Making real work friends when your work is virtual Dropbox Blog

This might have been talking about a new iPhone or a new book that someone read. My tip is to make a weekly time to FaceTime with a friend who’ll teach you another language, because some of the best learning can be done right in your home. I FaceTime with my friend Ayelen and she talks to me completely in Spanish, so I have to keep up.

There are loads of ways to grow a company – learn about our approach here. Embrace transparency, foster a sense of belonging, form connections – and have fun along the way. If your organization has any clubs, groups, or committees, now’s the time to get involved. We all love to poke fun at icebreaker activities, but they’re still around for a reason.

Friendship maintenance matters and here’s how to do it

Social science and Nelson encourage us to understand that friendship is crucial when it comes to our mental health, careers and developing meaningful connections throughout our lives. You don’t need to be a sports fanatic to get some exercise and meet new people at sporting events. Again, it’s just the act of going that can lead to social interactions and help you learn how to make friends when you work from home. Scheduling an informal chat is great, but this chat needs to be repeated for a friendship to develop. The best way to do this is to put a standing meeting on your calendar,  perhaps once a week or once a month, depending on preference. We often think likable people are funny or smart or charismatic, but the secret to being likable is actually to like people.

With three published books under her belt, Nelson cites two decades of research by Gallup Organization that the best employees are the ones who answer “yes” to having a best friend at work. Studies consistently show that having best friends at work results in higher productivity, engaged employees and a safe space where colleagues are happy to pick up and cover for each other. Set up a virtual coffee break, lunch break, or happy hour https://remotemode.net/ with them, but don’t ask for an hour, ask for minutes maximum. You could help them imagine what it must be like in your shoes by joking about the challenges of learning about your new organization from afar. If you don’t have any kids or aren’t planning to, the same idea works for your pets. Dog parks and organized dog walks are an ideal way to meet other fur parents, talk about your pets, and maintain a more active lifestyle.

Let Your Backgrounds Do Some of the Talking

Every boss will like that research finding—and here’s another one. A Gallup study found that remote employees with work friendships were more fulfilled, more loyal, and less likely to seek work elsewhere. “This affects mutual availability and responsiveness, two behaviors that build trust and eventually friendship,” the researchers write.

When on Zoom, your background—real or virtual—serves as a conversation starter. It says something about you and lets people see what you have in common. ” Co-workers get a sense of your hobbies and tastes from the musical instruments, books, sports equipment, art, photos, or belongings in the background. As far as remote working goes, there’s a way of inviting other users into how to make friends when you work from home your digital working space to further concentrate your mind. You don’t get any of the advanced scheduling tools or partnering technology that Focusmate offers—you need to invite someone you know—but it may work better for you. The Covid-19 crisis has forced masses of people into work-from-home scenarios and just about every university student into a study-from-home experiment.