues. It is unprofessional to misbehave with fellow workers. An employee must behave in an acceptable way at the workplace. Maintain the decorum of the workplace.

3. Being rude to fellow workers spoils the relationship among employees. Remember the way you behave speaks a lot about your education, upbringing and family background. Be polite to everyone irrespective of his/her designation and income.

4. An individual needs to have effective communication skills (both oral as well as written) for a healthy interpersonal relationship at workplace. One must be careful about the pitch and tone of his voice. Never be too loud or too soft. Being loud sometimes is considered rude and being too soft signifies lack of interest in the other person. Choice of words is also equally important. Never say anything which you yourself would not like to listen. Avoid using slangs and foul words at the workplace. Communicate more through emails as they are considered to be more reliable as compared to verbal communication.

5. Be cheerful at the workplace. Smile more often. It works.

6. Make your fellow workers feel important. Show how much you care for them. If they have done something for you, do remember to thank them. The good work of employees must be acknowledged and appreciated in front of all. Being jealous does not help and in turn spoils your relationship with your fellow workers.

7. Stand by your colleagues at the times of crisis. Lend a sympathetic ear to their troubles and help them whenever required.

8. Wish your colleagues on their birthdays, anniversaries and important festivals. They would feel special.

9. Be honest to others. If any of your colleagues is doing something wrong, tell him on his face. It is better to be straight forward than spreading unnecessary rumours about someone. Criticizing and making fun of fellow workers spoil relationships and eventually turn friends into foes.

10. Be a patient listener. Listen to what the other person has to say. Understand the other person’s point of view as well before jumping to conclusions. Wrong perceptions of people lead to unnecessary confusion and misunderstandings.

11. Being trustworthy helps you gain confidence of fellow workers. Learn to keep things to yourself.

12. An individual’s personal interest ought to take a backseat at workplace. Your office has nothing to do with your personal life and personal problems. You have no right to shout on your co-workers. Learn to keep a control on your emotions.

13. Be a little more understanding and compromising to avoid unnecessary conflicts at the workplace. Put yourself in your colleague’s shoes before taking any crucial decisions.

14. Be nice and kind to everyone. Make sure you are not labelled as “brat”. Be a source of inspiration for others. Remember it is you and only you who can make a difference to the organization. Behave as a thorough professional.