“A friend is someone who gives you total freedom to be yourself.”
Jim Morrison
“It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
“A true friend freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably.”
William Penn
“Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.”
Helen Keller
This is how some of the greatest minds in history define: Friendship. All of us have had friends: some good, some bad. But we will never find anybody who has not experienced the beautiful bond of friendship. Friends do not always provide solutions to our problems; their presence just helps us to deal with the pain a lot better than without them.
Why do we need friends?
A good friend is someone loyal, patient, caring and encouraging. Friends help us in bringing out the best in our personality. Whenever we are going through a low or a bad phase in life, they encourage us and help us in bringing back our lost trust in ourselves. We make friends at school, at tuitions or even while playing. These days the latest trend is to make friends on Facebook and Twitter. Each friend has its role to play and we must not forget this. We should never compare our friends with each other. A friend is not always the best one if they give you all their time. Friends should always think about your best and not let you down in times of need. Loyalty is what everyone appreciates in their friends.
Friends are our extended family. They lend a shoulder to cry upon, make us smile, we celebrate with them, fight with them and whatnot. If it wasn’t for friends, the world would have been a sadder place. Friends help us through the various stages of our life. They are someone who we rely upon in times of needs. Most of us feel sad when we fight with our friends. Friends make us feel good about ourselves and help us in becoming better individuals. Friends are most important during our early years of life because they shape who we are going to be for the rest of our lives. We should wisely choose our friends because it is our company which makes us who we are. Friends have their involvement in almost everything we do.
It is very important to have the right friend’s during our student life. They not only give us emotional support but also influence our career choices.
Peers V/s Parents
According to a study by author Judith Rich Harris, relationships with peers and acceptance by peer groups are greater influences on personality than either parents or genetics.
Whenever one is in a problem, we seek our friends for that shoulder to cry upon and seek advice. It is here that the right company of friends is essential because when we are in a mess, we prefer going to our friends than our parents. No matter how open-minded our parents are, sometimes it is just easy to discuss issues with friends as they are of the same age group. They deal with the same set of problems and circumstances as us. So it makes them easy to sympathize with our exam or boyfriend problem. A disloyal friend may give us the wrong suggestions or solutions which are anything but the best way out for us.
Avoid the following people to become your friends
One should avoid being with friends who are a bad company and distract us from our studies. At this age, our main responsibility is to study. There are “friends” who spoil us and lead to the development of bad habits in us. So these following types of people should be avoided to make friends with:
- Who steals
- Who leads us to bad company
- Who speaks against our back
- Who is easily jealous of our success
- Who take advantage of our situation
- Who asks us to lie to our parents
- Who cheat during exams.
In the short run, everything seems very nice but when one thinks of it in the long run then these are the habits which one should avoid. These lead us to become a bad example in society.
Friends who cause unnecessary pressure to do bad things must not be spoken to and if they create any problem then we must mention them to our parents. One makes friends so that life becomes a celebration. A good friend is someone who will help us with our studies, convert our weaknesses into our strengths and still manage to make us smile. If we share our weaknesses with our friends then they should never share them with anyone else. Loyalty is what matters the most in relationships.
Balancing Friends and Studies
One should also avoid spending way too much time with friends and let your studies suffer. One should always make the right balance between hanging out with friends and studies. This is exactly where one has to resist the fun element and also concentrate on studies. We need to understand that no matter how important the chat or call is, our studies should never take a backseat.
Role of Parents
Parents also play a critical role in determining our friends and their influence on us. They should make sure that our friends do not lead us to bad companies which ultimately affect our lives in the long run. The famous show “Satyamev Jayate” also featured this discussion about the role of parents in the friends we choose. Parents need to keep a check on the kind of peers their kids hang out with. It is important that parents give space to their children but at the same time must ensure that their child is in the right company.
One should choose friends wisely because one is judged by the friends he/she keeps. Make the right choices do not hesitate to let go of the wrong ones and develop a bond that lasts for a lifetime. Because life is a journey which is made beautiful with great friends around!
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