10 Ways To Build Stronger Friendships While Working Remotely
It's 2020, and remote work has taken over the globe. For some companies, remote work has been implemented long before the pandemic. But for the majority, working remotely has been a sudden transition that is taking a while to figure out.
And for someone who is a new hire at a company, the idea of working from home can be daunting. Many questions might arise. How am I going to get onboarded? How will I get to know the team? How will I be able to socialize at work?
Friendship at work is one of the most important factors for most employees. 60% of employees are more likely to likely to stay with their employeer if they have friends at work. And overall, people are more productive and creative when they work with people they consider their friends. Yet, only 15% of employees say that they have "real friends at work".
And with with remote work becoming more prominent, making true friendships at work is most likely going to decline. I think this is a problem, as some of the best times of my life have been with people I consider some of my closest friends who I also happened to meet in the workplace.
But have no fear, there is hope! Working in a remote environment doesn't have to be a lonely and isolating experience. There are ways that you can still connect with your teammates, get to know them, and share incredible experiences. Here is our list of 10 Ways To Build Stronger Friendships While Working Remotely.
1. Schedule time to have 1 on 1 video calls with your teammates.
Your team might already facilitate something similar to this, but if they don't, it's a great idea to get some "face time" with your teammates. Having some one on one time with a new teammate is a great time opportunity to talk about anything other than work.
Don't be afraid to email or DM someone with an offer to grab a "virtual coffee" after work or on your lunch break. More times than not that person is going to be open to hanging out! 2. Find online games you can play with colleagues.
3. If you have other colleagues working remotely in the same area, try and schedule a meetup in the real world.
4. Get to know your teammates better by asking interesting icebreaker questions.
5. Check in with others, often! You can do this by simply sending a DM or Email to people once a week, consistently. When you listen to how other people are feeling they are going to feel a stronger connection to you.
6. Make sure you take time to step away from your work!
7. Talk to your manager and see if they can help in any way.
8. Create open office hours that your team can use to drop in and talk to you during the work day. A great tool for this is https://remotehour.com/.
9. Get competitive and challenge your teammates to complete goals or any other competitive activity. Competion is a great way for people to bond!
10. Remember, the most important part is to keep a positive attitude and others will naturally gravitate towards you!
Thanks for reading! Remember, remote work might make getting to know your teammates more difficult, but it doesn't mean it's impossible