Seven Habits Good Friends Have

We all have all kinds of friends. Some we have known all our lives and others we have only just met. Some friends come and go, but somehow they are always with us.

However, what makes a good friend?

Usually we see a good friend as someone who is always there for us. However, this is often not a realistic requirement at all. We’re not talking about friends who aren’t with you at certain important times in your life because they just don’t want to.

Your friends may also just live their own lives and try to achieve their own goals.

If you find it difficult to distinguish between regular friends and close friends, here are a few tips to help you with this:

1. A good friend knows you need time and space to grow

Good friends aren’t just happy for you when you achieve your goals. Good friends are also the ones who motivate you to achieve your goals. They are aware that this may create distance between you, but they will always be there for you because they want you to grow as a person.

This means growing personally, professionally and as a person.

There are a few ways to find out if someone is a good friend. One way is to see if this friend is a good motivation for you to go beyond your limits. For example, if you say you’re afraid of what might happen to you, a good friend will guide you through your process.

At the same time, he will push you to get over your fears and step outside your comfort zone.

Of course, a good friend also hopes that you will see that he must also pursue his own goals.

2. Your relationship is natural

Another quality a good friend has is that you don’t have to force this person to do anything. Quite the contrary. Between good friends, everything happens almost naturally.

There are almost never any awkward silences between good friends and good friends almost never feel the need to plan everything properly. It’s the same as with a love affair. Planning and other things just happen naturally, unforced.

You know that besides good friends you can just be yourself without any problems or limitations. A good friend will not expect you to be perfect and you too know that he is just human. You accept each other and grow together.

3. Your friendship stands the test of time

A good friend doesn’t have to be with you all your life. Sometimes just the opposite; you both go your own way. When you have time, you meet up, you call each other and you motivate each other. 

These are the kind of friends who don’t see each other for years and then meet again after all these years and it feels like no time has passed at all. For them, their friendship is not conditional. These kinds of friendships are not based on social status, careers or other factors.

It does not matter who you are, who you have become or what problems you have experienced. A good friend will always feel the same.

4. A good friend will tell you what he thinks

Not everyone will let you know if they actually disagree with what you’re doing or if they think you’re not doing something right. However, a good friend will always tell you if you do something wrong. Good friends will also tell you if you make a mistake.

They do this because they value you as a person and they want you to grow. They will not try to change your attitude or choices; good friends know that this is entirely up to you.

If it turns out that they were right and you were wrong, they won’t rub this in your face, but will be there to support you and help you get through this too.

5. They will always remember and keep in touch with you

Earlier in this article, we mentioned that good friends can go their own way in life and still maintain their friendship at the same time. This is because good friends will somehow always remember each other. Today, technological developments ensure that good friends can still be well involved in each other’s lives despite possible distances.

These kind of friends will send you an email when you least expect it. Or will start a conversation with you on your social network page. This way you will always be aware of their plans and dreams.

They don’t expect you to be in constant contact with them. However, don’t forget that sometimes your friends need to talk to you too. Sometimes good friends share good times with each other.

And at other times, you get the chance to help a good friend through a bad time by talking to him.

6. Good friends share things with each other

They may both be on the other side of the world, but will always share their ups and downs. Did you just graduate? Have you recently given birth to your first child?

Good friends want to be a part of this kind of experience. They may not be able to just catch the first plane to be with you in person, but they would probably like to see a photo or video of the moment.

However, this does not only apply to the positive experiences in your life. Even when you lose a loved one or are divorced, a good friend will want to be there for you. They will be there for you as much as possible in these kinds of situations.

If you have a good friend, you know that someone is always thinking of you somewhere.

7. Good friends accept you as you are

We all have our problems. However, a good friend is able to accept you regardless of your problems. Good friends will not try to change you to fit a certain environment or time. On the contrary, good friends will help you to be yourself.

The purpose of good friends is to help you change for the better. This means that they leave it up to you to decide when and how you will change.

What about you? Are you a good friend? Are you blessed enough to count on a good friend? Have you already let this friend know how much you appreciate him? Use this article as a starter to get back in touch with a good friend today!