Importance of Friendship and How to Make Friends

Despite decades of technological advancements, we’re still primitive at heart and love to interact with each other.

However, civilization and modernity will never be able to undo thousands of years of evolutionary conditioning.

We've basically managed to make it this far by forming alliances and building friendships with each other, wars notwithstanding.

The evolutionary reasons behind that are very interesting, but that’s not what we’re going to discuss today.

Our focus will be on how to make good friends with those around you and what that can do for the quality of your life. Let's get started.

Part 1: Friendships Improve Your Quality Of Life

When the going gets tough, only the tough get going, but what if that tough someone is with a group of cheerful, supportive friends? It becomes easier to push through life's most difficult obstacles.

Yes, some battles are fought alone, but in general, you need to have the support you need to keep going. That's where friends come in.

Going through a divorce, losing a job, or trying to figure out your next step in life all become much easier to handle when you have reliable friends you can turn to. A group of like-minded individuals gives everyone in it a sense of belonging, which is a great thing to have when traumatic life events such as the above occur.

A good group of friends will pull you up and give you the nudge you need to improve, so it becomes easier to stay motivated and go after what you want. When all of you are in the mindset where the success of everyone is vital, great things happen.

This goes back to the idea that emotions are contagious. The more there are positive emotions, the more they spread and infect people in their vicinity. The same applies when talking about negative emotions, but your friends should never be a negative bunch.

Your mental health improves. If you suffer from depression or any other mental illness, it becomes much easier to cope when you have friends.

This also applies to physical ailments such as heart disease, diabetes, or chronic illnesses of any sort. Friends make it easier to fight those things.

The same applies if you're normal but don't have anyone to talk to. Loneliness is destructive, and your friends will be there for you if you need someone to listen to you.

Part 2: The Friendship Manual

Now that you're aware of why making friends is awesome, let's turn our attention to how you can do that properly:

1. Listen:

The best way to make friends with people is by listening. People love to have a friendly ear they can turn to in times of need. Making friends this way ensures the other person feels validated and acknowledged, which will secretly build feelings of rapport for you.

Moreover, it's a great skill to have when things don't work out. When you listen more than you speak, you don't reveal too much about yourself. Again, this helps if your friendship turns sour or your friend turns out to not be a friend at all.

Listening is also a great conversation starter as well. You essentially begin a new conversation with a stranger by hearing them speak. How cool is that?

This is especially useful for someone who’s not good at social interactions. It helps them come out of their shells slowly and exposes them to people and their nuances.

2. Try to be social:

Although this might sound too general, we're talking about doing specific things here. If you have a hobby you put your heart into, pursue that at a club or social gathering.

It's a great way to connect with like-minded individuals and develop deeper connections. You also develop better discipline and stronger motivation when pursuing that activity, just like we discussed.

Some examples here include joining a club, attending workshops, learning guitar with a group of people, or going to the gym.

Volunteering is also an amazing way to connect with people and bond over humanitarian/worthy causes.

3. Meet people online:

The globalised world we live in has brought us all closer. There's no telling how many people in the world share the same values as you and would love to meet someone like them.

Try to avoid social media channels since they tend to be places filled with political discourse, negativity, and propaganda. Instead, aim to find an online community where your real-life interests can be pursued.

If you like chess, it makes sense to attend Discord channels where chess players discuss the game. If you're more into cat memes, look for your niche in places where valuable discussions and mutual respect are the norm.

Meeting people online can be a gamble. You might run into your true love unintentionally, or you might be the victim of an online scam.

Either way, you need to exercise a degree of caution when interacting with people from behind a screen.

4. Focus on quality:

Like anything in life, too much of anything can become bad. The same applies to friends. When you're friends with everyone, you're essentially friends with no one.

It's cliché, but it's true most of the time. You need to pick your comrades right, and this means you need to have a small, reliable social circle you know will have your back.

This process requires a lot of try and catch because you rarely will come across lifelong friends on your first try. Instead, what usually happens is you keep meeting people all the time, and some of them stick around for one reason or another.

That's a cue for you to build on that foundation and develop your friendship. Quality friends are made during the most unexpected of times, so don't worry about who your “real” friend is because that tends to solve itself quickly.

What you should focus on is having a good time and hoping people feel the same about you.

5. Smile:

This last tip is the simplest of them all. The best way to make friends is to smile. A smile is a powerful expression of comfort, down-to-earthness, and coolness. When you smile, you're inviting people to join in on the fun.

It's also an excellent ice-breaker when someone feels uneasy about you. Many people reject outright invitations to hang out with someone they barely know, but they'll still smile at you when given the chance, which will help you build a foundation for a more involved friendship.

A good smile is always supplemented with eye contact. We're not going to discuss body language specifics here, but you need to look people in the eye when you smile.

This gives them the feeling that you're the real deal, and they'll have no choice but to accommodate you because of how confident you are.

In Conclusion:

Friendship and a superb quality of life go hand in hand. You really risk nothing by becoming friends with people.

The benefits are too many to count. Your friends will be there for you when tough situations in life befall you, and they'll push you to become better with each passing day.

Making friends is hard work. This article has outlined some key ideas you can implement to expand your social circle and develop deeper friendships. You still need to put in the work yourself and do your best to meet people and connect with them.