Making friends through work

Lincslass

I met my closest friends through work. We supported each other during stressful times whilst working, had fun out of work, still strong after 30 odd years.

That comment resonates with me especially tonight along with other comments about valuing the loyalty and trustworthiness of colleagues at work. I don't believe we just fall lucky in this respect, we often have to put a lot of effort into relationships in the workplace.
My son told us while at his this evening that tomorrow, Christmas Day, he has invited a work colleague to lunch with us all. This young man is unable to go home and see his family for Christmas, so our son stepped in with an act of kindness. I have no doubt they will be supportive friends for life.

paddyann, LtEve Fine, if it works out and you live happliy ever after, difficult if it ends. The sulks, cold shoulder, and non speaking. Not to mention the snide remarks. It happened to me once, and I vowed never again. A bit of light dalliance now and again, but never anything serious.

Where else do you meet people if, like me, you move away from the area in which you grew up? I have no local family or childhood friends so have had to make new ones. You spend most of your life at work so it would make sense to make most of your friends there.

These days few people stay working in the same place for years so romantic relationships may not carry the same danger if they end.

I don't like any of them

. To the point.

I made some very good friends when I started a new job 25 year ago, There’s 8 of us, only 2 left now but we still all meet up 4 times a year.

LtEve. I have lived a much more peripatetic life than you - my father was in the army and we were constantly on the move, but as soon as I get somewhere new, I join local organisations for interests I have whether, political, personal interest or educational.

I have made a few good and long lasting friends at work, but generally found I had little in common with them - and in one case when a new manager decided to take his 5 section leaders away for a two days team building exercise, I came to the conclusion, that I would dodge behind a wheely bin to not meet them if I saw any of them coming up the road in my direction. Luckily, we all headed very separate self contained teams and interacted very little on the work front, so I rarely saw them anyway.

I have one long term friend whom I taught with back in the 80s but no other friends from work. My last job was in a university and four of us women were very close. I spoke in my leaving speech about us having supported each other through illnesses, births, marriages and death. I never heard from any of the other three again.