Are Office Romances Good Or Bad? (Part 1 of 2)
Office romance is fairly common these days as most people practically live at work and have little time for socializing. If a liaison with a coworker is handled well, it can lead to a relationship. If it goes seriously wrong, it can lead to job loss or a lawsuit for harassment...
It is not surprising that temptation lurks within the office environment. After all we spend one third of our time (at least) performing business-related activities. In the last two decades many companies have tired to ban dating among their employees, with the ultimate result that many lusty, yet great employees turned into sneaks and liars. Even though office romances are probably inevitable, they are loaded with very serious financial, social, career and emotional risks for both the employees and employer.
There are a couple of myths about office romances that need to be debunked. First of all, the tradition of bosses having flings with their secretaries seems to have been flung out of the window. Contrary to popular belief, women are less at the mercy of the sexual attentions of their bosses then ever before. Very often, office romances now take place between colleagues as well as female bosses and their underlings.
Although Americans have been socialized into seeing relationships as being separate from career, the fact is that in today's corporate driven society that the office is becoming a likely and obvious place for people to meet prospective partners. If you haven't linked up with a partner during your college or university years, meeting someone at the office may be one of few romantic options.
However just because inter-office dating is becoming just as common as inter-office memos it does not mean that it is a good idea. Having an affair in the office is comparable to be stuck in a small town, complete with office gossips, back-stabbers and people who want to hurt your reputation in order to acquire your credibility and business.
If you do decide that you want to embark on an office romance, then there are a few things you might want to consider. First of all you might want to consider why you are doing this at all. Is it because you love this person or because you are bored at the office? Are you a secret drama queen looking for ways to liven up long dull days in front of the computer? Is it lust, love or both?
If possible it is highly recommended that you have a discussion with your potential romantic partner to see if you are both on the same page. If he is looking for a fling and she is hearing wedding bells there could be big trouble ahead for both of you at work. Someone is probably going to get hurt. Decide TOGETHER in advance whether or not your little romantic experience is going to lead to torture at the office if you end up having to work together as ex-partners.
It is helpful to imagine the worst case scenario... [Continued: Dating Coworkers 2]