Being friends with colleagues makes people happier at work

A new survey has revealed that nearly half of all professionals believe that friendships with colleagues make them happier at work.

According to the survey released by LinkedIn covering more than 11,500 full-time professionals around the world, 46 percent of professionals said that having friends at workplace made them happy, Enterprise Innovation reported.

Nicole Williams, LinkedIn career expert said that creating an office culture that resonates across generations, roles and personalities is a critical factor in building a successful working environment.

The study also found a generational divide when it comes to the choices professionals are willing to make to get ahead in the workplace, while nearly one in five (18 percennt) professionals report that friendships with colleagues affect their work performance by making them more competitive in their careers.

It was also revealed that among millennials, 68 percent professionals would sacrifice a friendship with a colleague for a promotion, compared to 62 percent of baby boomers who would never consider it, while 50 percent felt motivated because of friendships at office and 45 percent of workers aged 55-65 said that friendships with colleagues have no bearing on their work performance.

51 percent of professionals in Indonesia feel their closest colleagues understand them better than their friends, compared to only 9 percent of professionals in the United Kingdom who feel this same level of colleague camaraderie, while in India, one-third of professionals would even go as far as to say that their closest colleagues understand them better than their partners.