How to Keep a Friend
Loosen up., Tell the truth., Keep up your social media presence., Keep it brief., Schedule when you will chat., Remain flexible., Find something to bond over., Take a vacation together., Share responsibility., Keep yourself clean.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Loosen up.
Don’t hold on to grudges and give your friends the benefit of the doubt.
Don’t assume that your friend is trying to spite you or doesn’t care about your relationship.
Consider that your friends have their own lives and that their schedules may change on the spur of the moment.Give your friend time to explain herself or let her know directly how you’re feeling.
She may not know how much you have been thinking about the situation. -
Step 2: Tell the truth.
Always be as honest as possible and don’t mislead your friends.
You have to build a sense of trust in order to have a strong friendship.
Your friend will probably reciprocate and share things with you in confidence.Rather than lie, let your friend know why you feel uncomfortable sharing something with her.
She will appreciate that you have thought about your friendship and feel that this may be something you need to deal with on your own. , If you can’t find the time to catch up over the phone or face-to-face, you can still send updates via social media.
Many platforms allow you to simply Like someone’s status and include a small comment.
Even if your friend just posted something about the dinner he had, Like it and post a comment similar to “mmm, looks good, we’re overdue for dinner”.
This will let him know that you’re thinking about him. , Some friends find it difficult to keep up because it may seem like you haven't spoken in a long time and the thought of reconnecting becomes overwhelming.
You may feel the need to send a lengthy message or chat for hours, but sending brief messages more frequently well help alleviate this.
Talk about short trivial things so that neither of you feel obligated to talk about heavy emotional topics that tend to take more time. , Placing important appointments in your calendar ensures that you don’t forget and are prepared.
Whether it’s a video chat, phone call, meeting, or email, make sure to schedule it into your calendar and follow through.Video calls are great, especially for friends that live far away. , It’s understandable if life gets in the way of catching up.
Don’t be mad if your friend has to reschedule because of work or family.
People can get very busy when they have big life changes like having kids or building a career.Ask when a good time to reschedule would be or just leave it up to your friend if she is very busy. , Rekindle a shared hobby or interest.
You may also find something new to bond over.
People grow up and learn about different things.
You can take up something that interests you both or experiment trying to find something you both enjoy.
It’s never too late to learn something new.
Doing something nostalgic that you use to do early on the friendship is always a good way to renew your bond. , You can visit your old haunts or bring families together for a summer road trip.
You can also schedule a vacation around a shared interest like sports or music.
Taking time off together allows you to focus on the friendship.Don’t try to force a vacation on a friend who has a lot of commitments like family or a career.
It puts too much pressure on the vacation.
She may resent you if things don’t go as planned. , Don’t assign blame but rather be accountable and put in the effort to maintain your friendship.
There’s no sense to find reasons as to why your friendship is failing.Reach out whenever you feel like it so that you don’t feel like you have to take turns.
Be comfortable saying things like, “it’d be great to spend time with you if you’re free.”, Make sure you always have good hygiene and are well-groomed.
You don’t want to be an embarrassment.
Your friend will want the best version of you and that includes taking care of yourself. -
Step 3: Keep up your social media presence.
-
Step 4: Keep it brief.
-
Step 5: Schedule when you will chat.
-
Step 6: Remain flexible.
-
Step 7: Find something to bond over.
-
Step 8: Take a vacation together.
-
Step 9: Share responsibility.
-
Step 10: Keep yourself clean.
Detailed Guide
Don’t hold on to grudges and give your friends the benefit of the doubt.
Don’t assume that your friend is trying to spite you or doesn’t care about your relationship.
Consider that your friends have their own lives and that their schedules may change on the spur of the moment.Give your friend time to explain herself or let her know directly how you’re feeling.
She may not know how much you have been thinking about the situation.
Always be as honest as possible and don’t mislead your friends.
You have to build a sense of trust in order to have a strong friendship.
Your friend will probably reciprocate and share things with you in confidence.Rather than lie, let your friend know why you feel uncomfortable sharing something with her.
She will appreciate that you have thought about your friendship and feel that this may be something you need to deal with on your own. , If you can’t find the time to catch up over the phone or face-to-face, you can still send updates via social media.
Many platforms allow you to simply Like someone’s status and include a small comment.
Even if your friend just posted something about the dinner he had, Like it and post a comment similar to “mmm, looks good, we’re overdue for dinner”.
This will let him know that you’re thinking about him. , Some friends find it difficult to keep up because it may seem like you haven't spoken in a long time and the thought of reconnecting becomes overwhelming.
You may feel the need to send a lengthy message or chat for hours, but sending brief messages more frequently well help alleviate this.
Talk about short trivial things so that neither of you feel obligated to talk about heavy emotional topics that tend to take more time. , Placing important appointments in your calendar ensures that you don’t forget and are prepared.
Whether it’s a video chat, phone call, meeting, or email, make sure to schedule it into your calendar and follow through.Video calls are great, especially for friends that live far away. , It’s understandable if life gets in the way of catching up.
Don’t be mad if your friend has to reschedule because of work or family.
People can get very busy when they have big life changes like having kids or building a career.Ask when a good time to reschedule would be or just leave it up to your friend if she is very busy. , Rekindle a shared hobby or interest.
You may also find something new to bond over.
People grow up and learn about different things.
You can take up something that interests you both or experiment trying to find something you both enjoy.
It’s never too late to learn something new.
Doing something nostalgic that you use to do early on the friendship is always a good way to renew your bond. , You can visit your old haunts or bring families together for a summer road trip.
You can also schedule a vacation around a shared interest like sports or music.
Taking time off together allows you to focus on the friendship.Don’t try to force a vacation on a friend who has a lot of commitments like family or a career.
It puts too much pressure on the vacation.
She may resent you if things don’t go as planned. , Don’t assign blame but rather be accountable and put in the effort to maintain your friendship.
There’s no sense to find reasons as to why your friendship is failing.Reach out whenever you feel like it so that you don’t feel like you have to take turns.
Be comfortable saying things like, “it’d be great to spend time with you if you’re free.”, Make sure you always have good hygiene and are well-groomed.
You don’t want to be an embarrassment.
Your friend will want the best version of you and that includes taking care of yourself.
About the Author
Dennis Perez
Committed to making crafts accessible and understandable for everyone.
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