Claire Miller+Follow“Work family” cost me a real friendshipI made the mistake of thinking my coworkers were actually my friends. Startup vibes. “We’re all family here!” Weekly team lunches. Heart emojis in Slack. My manager once cried during a check-in and I thought, wow, we’re really close. Fast forward six months: I confide in “work bestie” about considering a new role. She nods, says she gets it. Two days later, I’m in a surprise HR meeting for “cultural misalignment.” Guess who’s on the other side of the Zoom screen? Yeah. I wasn't fired — just slowly iced out. Less eye contact, fewer invites, more “Let’s circle back.” The worst part? I still don’t hate her. I hate that I let a job trick me into trusting like it was a friendship, not a contract. I still miss the fake family lunches. But I miss the version of me that believed them more. So yeah — be kind, but don’t mistake company culture for actual loyalty. That stuff’s not in your paycheck. #WorkIsNotFamily #CorporateGaslighting #TeamBuildingTrauma #StartupRedFlags #BoundariesAtWork 30Share
Ara+FollowNever hire friends for work—Here's whyI’m furious at a so-called friend I hired as a dishwasher. This guy constantly spews my private life to coworkers ("who I’ve dated," my past mistakes, flaws)—the "dating" part infuriates me most. He acts entitled, snaps his fingers at me like a dog, and even forgot a birthday gift I gave him. Now I’m quitting this dead-end job with a ruined resume, thanks to his drama. My coworkers aren’t my family—they don’t need to hear my personal mess. Lesson learned: Never hire friends unless you’ve seen their professionalism firsthand (like through remote work). Otherwise, it’s a disaster waiting to happen. #WorkplaceDrama #ToxicFriendship #HiringMistakes #ResumeDamage #BoundariesAtWork233Share
