Why Work Friends Kick Ass

That right there readers is a big fishbowl. A big fishbowl of alcohol. And those people there with me (I'm the one in the black and white stripes) are a few of my very best work friends. Growing up I always had a really close knit group of girl friends (don't get me started on the "guy's girls"- i'll leave that for another day). We shared everything with each other. Literally everything - sex stories, love stories, mom stories, underwear, and anything else a person could share. I was close with these ladies through elementary school, high school, college and all the way through to today. 

When I first started working, I had a very strict "no work friends" policy. I felt odd sharing details about my personal life and what I liked to do outside of work. It just seemed... unprofessional and inappropriate. I guess it is the Bostonian puritan in me. That lasted for about four years into my professional career until one specific event happened. It was the departure of a coworker. Somebody that I admired, respected and cared a lot about.  

When this person left the company I wrote them a letter expressing my appreciation and thanking them for everything they taught me, everything they stood for and everything they were. To my surprise, dismay and embarrassment - the response was "Wow - I had no idea you even liked me".

whomp whomp.

And that, my friends, was a turning point.

I vowed from that moment on to, first, make sure people know when I admire them and care for them and second, to make sure that I open up a bit more to the people I work with every day.

Now, I have some of the best work friends a girl could ask for and here are some reasons why having work friends is bee's knees.

1. They understand exactly how stressful work really is. They really, genuinely do.

2. They have experienced, first hand,  the lunch thief.

3. You spend literally eight hours a day with them. Some days, that is  seriously more time than I spend with my husband. 

4. You work with them professionally and get to know them personally - that is a pretty well rounded relationship.

5. Laughter is the best stress reliever I know. Having people to just stop and laugh with during the day is completely necessary to survival.

6. Being part of a team and having camaraderie is pretty rad. How is that for engagement?

xx M