Jennifer Newman: 3 tips to navigate office romance minefields

Falling in love can set our hearts-a-flutter, but no one said love was ever easy — especially when it occurs in the workplace.

As Valentine's Day approaches, The Early Edition's workplace psychologist Jennifer Newman offers some input on how to foolproof your workplace romance.

"A lot of employers do advise against them, but people meet and they fall in love," she said. "Recognize that it can be a minefield and you have to think ahead."

Curb those impulses

Newman says even as you're head over heels in love, it's important to think with the head, not with the heart.

"You might think that using company equipment to profess your love is a good idea, but watch out for that," she said. "I worked with an employee who flirted using company equipment and he was sending love notes to his special person on the company's cell phone and via email. And of course the boss got wind of it and asked him to stop doing that."

Stay professional

Public displays of affection make everyone uncomfortable, but so do arguments, said Newman. Co-workers often disagree on work-related issues anyway, but things can get messy when you're romantically involved.

"Of course the rest of the team starts feeling awkward," she said. "Instead of it simply being about discussing something people aren't agreeing on, now we're talking about who's siding with who, and it becomes a big loyalty issue, and the team suffers and so does the work."

Beware the green-eyed monster 

Newman says workers often find themselves uncomfortable when their significant other is working with someone who they may think of as a threat to the relationship

"I encountered a situation where there were workers in a retail store who were falling in love," she recalls. "One was serving an attractive customer, the other one got jealous and so they had to make some decisions about what shifts they're going to work on together. It just causes too much tension."

To hear more from workplace psychologist Jennifer Newman, click the audio labelled: Office romance survival guide