If you're like me and practically everyone else out there, you have at least one convenience friendship.
I've given the name "convenience friendships" to those in which one or both people are in them for their own convenience.
Now, some friendships don't start off as convenience friendships, but time, distance, and shifting priorities water them down to the point that both individuals may no longer identify with each other.
We all have that "friend" who calls when she wants a favor, but seems to vanish into thin air when she herself is needed. Some people like keeping certain friendships alive for the sole purpose of getting a ride or loan when the situation calls for it.
It's these kinds of people we must steer clear from!
Why be in a friendship with someone who manipulates you for their personal gain? Even if you were once great friends, it's not worth it to keep the person around on hopes she will morph back to the person she was before.
Let's face it: It's extremely difficult to get someone to change. If you detect that the friendship is no longer what it once was -- and that it's become little more than a convenience friendship -- you might be better off cutting him or her loose and going in search of new buddies.
I understand that sometimes a friendship of convenience can be mutually beneficial. For example, your friend, a plumber by trade, might be your go-to guy every time you have a leaky faucet, and he might seek your help for assistance with, say, resume writing.
If both people are content with such an arrangement, then I say go for it. It's only when one person might want something more substantive out of the friendship that problems could be on the horizon.
Do you have any convenience friendships? Why or why not?
I've given the name "convenience friendships" to those in which one or both people are in them for their own convenience.
Now, some friendships don't start off as convenience friendships, but time, distance, and shifting priorities water them down to the point that both individuals may no longer identify with each other.
We all have that "friend" who calls when she wants a favor, but seems to vanish into thin air when she herself is needed. Some people like keeping certain friendships alive for the sole purpose of getting a ride or loan when the situation calls for it.
It's these kinds of people we must steer clear from!
Why be in a friendship with someone who manipulates you for their personal gain? Even if you were once great friends, it's not worth it to keep the person around on hopes she will morph back to the person she was before.
Let's face it: It's extremely difficult to get someone to change. If you detect that the friendship is no longer what it once was -- and that it's become little more than a convenience friendship -- you might be better off cutting him or her loose and going in search of new buddies.
I understand that sometimes a friendship of convenience can be mutually beneficial. For example, your friend, a plumber by trade, might be your go-to guy every time you have a leaky faucet, and he might seek your help for assistance with, say, resume writing.
If both people are content with such an arrangement, then I say go for it. It's only when one person might want something more substantive out of the friendship that problems could be on the horizon.
Do you have any convenience friendships? Why or why not?
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