Dating your coworker can be complicated. Some people say don’t shit where you work and that’s where dating a coworker can sometimes land up. But in a world where it is hard to meet people sometimes the workplace is the best place. You spend 8 hours there and meet people close to your age. So, when it comes to should you date your coworker, I would say go for it but be careful.
Deciding should you date you coworker?
Try to be friends first
Become friends first and see the vibe out and then ask your coworker. You want to be sure it is worth it because the stakes are higher than in a normal sense. You don’t want to have a friends with benefits situation at work. Because someone ends up getting hurt and it is a lot of drama for not enough fruit. There are better ways of finding a hookup.
After becoming friends date for a bit
Don’t go completely straight to a relationship. Try dating first and then be sure and then go into a relationship. This way there is less chance of getting into something too fast and having a bad breakup.
Take your time and figure things you because you want to be careful as these types of situations can become messy if something goes wrong.
Don’t tell everyone at first
In the beginning, keep it on the lowkey. You don’t want everyone to know and then have to explain everything.
If you aren’t planning on telling people be smart about it. You go on a date at a restaurant next to work and don’t be kissing in the parking lot. Yeah, I have heard stories like that so be cautious of that. You don’t want your coworkers to know but be lying to them when they ask. So, keep it a proper secret. This means not taking the same days off or coming in at the same time.
Breakups can be hard
When you stop dating the person you still have to see them every day. If that is something you don’t think you can handle drama free I would say stay away from coworker dating.
The person isn’t going to simply disappear if things end badly. It is hard to see that person and not be able to talk to them. I am the type of person who can manage that. It is for you to decide if that is something you can do.
If you really like the person and seeing it going somewhere some risks are worth it. And risking this is something I would do if I really liked the person. Is it something you think is worth it? Thats something important to think about when deciding should you date your coworker.
Is it a conflict of interest?
You don’t want to date your supervisor if your company is completely against it. So make sure the rank of the person you are dating. Is its something you have to declare as a conflict of interest? Find out your company policy. For example, at my company, you can’t be a direct supervisor of someone you are dating.
Make sure you aren’t breaking any company policies. Because you don’t want to get fired for something like this.
Act professional
Just because you are dating doesn’t mean you act like that at work. Be professional with your partner at work. You don’t want people to think any favoritism is going on or your coworkers to complain about you.
Now with virtual work, it is hard to date a coworker. But there is still MS Teams where you can build a connection. Who knows what might start.
If you are as old as me most of your likings during school probably started in MSN so this feels a bit like that.
