How can I work professionally with a colleague I strongly dislike?

It is completely normal to feel drained or frustrated when you have to work closely with someone you strongly dislike. Collaboration is often required even when chemistry is poor, so the goal is not to force friendship. The useful aim is a steady, professional working relationship that protects your focus, your reputation, and the quality of the shared work.

Start by separating the person from the process. Write down the concrete work touchpoints you cannot avoid: handoffs, meetings, reviews, approvals, or shared deadlines. For each one, define a simple default: who owns what, when something is due, what “done” looks like, and how you will communicate. Prefer short written updates over open-ended conversation when tension is high. A brief status note, a clear request, and a documented decision reduce room for misinterpretation and keep the exchange about the task rather than the personality clash.

In the moment, keep your tone neutral and your language specific. Use “I” statements about the work (“I need the draft by Thursday so I can finish the client summary”) instead of character judgments. If conflict flares, pause, restate the shared goal, and propose one next step rather than replaying the whole history. Boundaries help too: limit side conversations, avoid venting about them in shared channels, and do not recruit allies into the dispute. If their behavior crosses into harassment, discrimination, or policy violations, document dates, facts, and impact, and use your company’s formal reporting path rather than trying to fix that alone.

If the friction keeps affecting deliverables or your well-being, ask your manager for help in practical terms: clearer roles, a different handoff path, a shared checklist, or a mediated working agreement. Frame it as a collaboration problem to solve, not a character complaint. Over time, many people find that structure, predictable communication, and emotional distance make an unavoidable partnership far more manageable—even when genuine liking never arrives.