My second week of work all the employees were given free tickets to go see a baseball game. I went hoping to get to know some of my new coworkers better. I was talking with one of my coworkers on our way back from getting food at the concessions, probably talking about our shared interests in sports or studying abroad, and as we were walking back to our seats, some stranger ran into me and got ketchup all over my white t-shirt. Great first impression! My coworker helped me clean up the mess, and it definitely helped break the ice and allowed us to bond over the humor of the situation. Since then, we go out to lunch at work together all the time, play on a co-ed soccer team together, and go on fun weekend adventures — skiing, [exploring] new coffee shops, and [visiting] the city together.

— Angela C.

I made my friend at work because the vast majority of people I work with are all in their 30s and have their lives together — expect me and her. We were both at the same points in our lives, and kind of going through similar things. So we connected through our mutual misery of what to do with our lives. That, and our love of food. We shared a cannoli at a staff meeting, so I knew it was true friendship.

— Sarah C.

My work best friend is older than me (a mom in her 40s with three kids), but we still connect and get along to make the work day go by faster. I give her advice and she gives me advice, and we both have different stories to bring to the table. I tell her about my weekend of going out or visiting friends, and she tells me about her weekend of taking her son to football and relaxing on the couch. Even though we basically live in different worlds outside of the office, we can come together and share each other's day-to-day experiences.

— Christina J.

Me and my work best friend both teach on the same team. While we don’t see each other all day long because we teach different classrooms, we spend a lot of time before and after school together planning. That’s how we first started growing close. We had this mutual interest in teaching. We grew closer by sharing and bouncing ideas off of each other, giving each other feedback, and supporting one another through hard days. My advice for landing a work best friend is to always be honest and supportive of them, and to always make sure to do your part. You don’t want to rely too much on someone and never give them any help. Giving them feedback and support just like they give to you is super important.

— Samantha L.

I started working at a supermarket my senior year of high school. Low and behold, when I started, another girl was starting as well. At first, we felt some kind of competitiveness towards one another. Our boss was orienting us both, and we both wanted approval from him. It was all sort of dumb. After our first day working together, Julia asked if I could give her a ride home. After that, we would talk and get coffee non-stop. We would carpool to work together, too. Almost six years later and she is still my best friend and soul sister! Thank you, produce section, for finding me my best friend.

— Sara J.

My work BFF and I bonded by complaining about the same issues day-in and day-out. When work gets tough and they’ve seen you at your worst, becoming best friends happens naturally. Always keep an open mind when meeting new friends at work because you never know who you’ll hit it off with.

— Ally T.

My work bestie and I actually had the same first day. She was hired for full-time, and at the time I was temping. Our office only has five people, and being the newbies helped us to bond. But, what really sealed the deal was we had to go together to Philly for a work orientation for four days. We carpooled the three hours down and back together, and once we were out of office, we could really talk uncensored and get to know each other. Then we were in headquarters office for four days, with hotel rooms across from each other, so we started each day together and had a buddy the whole time we were at orientation.

She is older than me and gave me tons of advice about working in a corporate environment, how to get more out of your job, and to not be afraid to ask for what you want (Girl power!). When we got back our co-worker goes, 'So are you two sick of each other yet? I remember hating everyone after I got back.' We both looked at each other, and said, 'Not at all!' And we’ve been close ever since. My advice to someone trying to get a work BFF is to just be yourself and try to hang out outside of work. Food is a great buffer; go out for lunch or dinner if you can, and ask about them when you’re there, that way you can find common interests. It's sort of like a first date!

— Steph L.

These responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity.