Handling an office breakup

Work relationships definitely bring a touch of joy to our career experiences. The days can grow long and dull and sharing a joke here and there with colleagues makes everything much lighter.

The problem comes in when you get too immersed and vulnerable in these friendships that a little conflict ends up getting nasty or noisy at the workplace.  

When work friendships are severed, this can breed a toxic environment that will ultimately slow down your productivity. If you find yourself in an office breakup, here are some tips to help you wade through the phase:

Don’t assume that everyone who listens to you is on your side. There are people who can come up with random stories and gossip about you when you were just innocently opening up about your issue.

You definitely don’t want to become the topic of discussion around the office so you should avoid exposing your personal struggles to everyone. If you have a friend you can trust, it might be okay to talk about it but don’t make it an obvious topic at the office.

It can be extremely awkward if you’re no longer friends with someone but still have to interact almost every day. They might even be stationed right next to you and this is so uncomfortable when you’re not on good terms anymore.

Unfortunately, there is not much you can do about that because that awkward phase is part of the healing process.

What you can do though is avoid making things more awkward by gossiping about them because they will one hundred per cent find out and possibly retaliate.

The bottom line is you didn’t come to work to make friends. Friends are an essential part of your journey but that’s not the main thing that brought you there.

Keeping this in mind will help you to take it easy even if things get awkward. If there is no possibility of reconciliation that is okay because your main focus is on your goals.

When this happens, there are certain mistakes that you might have made throughout your relationship that you can reflect on. Maybe you introduced them to your family too soon or you became romantic partners when that wasn’t the right move to make.

In future, you will know what to do and what to avoid now that you’ve been through this experience. Take the lessons and appreciate the wisdom you have now gained.

Holding grudges can destroy you and make life miserable for others. If you hold a grudge against the person you broke up with, you might end up making petty decisions that will cause unnecessary complications.

It’s okay to acknowledge that you’re feeling bitter about the whole situation but don’t go overboard.