It is nice to have a friend who works with you. Work becomes more fun. It is encouraging to have a friend in the same team, so you know that someone has your back. But this pleasant situation can turn worrisome if the friend slips in his or her performance, and messes up often at work.
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So, what do you do when a friend messes up at work?
Help them for the first time
It may have happened that your friend must have made a genuine mistake. It is normal to give them the benefit of doubt. Unless the breach is serious, you can help them cover their mistake. For instance, if your friend is missing when they were supposed to give a presentation, you can step in for him or her.
Covering could also mean you help diffuse any negative consequences. But, most importantly, you should not lie as that could be detrimental to you as well as your friend if the lie is exposed.
Talk to your friend
If the friend seems to be repeating the same mistake, without an effort towards reforming it, then you may have to confront the friend about it. You don’t need to be formal about it, but you do need to raise your friend’s awareness of their behaviour. You could say something simple, “You had to give the presentation. You were missing, so I did it. Where were you?”
If your friend continues to miss important duties, it’s time to be more explicit with your feedback. If your friend is starting to take advantage of your generosity in covering for them, then you need to be more assertive about your thoughts.
Understanding the situation
If the mistakes continue, you might have to probe deeper into what is really going on with them. If something is wrong at an intrinsic, you can suggest the person ask for help from other members of the team. This might be the time to engage your friend’s manager in the conversation.
At some point, you might have to put your responsibility to your company above your sense of obligation to your friend. There is no one correct way to deal with such situations, but the above approaches will be helpful if a friend messes up at work.
Read Also: How To Give Awkward Feedback To A Friend At Work
