A majority (71 percent) of respondents to a recent Women In Optometry Pop-up Poll said that when they have a best friend in the workplace, it makes them happier. As one male OD respondent wrote, “My relationships at work are the number one driving force of how good my day is/was. While these relationships certainly include my patients, the ones with my coworkers have a much bigger impact. I have stayed (and left) places due to my work friends (or lack thereof).

The poll results match what the Gallup organization has found; it includes a question about best friends in the workplace because “our research has repeatedly shown a concrete link between having a best friend at work and the amount of effort employees expend in their job. For example, women who strongly agree they have a best friend at work are more than twice as likely to be engaged (63 percent) compared with the women who say otherwise (29 percent).

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