People come into our lives and they leave for many different reasons. Some become our lifelong friends. Some remain acquaintances. Some become our work bodies, and some connect with us on a deeper level.
Some we meet by accident, some change our lives from the core and inspire us to become better people. Some come into our lives to teach us an important lesson, break our hearts and just leave.
And then, there are people who are so good at pretending to be our friends, that they make it quite difficult for some of us to determine whether they’re real friends or fake friends.
These people usually hide behind the mask of good, loyal friends, while secretly rooting for our failure. However, even though the show they put on is pretty convincing, it is not always that hard to tell the difference between them and your real friends.
How? Well, it is simple.
A fake friend could never do what a real friend does, no matter how much they try…
1. Real friends keep in touch. They want to know what’s going on in your life. Because they genuinely care about you. Something that a fake friend couldn’t fake. When someone doesn’t like you but pretends to be your friend, you feel it. You feel it in the way they communicate with you and the way they share things with you. A real friend calls to hear your voice. But a fake friend… the only reason they call you is to ask for a favor.
2. They are very careful with our secrets. A true friend would never betray you by sharing some of your deepest secrets with everyone. They would never do anything to break the trust that you have in them. But a fake friend on the other hand… A fake friend will promise you that your secrets are safe with them and a few minutes after they’ll tell everyone they know.
3. They always have time for us. Real friends are people you can always count on, even when they are busy. The one thing that makes it easier to spot a toxic friend from a real friend is the time (or the lack thereof ) they spend on you. A fake friend won’t be there for you when you need their support. The only time they’ll be around is when you celebrate your success, because how else will they try to take advantage of you if not by riding off your success.
4. They accept and love you for who you truly are. They love the flawed and messy you as much as they love the perfect you. Real friends know the way your heart beats. They know your mistakes, they know your bad sides, they know all of your demons. And they still love you anyway. Something that fake friends could never do.
5. They unconditionally encourage you and support you every step of the way. If real friends are always there beside you to pick you up when you don’t have the strength to do that yourself, fake friends do the exact opposite. They push you down, discourage you and make you feel worthless. It is really not that hard to make a difference. It’s all about how the people in your life make you feel. If you start to notice that you are slowly losing your sense of self and you’re losing your strength, you might want to reevaluate your friendships.
After all, your life is exactly what you make it.
So, why not make it a good one?
