Working with people you like is always great. Working with people you can actually be friends with? Even better. I've always struggled to work with people that I can also maintain friendships with. Mostly because I hate making new friends and I'm not the best at it.

But in the last couple of years, I've gotten to know a few of my coworkers well enough to actually enjoy working with them. But as my time with them comes to a close, I wanted to write this to thank them for a few things.

Thank you for forcing me to talk to you.

I hate making new friends. I especially hate making small talk. But you managed to yank me out of my thick shell one way or another and got me talking to you like I've known you for years. You've gotten me to share secrets and trust you for advice. You've turned me into someone that actually wants to hear about what you have to say and give friendly advice. It's actually helped me in other areas of my life too. I'm a lot more talkative now than I ever used to be.

Thank you for making me laugh.

I love coming into work sometimes knowing that I'm going to struggle to be in a bad mood. Whether it's because we're telling sub-par jokes back and forth or something is just really really funny. When I'm having a bad day I know I can count on my work pals to brighten up my mood and make me smile. Even if it's just for that couple of hours.

Thank you for the advice.

My life is a mess. But my work friends seem to know what to say to help me figure it out. I can rely on you for solid advice. Even if it may prompt some teasing later. There has yet to be a situation too problematic to help each other with.

Thank you for reminding me to be great.

Sometimes a text in the morning reminding me to "make the day my b*tch" is exactly what I need to get my head out of the sand and make the day great. Sometimes just a simple "you're going to crush the day" being exchanged in passing is enough to get the day going on a good note.

Thank you for reminding me not to take life too seriously.

I always think the world is ending over the smallest of things. I freak out and go on rants or I send a million text messages in a row because I can't stop typing. Giving me some crap for taking the small stuff too seriously is what I need sometimes to remember to take everything day by day and calm down.

Thank you for dealing with me.

I am a lot to handle sometimes. My text messages are always 3 pages long and sometimes I don't make any sense. Sometimes I forget the basics of my job or in a hurry, I make a mistake and need help correcting it. But somehow my work friends take it quite well. Even if it means I am going to be teased for my quirks every once in a while.

Thank you for making work tolerable.

While our job isn't the toughest one out there, sometimes it can be awful. It can get tedious answering the same question a million times in a row or unjamming a printer that I swear was fine 2 seconds ago when I left it. But having work friends that I look forward to being around makes it much more exciting to go to work every day.

I am forever grateful for my work friends and I'll miss you dearly as we all part ways.