Working with friends or family can initially seem like a great idea. After all, if you already get on outside of work then it’s natural to think that you’ll have fun working together. However, many people quickly discover that working with friends or family isn’t always plain sailing – particularly if you already work with other people.
The main problem is that we all adopt different personalities depending on whether we’re at work, at home, or socialising with friends. So it may come as a shock when your friend discovers that the happy-go-lucky person they know from the weekend is actually a stressed workaholic during the week. And when working with family members it’s common for roles to be reversed which can be challenging. For example, you may have to give orders to an older brother or sister who may not be used to seeing you in a position of authority.
There are some tactics you can use to help:
- Recognise that potential problems could arise and plan how to handle them
- Treat the whole team equally – don’t make special allowances for friends or family
- Be professional, if working with a parent refer to them by name when at work rather than ‘mum’ or ‘dad’
- Don’t gossip about work in your spare time – you might say something you later regret
- Don’t take advantage of the generosity of friends or family, for example by asking them to work longer hours than other staff
You’ll find more information about dealing with workplace relationships at: www.mindtools.com