Do you regard your “colleagues” as “friends” ?

Question

I have witnessed my uncle never consider inviting his office colleagues to dinner or to any other family functions inspite the fact that he spends more hours with them; whereas he always eager to call his friends to such occasions without fail. Why such difference? How come a colleague cannot become a friend? At one evening I dared and asked him, but instead he just gave me a hard glance and shrugged his shoulder as if saying, "Boy, its none of your headache."

Answer 1

My collegues are NEVER my friends. They are my coworkers, we are friendly with eachother, we tell eachother stories, we share good times at WORK. But I would never invite them to my home, it's kind of creepy. I have never kept a job more than a year, so I know that jobs come and go and co-workers come and go. It's life. Friends are the ones who stick by you at all times, co-workers will be your friends as long as things are good at work, but once both of you are up for a promotion and only one will get it, the "friendship" goes down the drain.

I have seen many instances where family members of mine have worked at the same job for 25+ years and they where faithfull to their jobs 100%, their lives where their work, the people they admired the most where at their work, and when it came time to retire, the first ones to screw them over where those same people at work. People at work are usually more concerened about their position at work than their so-called friends. Friends at work can instanly become back-stabbing enemies if things turn sour at work.

That's just my opinion, hey but I guess it's also possible to have exceptions, I've just never seen one.

Answer 2

It depends on the person whether or not colleagues can become friends. In a competitive environment, such as sales, it may become necessary to outsell your co-workers in order to keep your job. In that case, for survival's sake, it may be necessary to keep your distance from those you work with because you wish to out perform them and your office buddy could lose his/her job.
If a person hates their profession, then they do not want to bring co-workers home for dinner because they would be reminded of how much they hate going to work. Others find it unnecessary to mix business with their personal lives because they want privacy from their co-workers. If you don't hang around with the guys and girls at the office, then their private lives won't become fodder for office gossip.
In other professions, such as law enforcement or firefighters in particular, the reverse is most often true. It is imperitive that close bonds be formed between cops and their partners and squad members because they back each other up on dangerous calls. Firemen need strong relationships between each other because they must be able to save each others lives as well as the lives of those in danger.
EMTs, nurses, and other health care professionals cling together because their jobs are so stressful, and because they see such misery, that the only comfort they can get is from someone esle in the same field.
Yes, many people find it necessary not to become friends with co-workers, and with good reasons. But, in many jobs, friendship in the workplace means survival.

Answer 3

It depends on the closeness of the colleagues I guess. In all of the colleagues that I have worked with, there is probably only one that I could consider a friend. Just because you work with them for long hours doesn't necessarily mean that a friendship or a bond of any kind is formed.

Answer 4

Colleagues can become friends, but more often they are just associates. You see these people at work all the time, so you don't particularly care to see them when you're not working. I've seen many people over the years that I've been close to at work and had them not continue the relationship when either of us left the job.

Answer 5

It depends on the job like if its younger like i am i life guard and i party with my co workers but its not 2 professional 2 hang out with a serious job

Answer 6

Colleagues is another way of saying associates.There not friends,there people you work with and know socially.

Answer 7

Hell no they are just there for 8 hrs a day that's it