How to Get Coworkers to Work Together

How to Get Coworkers to Work Together

March 7, 2017

By Cara Pilgrim
Setting and discussing goals is critical in getting coworkers to work together. Many would say that when setting goals or resolutions, recognizing areas for improvement and creating a purpose of action to make those changes is the easy part—it’s the follow-through recognize that person that’s the challenge.

About 80% of goals and resolutions made at the beginning of the year fail in the month of February—less than two months after they were set. So how can we, as goal setters and hopeful goal achievers, stay accountable for staying on the right track and not veering off back into our old habits? While achieving goals takes commitment, focus and oftentimes mental or physical exertion, external factors can also have an impact on our ability to stick to our goals, including the workplace.

Co-workers can have a huge influence on our daily routine such as eating habits, our attitude at work, how we react to certain situations and so on. While a workplace can have a negative impact and be a distraction to achieving goals, it can just as well be a positive one. Here are three ways you and your fellow co-workers can help each other achieve your goals this year.

Keep Each Other Accountable

Share your goals with your co-workers—but only if you feel comfortable doing so. Tell them what you hope to achieve, and encourage them to help keep you on track. Although your goals can be work-related, they don’t have to recognize that person — but tell people anyways. Accountability is huge, and chances are, if people know about what you are hoping to accomplish, you will have a greater possibility of staying on course.

In a Huffington Post article about how to hold yourself accountable to your goals, it is encouraged to have an “accountability buddy.” In other words, find a co-worker who is committed to helping you succeed and can keep you on track while at work. Even better, find someone who has a similar goal and work together to achieve them.

Recognize and Reward

If you notice a co-worker making steps toward their goal, let them know that you see their progress. Give them praise, leave them an encouraging note or reward them with a small gift. For example, if an employee has decided to walk 10,000 steps each day and you witness them walking during their lunch break, recognize that person for putting in the effort. Or if you notice your co-worker hasn’t taken a smoke break all week, send them an e-card or peer-to-peer recognition. Let them know that someone is noticing and that you support them in the steps they are taking toward their goal.

This can go both ways. If others know your goals, the hope is that they will encourage and recognize you too.

Get the Whole Workplace Involved

The more the merrier, right? Group challenges and activities can not only strengthen the relationships of employees in a workplace, but they can keep individuals motivated. From group weight loss challenges and water wars to team walking competitions, get creative with company-wide initiatives that can be of benefit to co-workers both inside and outside of the workplace. Even better, add incentives for the winning teams and/or individuals such as paid time off, gift cards, and trophies. Friendly competitiveness can drive and motivate goal-setters so that they can soon become goal achievers.