It pays off to pull your weight at work and to be nice to your colleagues. You never know how your future might twist and turn—you could very well find yourself angling for a job alongside those same people at another company. And a glowing recommendation could go a long way to making your life there easier. However, if you were anything but a team player, you might find yourself battling uphill and your CV might even end up getting scrapped.

Redditor u/ButterscotchThis9815 recently opened up to the r/pettyrevenge community about how they finally got to see justice done. Their former colleagues, who had made their life utterly miserable, suddenly decided to apply to a new company, one where the OP worked. Scroll down for the full story and to read how the internet reacted.

Bored Panda reached out to u/ButterscotchThis9815 with a few questions and they were kind enough to answer them. You’ll find our full interview with the author of the post as you read on.

The best thing you can do is to try to be kind to everyone at work. Being a jerk can backfire in the future

Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)

A person who switched jobs shared what they did when their former colleagues tried applying to the new company

Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko (not the actual photo)

Image source: ButterscotchThis9815

“Draw boundaries and learn how to stand up for yourself”

Image credits: Scott Graham (not the actual photo)

We were curious how the OP felt when they realized that their former colleagues were applying to the new company. “When I knew my former colleague applied, I really just wanted to make sure that my new manager knew what they did and what kind of coworkers they would be,” redditor u/ButterscotchThis9815 told Bored Panda.

“I was really just sharing what can’t be told from reading the resume,” they pointed out.

Bored Panda was interested to get the post author’s thoughts on why their former colleagues tried to get them to do more than their fair share of work at the old company.

“I’m not sure why he dumped the work on me really. We didn’t have a close work relationship but also nothing bad happened. I guess when there’s a chance to do less work and the manager supports it, why not,” they mused.

They had some advice for people who might find themselves in a similar situation at work. “Draw boundaries and learn how to stand up for yourself. I definitely didn’t do a good job standing up to my former colleagues or making my boundaries clear,” u/ButterscotchThis9815 said.

Finally, the OP shared their perspective on how to get along with others in the workplace. “Based on my experience, the secret is to be nice and respectful to others but set and stick to your boundaries. I would really recommend keeping it professional only and not to try having a friend at work,” they gave their opinion.

How you treat folks at work can have a massive impact on your career months and years down the line

When redditor u/ButterscotchThis9815’s new boss asked her about the folks that they used to work with, they didn’t have any reason to hold back. They told them everything that they needed to know. About their incompetence, as well as their lack of willingness to play ball with other coworkers.

“Then my new boss basically just tossed both resumes out of the window and didn’t even give them an initial interview, which they would have gotten because of their experience,” the OP shared how she quickly managed to block their applications.

This was direct payback for their dumping double the amount of work on the OP at the old company. Karma, in this case, was pretty quick to give everyone what they deserved.

Let’s not beat around the bush too much. Whatever the workplace, it’s perfectly natural to like some people better than others. With some, your values, hobbies, or humor might align better. Others, however, might irritate you. Or you might find their presence frustrating because they seem to have it out for you. It’s impossible to force everyone to be friends—we simply don’t live in a sunshine-and-rainbows-all-the-time kind of world.

Making friends at work doesn’t have to be overly complicated. It can start with inviting them to get a single cup of coffee

Image credits: Maranda Vandergriff (not the actual photo)

What is possible, however, is to stay professional and get on with the job, even if you’d rather not interact with certain people. Nobody’s making you invite them to your house for a barbeque. Be cordial. Set and enforce healthy boundaries where appropriate. And just get on with your day.

However, when we become adults, we start spending a huge amount of time with our colleagues. Research indicates that when we’re grown up, the time we spend with them is greater than that which we spend with our friends and relatives. So, from a practical standpoint, it makes sense to at least have a few friends at your company or department.

As we’ve recently covered on Bored Panda, some of the best ways to make friends at work include helping them when they need it, offering them helpful advice, and being a good listener when they need to get something off their chest.

You don’t need to become friends overnight. Build the relationship bit by bit. Grab a cup of coffee with them and make small talk. Invite them out to lunch. Get to know them during team outings and team-building activities. In short, show them that you’re interested in them as individuals, not just as cogs in the corporate machine.

Remember to maintain some boundaries in the workplace, no matter how friendly you get

If you happen to know that your work BFF-in-the-making enjoys music or sports or hiking, you can then tailor the activities to them, so they’re bound to enjoy themselves even more. This, by the way, is how you make friends as a grown-up anywhere, not just in the office.

However, you shouldn’t rush these things. Boundaries are essential, so don’t start off by sharing too much information about yourself. Don’t gossip behind people’s backs. And don’t try to impose your friendship on someone who’s clearly not interested. It’s fine: you can have a professional relationship with these people. For instance, you can be friendly with your boss, but don’t expect the relationship to be on the same level as with your BFF who’s sitting across from you in the office. Some boundaries are best left business-like.

Be kind and friendly with everyone, and try not to hold grudges. But in those cases where someone’s trying to use you or is straight-up bullying you, clear communication is the best tool in your arsenal. Talk to them about the situation and tell them what kind of behavior you find (in)appropriate. Broach the subject with HR or your boss if that doesn’t work. And if you end up finding a job elsewhere, always remember that you can give them an honest recommendation about how (un)fit they are to work at the new company.

Here’s how some internet users reacted to the petty revenge story

Other readers, meanwhile, shared similar tales of their own

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