One school of thought holds that people should engage in relationships with their colleagues, while others argue that it would be better to keep in touch with friends outside the workplace. Personally, developing a social life with everyone around is the best idea.
On the one hand, it is reasonable to believe that having good workplace relationships can greatly foster people’s lives. The most apparent reason is the emotional support in the working environment. When individuals work together in the same working conditions, they can deeply understand the difficult circumstances their colleagues are facing. In this way, these co-workers may become a trusted confidant who can genuinely empathize with one another's stress and professional challenges, which can significantly relieve people's burden when they are able to express their true feelings and thoughts to these types of friends. Another compelling benefit is the enhancement in working efficiency.
Forming friendships with colleagues can help creating a much more comfortable atmosphere when interacting and working with each other. As a consequence, collaborating in working projects will be much easier, mitigating the awkwardness and invisible lines between participants, which foster productivity. On the other hand, I believe that getting on well with non-colleagues also offer certain advantages. Firstly, having friends outside the workplace can create more genuine bonds as they are not affected by professional conflicts. Specifically, in the workplace, the same working environment can unfortunately create competition between employees as everyone want to progress and achieve a higher position throughout their career development, leading to utilitarian relationships instead of honest feelings. A practical example for this phenomenon is that when people come across any concerns or struggles with their works, they can confide in non-work friends who can share truthful and unbiased advice without conflicts of interest, thereby helping them making more informed decisions.
In conclusion, although both workplace and non-work relationships offer distinct benefits, I believe that individuals should strike a balance between the two, taking into account their personal preferences and circumstances.