Colleagues need to be able to work together for the best possible outcome. No matter what, you need to make sure that you are able to bring your team together in difficult times to be able to work with each other to meet their goals and deadlines.
A group of strangers is never going to be able to achieve this, whereas a team that knows each other slightly better might have more of a chance of success. Let’s take a look at some of the things you can do to build a positive rapport within your office’s team.
Ice Breakers
No-one particularly enjoys doing ice breaker activities, but there is no denying that the right one can be a lot of fun. By making sure that everyone is involved and willing to try things out, you will find that a natural camaraderie might spring up within the team.
Try to make these ice breakers as fun as possible. Simple games like Two Truths and a Lie could be all it takes to get people chatting amongst themselves and warming up to one another, but there are many other options you could choose too.
Try to find a game that will also get people up and moving, and make sure you add ice breakers into meetings where you can help keep things as lively and as interesting as possible.
Have Fun Outside Work
One of the most important ways you can build some sort of rapport with your team is to make sure that you spend time together outside of your regular working hours.
For example, one of the best places to start building some sort of relationship with each other can often be at office Christmas parties. Nowadays, these often include activities and other fun events that can bring closer together as a team. You could even try something like an escape room to truly test your teamworking skills.
Of course, there are also plenty of other opportunities for you to bond together. For example, you could look into starting a small sports team like 5-a-side football or a badminton club that meets at lunchtimes.
These are all small ways people can boost their relationships at work and start to potentially develop a friendship that could extend beyond the office.
Encourage Communication
Open communication is a must in any office environment. You need to make sure that you are always passing on information about various projects and other issues that might be coming your way as you work. Developing a rapport among colleagues makes this much easier to manage overall.
Some people can be reluctant to reach out for help at work as they can feel like a burden to their colleagues, and they don’t want to worry them with any issues that they might be having.
However, the issue there is that they can end up floundering if they do encounter a problem. By having an existing relationship with someone in the office, they might feel less pressure or anxiety around reaching out for help. By encouraging open communication in this way, you might be able to drive off a disaster before it is able to come to pass.
Every team needs to get on with some degree of civility. Though you might not end up life-long friends, you need to be able to lean on each other and help one another out when times are tough. As a result, it is incredibly necessary that we take the time to encourage and nurture relationships within an office environment.
