As Rachel sat across the table from Mark at lunch, she found herself once again complaining about her issues at home with her husband
who was being less than supportive about her recent diabetes diagnosis. He was ordering pizza and eating chocolate - two things that were not on her radar now. However, as she glanced across the table, Mark was eating a salad to support her in the eating lifestyle changes she was forced to make. Mark was giving Rachel just what she wanted, and was not getting at home.
According to Forbes magazine, "sometimes it just makes more sense to have a purely platonic girlfriend or boyfriend at the office - a 'work spouse,' if you will. With a work spouse, you know each other's favorite food; gripe about co-workers; confide about personal issues; and support each other during good and bad times. The main difference: there's no canoodling." (I can't find the word canoodling in the dictionary)
With this "9-to-5 marriage," as Forbes refers to it, you can find support without the romantic hassle. You may find that your relationship
has all the similarities to a marriage. Who gets who coffee? What are you eating for lunch? How are your schedules going to pan out for the day? Again, there is nothing physical about this relationship - other than your work spouse is easily accessible, and you probably spend more time with him or her than your own mate.
In some cases, the work mates can actually take their relationship outside of work
, mingling their families by doing things on the weekend, attending parties and special occasions, or even taking a vacation together.
Probably the most common trait of a work spouse relationship is their willingness to listen, give support, and offer advice.
According to a poll by Harris Interactive, 17% of 750 respondents said they had a workplace spouse - and marital status did not matter. Even singles report having an office "spouse."
Surprisingly, this is "the number 1 reason employees give for staying with a job," says Linda Carr, an industrial organizational psychologist at Sun Microsystems. "Aside from showing a new employee the firm's culture and unwritten rules
, they serve the same role as a mutual mentor. They bounce ideas off each other, offer advice, and emotional support. My research absolutely shows that employees will devote more time to an organization and go the extra mile if they have close ties at work."
However, as with many relationships, there can be challenges. What if your work spouse gets another job and leaves the company or even the region all together. In most cases, the relationship still exists, but takes on a new dynamic. In addition, when one relationship ends, another one is formed.
By Cindy Brock
who was being less than supportive about her recent diabetes diagnosis. He was ordering pizza and eating chocolate - two things that were not on her radar now. However, as she glanced across the table, Mark was eating a salad to support her in the eating lifestyle changes she was forced to make. Mark was giving Rachel just what she wanted, and was not getting at home.According to Forbes magazine, "sometimes it just makes more sense to have a purely platonic girlfriend or boyfriend at the office - a 'work spouse,' if you will. With a work spouse, you know each other's favorite food; gripe about co-workers; confide about personal issues; and support each other during good and bad times. The main difference: there's no canoodling." (I can't find the word canoodling in the dictionary)
With this "9-to-5 marriage," as Forbes refers to it, you can find support without the romantic hassle. You may find that your relationship
has all the similarities to a marriage. Who gets who coffee? What are you eating for lunch? How are your schedules going to pan out for the day? Again, there is nothing physical about this relationship - other than your work spouse is easily accessible, and you probably spend more time with him or her than your own mate.In some cases, the work mates can actually take their relationship outside of work
, mingling their families by doing things on the weekend, attending parties and special occasions, or even taking a vacation together.Probably the most common trait of a work spouse relationship is their willingness to listen, give support, and offer advice.
According to a poll by Harris Interactive, 17% of 750 respondents said they had a workplace spouse - and marital status did not matter. Even singles report having an office "spouse."
Surprisingly, this is "the number 1 reason employees give for staying with a job," says Linda Carr, an industrial organizational psychologist at Sun Microsystems. "Aside from showing a new employee the firm's culture and unwritten rules
, they serve the same role as a mutual mentor. They bounce ideas off each other, offer advice, and emotional support. My research absolutely shows that employees will devote more time to an organization and go the extra mile if they have close ties at work."However, as with many relationships, there can be challenges. What if your work spouse gets another job and leaves the company or even the region all together. In most cases, the relationship still exists, but takes on a new dynamic. In addition, when one relationship ends, another one is formed.
A job requires your attention, thus it's important to evaluate what kind of an impact a relationship  of this type can have. Understand where this fits into the big scheme of your career goals. |
By Cindy Brock
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