Top Five Reasons to Avoid Dating a Co-Worker

Today, more and more of us are expected to work longer and longer hours. How exhausting! With so little time to socialise, it can be difficult to meet new people. Still, there can be major consequences to dating a colleague, so if you’re single and starting to think that your only chance at love is in the office, think about this:

1. HR. Your company may or may not have stringent HR policies regarding inner-office relationships, but there are probably at least some pretty strong preferences about them. Many companies ask that you at least disclose office romances in writing, which can be awkward for everyone involved. Keeping it quiet can be tricky (management has eyes and ears everywhere and can easily access your company e-mail) and even a clandestine relationship can go public after a messy break up. If things ever go sour you may also end up contending with sexual harassment charges.

2. Professionalism. This gets especially tricky if you or your partner outranks the other. Prepare to be accused of leveraging your relationship or playing favourites. Even if there is no shift in your professional intentions, it’s difficult to keep your heart and head from influencing one another and even if you don’t cross any lines, people will still gossip. If you want to be seen as a focused professional, you’ll want to keep your love life off the clock.

3. Distraction. Being consumed by love is a priceless feeling, but in the workplace it can cost you a lot. If time is money than every moment you spend flirting in the break room or composing doting e-mails is a loss for you and your employer.

4. Private space. You may not see your office as a home away from home, but ultimately it’s a big part of your life. Having your own identity within that office is important, and for many people it is a place to prove personal strengths independently. Inner-office dating can sometimes inhibit individual professional growth.

5. Separation of job and personal life. Ideally, your perfect partner will listen to you vent about a hard day at the office and provide comfort when you are stressed. Having someone who can totally take your mind off of work and your professional duties makes each day a bit sweeter, but if your partner is also a colleague you’ll have a hard time ever mentally vacating the office.

If you’re serious about finding real love with no corporate strings, think about taking a proactive approach with TopMatch.

Happy Dating!