Balancing friendships as an adult can definitely be tough, especially when you’re trying to balance everything in your life. Life is definitely like being a juggler, and as someone who cannot juggle to save her life I struggle.
Over the last year of lockdowns, I’ve definitely learned a lot about how to be a present friend when it comes to being separated. How am I learning to balance these friendships?
Look after the friendships that matter
I think that back in the day we focused on the number of friends we had, like with Facebook, we would add everyone we had ever met. As you get older, it is all about the quality of friends we have.
There are levels to friendships. There are friends, and then there are friends that you can count on, on your worst days. These are the people who will:
- support you through your darkest times
- let you be yourself
- let you speak your mind
- be honest with each other
- let you cry when you need to.
Those are the people you need in your life, the people you need to surround yourself with and the friendships you need to nurture.
Sometimes there are people you genuinely need to cut out of your life, maybe they’re toxic friendships, maybe they’re the kind of people don’t make the effort with you as much as you do with them, and that is okay. It is okay to let go of those friendships.
Try and stay in contact as much as possible
I’m not saying you would be able to contact that person every single day, I mean that would be completely impossible to be able to message someone every single day. But there are a few ways that you can stay in contact, even if it is just once a month.
The right friends will understand that you cannot message each other everyday, or talk everyday. Some people might be juggling families, full time jobs and just trying to deal with the day to day stuff. It is so tough, and I am definitely trying to learn to stay in contact better. Sometimes it can just be a little Facebook or WhatsApp message, or it could be a phone call for a catch up.
I feel like the last year we haven’t been able to be together as much as we would have liked, so we can sometimes do things like a virtual meet up over Zoom. Those times with your friends is so important, and it can really help your overall wellbeing. I’m definitely still that inconsistent friend though.
Make plans
We all need stuff to look forward to after over a year of lockdowns, so making plans can be so good for your overall wellbeing. Make plans to do something fun, even if it is just a catch up over a coffee or a chance to video call, whatever that may be, find something that you both can enjoy.
If you can’t make the plans that week, it is okay. Life happens, things come up, life doesn’t always go to plan and that is just the way it is. True friends will understand that, they will check in on you, support you and arrange for another day, it is totally okay in my book.
Juggling friendships is hard. Sometimes those friendships come into your life for a reason, and other times they leave. That is okay.
How do you juggle friendships? Let me know in the comments!
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I feel like I am so with you in this blog post sweetie. It can be hard at times!
Danielle | thereluctantblogger.co.uk
It can be hard at times to keep that balance of a busy life and friendships, but I loved reading this post and I love the advice you gave! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
This post is so important! As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realised it’s so much more important to have a few really good friends than lots of friends and these tips are so great to help maintain that xx
Lovely post! These are the things I do to keep my friendship forever alive. Even tho it’s hard to meet up with my galpals during this pandemic, we contact each other and have a virtual Girl’s Day Out. In fact, we already plan an all girls party when the pandemic ends.
Juggling friendships can be so hard and from going through mental health issues and then lockdown, it has definitely taught me who my true friends are. I totally feel you with adding as many friends as possible on Facebook when you were younger – I just deleted my Instagram account that I made when I was 12, made a new one and now follow the people in my current part of life & people I actually talk to. It’s made social media a much more positive place for me. Loved this post (sorry for the massive para!) x
Love your tips. I started to prioritise the relationships that were positive for me a few years ago and it ended up streamlining my friendship groups in the best possible ways. The friends I love I always make time for!
Rosie
I’ve definitely struggled with this over the years so this was a great reminder for me to nurture my friendships, especially as most of them are overseas back ‘home’ in the UK. Thanks for sharing!
These are such good ways to balance a busy life and friendships. Focusing on the friendships that matter is such a good one. Not all friendships are worth it lol. Juggling friendships with a busy life can be stressful. I have ended up ignoring my friends unintentionally a lot of times due to how busy I am but this was a gentle reminder to balance things.
Great post! I love your point about focusing on friendships that matter – it truly is quality over quantity. Making plans is also super important. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Amie,
You are quite right – lockdown has been tough on a lot of friendships. Hopefully, as things begin to return to some sort of normality, we can begin to make plans to catch up with friends in person rather than virtually or on the ‘phone.
Lovely post! Thank you for sharing this! I totally agree with all of these points! Lockdown has shown me who my real friends are and I always make sure to check up on them!
Definitely trying these out! it’s often difficult to spend quality time with friends when you have other things taking up your time.
Great post! I think just staying in contact is a great way to stay connected, thank you for sharing these tips x
I’m so with you on this! My friendship group in my twenties compared to now is two different things! I recently whittled my ‘facebook friends’ down as well and now mainly only have family on there. It’s been so beneficial! Having a more streamlined feed is brilliant. I try and send a weekly message to my friends now just to check in. Everyone’s got busy lives but I think making the effort to keep in touch is so worthwhile.
Claire.X
http://www.clairemac.co.uk
I’m so with you on this! I think It’s so important that it’s both parties which is making the effort and it’s not all one sided. Make plans together as making memories is so special. I make sure I always check in with my besties! Thank you for sharing this Xo
Elle – ellegracedeveson.com
I completelyq agree with all these! I think that I realised only growing up that it’s so important to communicate and remain in touch often even if you don’t have the chance to meet! Definitely realised lately that some people will always be there no matter what and have to cherish them and be there for them x
These are great ideas on how to hang on to friendships. I can’t emphasize on the importance of actually setting plans with friends – otherwise it’s so easy to drift apart. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve recently began to only prioritize relationships that I find are worth it. Communication can be so important! Thanks for sharing these tips x
Thanks for sharing, these tips, I have friendships that are at a drift due to the pandemic, I do hope to keep them going 🙂
Balancing life and friendship can sometimes be hard. I always make sure that my group of friends and I are frequently meeting and checking on each other.
Antonia || Sweet Passions
Such a great post! Great tips on how to keep a better balance. I have definitely been struggling with the full time travel and keeping in touch. Will definitely take these in mind 🙂
Thank you for talking about this in a post because it’s definitely something I’m always trying to work on. I love what you said about looking after the friendships that matter and I completely agree! It’s always quality over quantity and cherishing those special friendships is more important than having several acquaintances.
It can be so hard to juggle spending time with friends with everything else that life requires. I have started to prioritise those that are closest to me and those that reciprocate effort. Time is valuable and should be spent on relationships that are two way.
Thank you for such a great post!
Em x