Why Friendships Are So Important in Our Lives

Friendship. It’s a word that we hear tossed around very often. 

Have you ever wondered why friendship is so important in our life?

What do you think about, or should I say who do you think about when you hear the word friendship? 

Does anyone remember the song “Friends” by the group Whodini? Only me? Oh, ok. Well, let me just sing a little bit of it to you. Okay, okay, I’m kidding. 

But seriously, let’s take a moment to think about the lyrics: 

“Friends. How many of us have them? Friends. Ones we can depend on.” 

When I hear that song, I smile (and dance a little). I smile because I can proudly boast that I have the most awesome friends in the world! 

In fact, I want to take a moment to say thanks to my girlfriends for being their wonderful selves and for influencing my life in such a positive way. 

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Why friendship is important

BetterUp says that friendships are good for our mental health and overall happiness.

Since I was a young girl, I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by the best girl crews ever. 

Additionally, I grew up with a front-row seat watching my mom and her gal pals write the book on how to be great girlfriends.

I watched them love, support, and encourage each other through all of life’s ups and downs. 

For years, I watched them be there for each other with no expectation of anything in return. Because of my mom and her friends, I have been able to develop and maintain lasting friendships of my own. 

And because of that, I’ve been able to experience the reasons why friendship is important in life. It goes far beyond moral support and encouragement. 

In fact, having good friends can positively affect almost every area in our lives.

Let’s look at a few…

12 Benefits of Friendship 

1. Friends Help Improve Your Social Skills

Having a good friend group is a way to improve your social skills. Friends communicate with each other regularly and each time you talk to your friends, you get an opportunity to grow as a better communicator. Friends have conversations about a variety of topics. With each conversation, you are developing your listening skills and your nonverbal communication skills. Depending on the topic of conversation, you might also be improving your cooperation skills. 

When you’re friends with someone, you share all types of information with each other. My friends are amongst the first people I call when I have good news, when I have bad news, and when I have no news at all. Those interactions help you learn appropriate ways to respond. Those skills can be transferred to other life situations.

These conversation starters for friends are a great addition to a fun girls’ night!

2. Friendships Act as Natural Stress Relievers 

As previously stated, I call my friends when I have bad news.  Why?  I call my friends because I know that they are going to help me feel better (instantly) about whatever is not going so well in my life.  Friends are natural stress relievers.  We turn to them when we feel overwhelmed and when we need to vent.  

Tip: Hobbies are also great stress relievers.

3. Friends Provide Mental and Emotional Support

Sometimes, it’s nice to know that you have someone in your corner when you need mental and emotional support.  Having friends pretty much guarantees that you’ll have that when you need it.  It’s not always about your friend giving advice or having the answer to life’s problems.  It’s just nice to know that you have someone encouraging, accepting, and loving you when you need it. 

4. Good Friends Help You Feel More Confident 

I don’t know about your friends, but my friends are my personal cheerleaders!  If I’m ever feeling down or unsure about something, my gal pals are the ones to help me to be more confident and courageous.

5. They Often Keep Us Active

Friends can help keep you active.  When you have a good friendship, you’re usually doing things together or encouraging each other to do things. One way I stay active with my friends (even though we’re not always together) is by challenging each other on our Apple Watches. 

6. Friends Keep Us in Check

I can definitely count on my friends to keep me in check.  Not only do my friends celebrate my successes, but they also let me know when I’m out of line or when I may not be putting forth my best effort.  Friends should be able to give constructive criticism to each other without worrying about damaging the relationship.  I’m thankful for the friends in my life who put me in check when needed. 

7. Friendships Provide Security 

There is no feeling like knowing that you can depend on someone.  The security of knowing that someone has your back, no matter what, is a feeling that is unmatched. It’s important to have one or two friends in your life that can provide that security.  If you have more than that, you can consider yourself extremely blessed.  Don’t take it for granted. 

8. Trusted Friends Provide an Outlet to Express Ourselves

Having friends is having a  guaranteed sounding board for your dreams and ideas. Good friends serve as an outlet for you to express yourself.  One of my favorite things to do is to share my new ideas with my friends and listen to them tell me their thoughts. You have to make sure that you are only sharing your ideas and expressing yourself to trusted friends. 

9. Good Friends Encourage Us to Step Out of Our Comfort Zones 

If you don’t have friends who are constantly pushing you to try new things and be a better you, you need new friends. Good friends encourage us to step out of our comfort zones. 

10. Friends Help Prevent Loneliness and “The Blues” 

Having a good friend reduces loneliness. Even if you don’t live close to your friend, technology makes it super easy to talk to or video chat with your friend. 

11. Solid Friendships Help You Cope in Hard Times

When life gets tough, good friends can help you cope. I experienced this firsthand when both of my parents passed away. My friends were there for me to help me cope with hard times. Whenever I am faced with an obstacle in life, my friends are there. True friends are always there to help you through tough times. 

12. Friendships Can Even Make Us Healthier 

Having friends helps to increase your sense of purpose. Healthy friendships can even improve your self-confidence. When you are surrounded by friends, you tend to be happier, which keeps feelings of depression at bay. 

Why Friendships Are So Important 

Besides the benefits mentioned above, we need friends in our lives for so much more. It’s hard to put into words a friend’s true value. 

When I think back on the forty-something years of my existence, many of the good (and bad) moments of my life include my friends. They have helped me to celebrate numerous occasions and milestones in my life. 

They have also helped me through some of the most difficult times of my life as well. I can’t count the number of birthdays, graduations, weddings, childbirths, new jobs, new homes, moves, and unfortunately deaths my girlfriends and I have helped each other through. 

I know, without a doubt, that my life is richer because of my girlfriends. 

My favorite thing about my girlfriends is that there is no magic formula for making our friendship work. 

It’s almost like somewhere along the way, we made secret vows and then spent our lives making sure that those vows remained unbroken. 

For example, right before the pandemic, I had dinner with two of my high school girlfriends after having gone without seeing them for quite some time. 

We texted each other to set up a time and location. We met up at the location, gave each other the biggest hugs possible, then dined, laughed and talked way longer than I’m sure the waitress would have wanted us to (don’t worry, we tipped her well). 

There was no awkwardness and no need to set rules and boundaries for our conversations. 

More about the importance of friendship

Throughout life, I’ve lived my friendship life by the lyrics of another (friend) song that I learned as a Daisy Girl Scout:  

Make new friends, but keep the old.

One is silver, the other is gold.

A circle is round, it has no end.

That’s how long, I will be your friend.

A fire burns bright, it warms the heart.

We’ve been friends, from the very start.

Thankful for My Friends

So why do we need friends in our life? 

It’s simple – they are there for you when no one else is. 

I honestly cannot recall a moment in my life that I’ve needed my friends and they haven’t been there for me. 

Even though we are spread far and wide, I can still count on them to do what friends do. For that, I am thankful. 

If you have true friends that you can always count on, consider yourself blessed. Take some time today to tell them thanks.  

Even the strongest person can benefit from having true friends. I cannot say enough about why friendship is so important in our lives. Just know that having friends is important for the benefits mentioned above and for so many other reasons. There’s nothing like true friendship!

RELATED READING:

Here’s the True Value of Friendship – The value and importance of friendship; it’s as important to our wellbeing as eating right and exercising. (liveabout.com)

The Top 6 Reasons Friends Are Important – Friendships are important in many ways. Good friends can support you in tough times, help you beat stress, make you healthier, and more. (verywellmind.com)

The Importance of Friendship – Good friends enhance the quality, the pleasure, and the health of each other (psychologytoday.com)

Why Healthy Friendships are Important for Mental Health – Mental Health First Aid – When Ethan Call’s usually reliable friend didn’t come to church services, he was worried and texted her. She responded that she was having a bad time and wanted to stay home. Knowing that she struggled with anxiety and depression, Ethan (mentalhealthfirstaid.org)