Hi all, I hope this email finds you well + that you’re having a productive and busy Monday.

Obviously I’m kidding. Because in this house, we believe 1) very few emails actually find us well and that’s okay 2) setting boundaries today is as important as setting the perfect AIM away message was in 2001 and 3) cultivating the balance between work, life, and mental health should be just like senior year, except funner.

I’m so jazzed to start this newsletter and happy to have you along for the ride. Read, hit reply, and tell me what you think and how proud of me you are what you’d like to see in future editions of WorkDaze.

Let’s party like it’s 1999 (WHICH IN MY UNIVERSE WAS STILL 10 YEARS AGO).

—Rod

How to make a friend in 10 (business) days

Andie Anderson wasn’t relatable enough. They should make a romcom about an aspiring magazine girlboss who started her job remotely and can’t figure out how to make a work bestie.

Because in the corporate era of remote and hybrid work, forging those all-important office friendships (read: deciding to intertwine your lives for years to come because you found out you have the same Sweetgreen order) has become really hard.

We need work friends to thrive personally and professionally. We need that person to gossip in the bathroom with. That confidant to practice your salary negotiation with. That real, true friend to keep you sane and remind you that work isn’t everything. Thursday happy hour is.

And if we really want to get down to brass tacks, there’s this:

• Back in 1993, Gallup compiled a list of the 12 elements that workplaces need to thrive. One of those dozen? Employees need to be able to say, “I have a best friend at work.”

• Having a close work friend can also mean 7x higher job satisfaction.

Your high school friends saw you through side bangs. Your college friends saw you through that one Foam Party. Your work friends are supposed to see you through existential crises and accidental holiday party karaoke and that first bit of negative feedback from your boss.

And not to get all hustle-ish 😤, but work friends are also the first professional network you build early in your career. So how to cultivate friendships if you only see your colleagues once a quarter? Keep in mind:

• If you can meet a significant other on Hinge (which you can), you can meet a work friend on Zoom.

• Use Slack or Gchat for more than product roadmap updates. “You really nailed that presentation” (or other positive feedback) is a great friend pickup line.

• Put your social anxiety aside as best you can and go to the company-wide events. Every opportunity to hang out in person is a golden one.

And when all else fails, you always have me <3 I’ll be your work friend!

SPONSORED BY PELOTON CORPORATE WELLNESS

You guys, Elle Woods was right.

Endorphins do make you happy. Ok, maybe it’s not that simple, but we all know what working out does for our mental health. And my friends at Peloton are making it even easier for your employer to help you bring fitness (I just learned twirling iced coffee over your head doesn’t count as a workout? SMH) into your daily routine with their Corporate Wellness program.

Peloton Corporate Wellness is created for your company and your unique needs. Employees can get access to the Peloton App (no equipment needed!) or be given special offers on the Peloton Bike, Bike+, Tread, and Guide.

Learn more about their program here →

Things to Slack your work besties

Days since I’ve brought up the weather in coworker small talk: 9

• The chronic oversharing on LinkedIn has evolved. Now we have people sharing…genuine...feelings...on LinkedIn? It’s weird, but maybe it works a little. According to some power users, the key to going LinkedIn viral these days is being vulnerable. For me it’s just posting like LinkedIn is Twitter but I could get behind real feelings, too.

• Breathtaking Italian landscapes, Aubrey Plaza giving her best Aubrey Plaza, a very relatable and overworked assistant with a boss who doesn’t know how to treat an employee, JENNIFER COOLIDGE (!!). White Lotus season 2 feels like HBO read my diary.

• You know we millennials have a special place in our hearts for BuzzFeed. And if there’s one thing we can count on them for, it’s the Tweet anthology following a major pop culture event. I’m not the world’s biggest Swiftie (please be gentle in the replies) but this list of the best Midnights reaction Tweets really got me.

Okay! That’s all for this edition! Thank you so much for reading and please please please remember what I said about responding and sharing your feedback. It’s like a quarterly review, except no one will cry (I think). See you Friday, when I'll answer a bunch of your burning questions (submit yours here). As an expert. Or something!

IDK WHAT DO I KNOW?! LMAO!

—Rod

P.S. If you feel like sharing this with someone that'd be cool and you can send them here :)