Have you ever been the type of person who leads the screaming party once your professor announces that the class will have to divide into groups to complete a project? Or, are you the one who groans deep down because, once again, you have to deal with your classmates who may or may not drag you down? Whether you are the first or the latter, it is pretty impossible for someone to completely avoid working in a group. Be it in a simple project for a class or for an organization or corporation, working in a group is definitely an experience waiting to occur. Unfortunately, there are some cases when the number and size and gravity of your heads cannot just simply fit inside the four corners of the room. So, the question is: how am I going to deal?

Answering that question is so subjective. It depends on what kind of person you are and the type of persons you are working with. It also relies on your personal and working relationship with them. It all depends on something so particularly personal that it is completely difficult to put everything in words. Difficult but not impossible. Let me explain this by citing two cases. First, working with your friends and second, working with, well, workers.

Working with friends is not very new to all of us. Our teachers from grade school all the way to college has all, in their own ways and times, gave us the opportunity to group ourselves in anyway that we want. Obviously, we go to our friends because of the very fact that they are our friends however, like any other event, it also has some downsides.


Working with your friends or anyone close to you in particular can be a struggle if we let our personal emotions control us. I mean chatting or gossiping instead of having a real meeting about the task at hand or it can be being to shy and timid to ask your friend to do something or point out to them that they are becoming a dead weight to the entire weight. The solution? Be professional. Yes, they are your friends but they are also your colleagues in a way. Set a correct time to put your heads together to focus in the real project and not to chat or gossip. Remember, you can always do this after the project. Besides, working with your friends may not feel like working at all if all of you are just having fun without losing sight of the goal. Control your emotions. Control your schedule. Take control.

The opposite works when working with your colleagues or the persons that you are not particularly close too. The key to success is to not be the colleague. What do I mean? Well, do not be the overbearing colleague who keeps on pushing everybody to work, work and work. Remember, the key to a successful and strong group depends on the framework and base which, in this case is your friendship or personal relationship to them. Befriend all of your groupmates as much as possible. In this way, the idea of working can be lessened and you can enjoy the time that you spend with them. Plus, your circle of friends may also expand because of this.


Have you noticed the similarities of the two cases? If not, let me tell you. It all boils down to the fact that working with a group should not really feel working instead, it should feel as if you are hanging-out with your friends. The only difference is that you have a particular subject or goal at hand to accomplish at the end of the day. In a simple way, to work in a group means to be both professional and personal to your groupmates. Don't push them too hard instead, encourage them. Don't gossip with them instead, brainstorm with them. It is all about balance and it can be pretty difficult but if you master the art, then I can guarantee that you are prepared to face the rest of the world.