FLAVIA POWELL – THE VALUE OF FRIENDSHIP
The values of a friendship 🙂
Ever wondered what the role of your friends is? Is it to provide a social life? Is it to point out what you’re doing wrong so you can do better next time? Is it to encourage and support you? Is it to fill in the loneliness? What makes good friends so special to us and what defines a bad friend?
Here’s what I have found over the last few years of investing in good friends and in positive relationships!
We all live by our own values . Nobody can decide whether our values are right or wrong. They are what we stand for and what we live by based on our past experiences, learnings, expectations and dreams for the future . We all have a blueprint in our minds of how things should be and of how people should behave but when they don’t fit into our blueprint we struggle to deal with it and conflicts arise. We are all unique individuals . Our past experiences have created those beliefs and values within us. It doesn’t mean that they can’t be changed. They certainly can be providing one wishes to change them. However, let’s assume people are happy with their own values and individuality .What happens when you try to convince a friend that their values and ideas of the world are wrong? Most of them push back. We all want to believe that we are right. To win an argument, one has to compromise their values and beliefs .That in itself will build resentment so another conflict is ready to bubble up.
To build powerful relationships, people’s individuality must be accepted and respected. Talking to a person and to their belief system is vital . When one doesn’t fit another’s expectations and they are reminded of that, the feeling of “ not good enough” creeps in. It is of course easier to surround yourselves with people who share your values or with people who recognise the values which do not serve them well and are looking to change them.
In my eyes, the role of my friends is to support me, empower me, make me smile, encourage me and radiate positive energy. I like to feel happy in their presence.
An unsuitable friend to me is someone who always criticises me, gossips about me or others, holds me back from achieving my dreams or drains my energy.
In conclusion, I found that surrounding myself with people who share my values or if they don’t share them they totally respect them is vital for building powerful, long lasting friendships. The people who loudly disagree with my values create conflict and unhappiness and as happiness is my favourite thing in the world, it’s a no brainer 🙂 .
Who are your friends and what value to they bring to enhance your life?
Filter out the negativity and you will attract amazing people .
Keep smiling 🙂
Flavia xxx
