We have lost the true meaning friendship. It is often confused with many types of relationships, including those we see occasionally, those with which we have frequent chats, and virtual friends.

Social media and especially the creation of a fictional concept of friendship has been facilitated by it. One who “likes” our messages is a friend. He or she doesn’t count the quality of friendship, but the number. And he boasts about a social media page that has so many likes, he is automatically considered to have many “friends”.

True friendship is something entirely different.

What does it mean to be true friend?

Friendship can be defined as “mutual affection, continuous and active between person and person, born out of a choice that takes account of the conformity or characters and a long-standing custom.”

Friendship can be a choice. It is a motivated preference that we give to one person over to a thousand.

It is a shared character, of shared values and of similar intentions.

Friendship is the sharing of similarity. It is comparison and commitment to pursuing common goals.

It could be a feeling.

It is an equal relationship based on respect and sincerity, trust, mutual availability, and esteem.

Why do we need friends?

A friend is someone who will stand by you, understand you, and who supports you. Even though we can feel well even when we are alone, there is a risk that our minds will be occupied with our thoughts and isolate us from the rest. It is possible to keep in touch with the outside by having a friend.

What is the average time it takes to make friends?

The University of Kansas has published a study in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships that quantifies:

  • For an occasional friendship to develop, we need to be with someone for 50 hours.
  • For friendship to be discussed, it takes 90 hours.
  • To be able to call ourselves a friend, we need to spend 200 hours together.

How to make a friend

To build a lasting friendship, it takes time, interest and closeness. Spend time together, be open to listening, and show sincerity when confronting the other.

How long can friendship last?

It is difficult to know. As with all human experiences, friendship is a response to a need we feel at a particular time in our lives. This can be dictated by our circumstances or specific needs. Life evolutions can lead to changes in our thinking and in our needs. People who share a significant part of our lives with us can become distant from us.

It will be a great memory of a part of our road together and a testament to the importance of each other in our lives. Perhaps nostalgia. They are normal stages in life.

Friendship is forever when it’s true

Don’t be sad if the thought of losing your best friend makes it difficult. The University of Texas has released a very encouraging study that shows friendship can last forever. A study of 7600 friends found that friendships can be irreparable if they last for more than 8 years. The “evaluation phase”, in effect, ends at this point. It is clear that there are fewer clashes, and friendship can be considered to have been acquired.