We can be at our jobs any where from 8 or more hours a day five days a week for 365 days a year that’s 2080 hours. Let’s face it we spend the majority of our time at work unless we work part-time or from home. We all have some form of interaction with others in the workplace whether it is with our supervisor, employees or colleagues. It is pretty hard to just go to work, do you job and go straight home without communicating to anyone. The more time we spend at work and the longer we have been at the same job we tend to form close relationships with our colleagues.
The term “work wife” has been around since the 1930’s. Bosses back then would have their secretaries pay their bills, take their clothes to the dry cleaners, and clean their offices like they had their wives do at home. However, the term “work wife” has taken on a new meaning today. The term is not just limited to “work wife” but has evolved to “work spouse” so now you can have a “work wife” or “work husband.” Today the term “work spouse” means having a close work relationship with someone of the opposite sex that you can confide in, that you trust, and can become vulnerable with. A survey conducted by Captivate Network, found that 65 percent of workers have or previously had a “work spouse.”
When it comes to having a “work spouse” there can be some advantages and disadvantages. The obvious disadvantage is that someone can take the relationship too far by crossing or blurring boundaries. For example, if you and you’re “work spouse” have been sharing personal information with each other naturally you are going to develop some sort of feelings. Say one evening you had a hard day at the office and the two of you decide to go out for drinks. After a couple of drinks the both of you are feeling good. One of you is bound to either make a move and to kiss the other person or reveal some hidden feelings because the relationship evolving. This is a dangerous situation for many reasons. One, if it doesn’t work out then you have to see the other person everyday and two if it’s your supervisor and others find out they may start untrue rumors. On the other side, if you can respect each others boundaries then a “work spouse” can be beneficial. He/she can be a good person to bounce ideas off of, back each others decisions up, and help one another catch up on work.