How Does Your Friendship Grow?

How Does Your Friendship Grow?

Our guest Author today is Bill Dorman! If you’ve been around Life, for instance for any length of time, you already know Bill as he is always actively engaged in the conversation here. Bill is an insurance broker by profession who also enjoys networking and adding value to his relationships. I think it’s fitting that Bill’s topic is friendship!

As we experience this incredible journey called life, how do you determine which friends make it into your circle? Once in, what do you do to keep them there?

Are you a hunter or a farmer?

There is a difference between the two.  Are you out there bouncing around hoping to ‘bag’ as many friends as you can? More is better, right? I’m sure you can never have too many. Do you prefer superficial so you don’t have to expend a lot of energy?

Or, do you value your relationships and take time to nurture them? Can your view of relationships be described like farming where it is rooted in a rich soil consisting of a blend of mutual trust, respect and shared values?

Acquaintances are a dime a dozen, but a true friend is priceless.

How big is your heart?

You are likable, your Outlook is full of names, but who are your ‘true’ friends?

Did you know out of 100 people you know, only 16 will consider you a close friend; they really like you. These are the ones that will be there if you need them, call or reach out to you on your birthday and can get you on the phone anytime.

You might think this is a pretty small number out of 100, but put it to the test. The reality is you might find that number much smaller.

Do you really feel, however, your heart is only so big and you can only let so many people in? You still have family to include too, right?

You sure are heavy

What kinds of friends do you have; high maintenance or low maintenance? Do you feel totally exhausted after an encounter or enriched? What would your friends say after a conversation with you? Do you bring value?

Maintaining a relationship takes work (sounds like marriage, huh). Neither party wants to feel like they are doing all the heavy lifting. For it to be a healthy relationship there has to be a certain amount of give and take and the willingness to reach out and communicate. With the proliferation of social media it should certainly be easier now than ever.

Now, that is a true friend

I’m going to give full credit to Dino Dogan on this one, but I thought it was classic, appropriate and my kind of humor. Who are your real friends; ‘well, I probably have 10 that will help me move furniture, but only 2 that will help me move a body’. That kind of puts it in perspective, huh?

How about you

Are you a farmer or a hunter? Is it worth the effort to be a ‘true’ friend?

photo credit: Tambak the Jaguar

Scroll down to share your thoughts.
But first, please share! Thanks!

About The Author