Many organizations are embracing the Work-from-home culture these days. Still, it’s challenging to interact with your colleagues if you don’t meet them in person regularly. And the difficulty increases if you recently switched your job.
Well, you are not alone who is facing trouble while building connections with your new teammates. Even they are sailing on the same boat. Without further ado, follow these ways and take the first step to socialize with your colleagues.
1- Create A Virtual Water Cooler
Unarguably, instant messaging platforms like Slack messenger are an excellent place for a virtual water cooler. These are the virtual zones where you and your teammates can have casual conversations during breaks with a cup of tea or coffee.
So, create one for your organization on Slack. In case it's already there, participate actively in every conversation.
2- Request For A Virtual Tour Of Your Coworker’s Home Office
"Would you mind showing me your work-from-home setup?" Again, requesting it from your colleague is an innovative idea. It will give you insight into the diversified backgrounds of your coworkers.
This activity is going to help you a lot to empathize with your colleagues for better bonding. Later, you can also add some humour to the tour by sharing some fascinating stories about each other’s workspaces.
3- Have One-to-one Interaction With Colleagues Over A Call
Are you calling your colleagues on Skype regularly to build rapport with them? If not, then begin it from today. This method will help you to connect with your coworkers on a deeper level. If you are too shy for a video call initially, go for a voice call.
Frequent watching and hearing your colleagues will make your interactions even more meaningful and engaging.
4- Organize Virtual Dinners Or Movies Nights
Who said that you should have dinners and movie nights in restaurants and theatres only? A virtual dinner and movie night with teammates is also an interesting thing you can try.
Similarly, you can watch a movie on Netflix or Amazon Prime with your virtual coworkers by sharing screens. Without a doubt, both things will let you strengthen your bond with your colleagues.
5- Give Advice to Set-up Virtual Wellbeing Classes
Working from home is not too easy the way it seems. It’s a stressful journey where we have to maintain a balance between our personal and professional life. So what is your thought about an initiative for setting up a virtual wellbeing class?
Of course, it’s a great idea if you can anyhow execute it at your new job. Yoga and meditation sessions are excellent for mental peace and improved productivity of your entire team.
Wrapping it up,
Social distancing cannot stop you from virtual socializing if you take creative initiatives for it. You can come with ideas like creating a casual meeting room on slack messenger, having virtual movie nights, organizing interactive meditation sessions, and whatnot.
Would you like to share a few more ideas for socializing while onboarding? Write them in the comment box below.