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Travel Nurses: How to Make Friends with a Coworker You Don’t Like

Making friends with coworkerYou just started a new travel nursing job and instantly clashed with one of your new coworkers — only to find out that you’ll be working closely with her for the next several months. Time to find a new job, you might ask? While you may be tempted to throw in the towel or just avoid this person like the plague, there’s a better way to improve the situation. Here are five tips for getting along with a coworker you don’t like:

Catch flies with honey

Often our first reaction when we encounter someone we don’t like is to withdraw and not give him any chances to talk to us, or to be rude back if we think he’s being rude. Instead of hiding, try being genuinely nice to your coworker and engaging him about conversation, asking him questions when you need help, and giving him opportunities to get to know you better.

Even if you continue to disagree or simply don’t like his personality, you’ll find you’re happier for making an effort to be nice — and he’ll notice your efforts, too.

Gain a fresh perspective

Maybe you don’t like your coworker because she seems arrogant and doesn’t like to ask for or accept help. Have you considered that she seems arrogant because she is overcompensating for her own insecurities or is too nervous to ask another nurse to step in? You might also discover that she feigns confidence because she doesn’t have a lot of friends and is lonely at work.

While you shouldn’t condone her behavior, especially if she’s rude to everyone, knowing why she acts the way she does will help you to empathize and understand her better.

Focus on being a great nurse

If you work with a lazy staff member who frequently adds more tasks to your to-do list or doesn’t seem competent enough to take care of patients safely, it’s a good idea to discuss your concerns privately with your supervisor — but even if you don’t agree with the outcome, you have to let it go.

Becoming angry that your coworker continues to make mistakes and seemingly gets away with them will only make you more and more frustrated and disengaged at work, and it can impact the quality of care you provide. Focus instead on what you can control, which is being positive and increasing your skills as a nurse, and don’t let your coworker’s actions make you miserable.

Accept that some things never change

It’s never too late to teach an old dog new tricks, but some habits and personality traits die hard no matter how much you want to change them. If you’re annoyed that your coworker arrives late every day to work no matter what’s going on, you may need to accept that she simply has the “late gene” and is always running a few minutes behind. Other staff members may carry on really loud conversations or crack off-color jokes during the shift, while others are bossy and the first in the room when they hear a code.

You should always protect your patients and report risky behavior that potentially puts others in danger, but there are some personality traits you’ll have to accept and move past before you drive yourself crazy.

Make an effort to find something in common

You may never call a particular coworker your “bestie,” but you may be surprised to see how easily friendship comes when you find out she also loves to watch reruns of Gilmore Girls, has a rescue dog like you do, or even that she attended the same university.

Finding little things you have in common can help you at least tolerate each other and grow into friendship if you allow it to, and you’ll realize that you finally have another friend at work before you know it.

Have you worked with a coworker you initially butted heads with? How did you make the best of the situation?

About the author

Lindsay Wilcox

Lindsay Wilcox is a communication professional with experience writing for the healthcare and entertainment industries as well as local government. When she's not circling typos, she's enjoying fish tacos and hanging out with her family.

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