However, some people think that colleagues and close friends should be two distinct relationships. There should not be too much intimacy to avoid affecting common work as well as causing related problems.

Stop playing and tell each other all your secrets

Ms. Vo Thi Lan Anh (34 years old, in Cu Chi District, Ho Chi Minh City) had a close friendship of 3 years with a colleague at her old company. She and her colleague became close when they were assigned to carry out a new campaign. They even moved to live in the same rented room to help each other and go to work together every day.

But after 3 years, her friendship showed signs of cracking due to conflicts arising from work. "At that time, my friend and I had different opinions at work. My boss trusted me so he assigned me the role of project leader, and my friend worked under me. Maybe that was the reason why we constantly clashed, many times he even used harsh words, mocking me for being promoted by my boss," said Ms. Anh.

Ms. Anh also confided that later she found out that, in fact, during the time they played and worked together, there were things they were unhappy about each other but did not dare to say.

She confided: "Now I know that for a long time, she had problems but didn't tell me so we could both fix them. Keeping it in her heart for a long time will eventually lead to anger. But what disappointed me the most was that after the relationship ended, she spoke badly of me and told everyone my secrets."

From that experience, Ms. Anh thought that she should not have a close relationship with any colleagues anymore. When working in the same company, there should be certain limits, there are things that should be kept in "private mode" to avoid future consequences.

Being intimate with colleagues needs to have limits.

Ms. Nguyen Tran Anh Thu (23 years old, Thu Duc City) has just applied for a job at a translation company. As a young person, Ms. Thu believes that a close relationship at the workplace will be the motivation to go to work every day and help her stay with the company longer.

“I have been working for a few months and have become close friends with some of my colleagues. They have helped me and shared a lot of experiences, not only in work but also in life. We have a lot in common when it comes to eating and having fun, and we often go out on weekends to relieve stress,” Ms. Thu said.

At the same time, Ms. Thu said that she always sets clear rules to maintain a long-lasting relationship. For example, when going out to eat, the bill must be divided fairly, each person must do their own work, and if there are difficulties, they will help each other. There is no such thing as borrowing money without paying back or pushing work to anyone in the group.

“We had a clear discussion with each other beforehand, and all of us happily agreed. I consider them as my real brothers and sisters. Thanks to them, my first months at work went more smoothly. Even when my boss scolded me, they stood up and said a few words to defend me. I learned a lot from them, both in terms of work experience and life experience,” said Ms. Thu.

But no matter how close they are, Ms. Thu does not talk deeply about her love life or family with everyone. She believes that these are personal matters and should not be discussed in the workplace.

“I will say what I should say, and I have to consider what I shouldn’t. In particular, I think the most important thing to limit is gossiping about others together because if something happens in the future, the messages or conversations I had will cause me a lot of trouble,” she affirmed.