Maybe it’s the fact that my birthday is approaching or maybe I’ve just been paying more attention but it seems as though the word friend is being thrown around a lot more these days than in the past.

It would seem and correct me if I’m wrong, that the word friend has become more powerful. Nowadays it’s not about what you know, but rather WHO you know. The value of money has changed and with it has the importance of networking. With social media being all the rave right now, it’s easy to recognize why.

But what ever happened to good old fashioned friends? You know the one’s you could count on when things go bad. The one’s who are always there no matter what. The friends that are happy for your successes and mourn with you on the sad occasions when you experience loss. If I didn’t know better I would say that these people don’t exist.

It’s hard to tell who is your friend and who is your foe. Your foe is like a wolf in sheeps clothing. Nice on the outside waiting for that perfect moment to strike and show their true colors. It’s a sad occasion when you realize that someone you actually genuinely cared about was only using you for their best interest. So this poses the question: how do you differentiate between who is your friend and who is your foe?

Here’s a few tips:

1. A real friend will call you just to check up on you, or if they haven’t seen or heard from you like they normally would. If anything is remotely out of the ordinary, this person would know.

A foe will only call you if they need something.

2. A real friend will always be there for you and listen to you regardless how mundane or trivial the issue is.

A foe is usually self centered. Focused only on their life leaving little time for you to discuss yours.

3. A real friend will always tell the truth, even if they suspect it might hurt your feelings.

A foe will tell you what they think you want to hear.

Here’s the big one ( and one I’m currently learning to deal with):  A REAL FRIEND WILL CELEBRATE YOUR OWN SUCCESS AS IF IT WERE THEIR OWN.

A foe on the other hand will always find the negative in the situation or find a way to undermine your happiness and success.

So here’s a piece of advice that I once got as a child: take what people say with a grain of salt. In other words, people will always have big talk but actions speak louder than words.

Follow your gut and your heart when it comes to who to trust and who to be weary of. Those are two things that will never fail. Pay attention to the little signs that people show you. More often than not a situation will arise that will reveal their true colors.

xoxo

Elle

p.s. Sorry this blog was a little heavy, emotionally for a Monday morning but I truly felt like I had to get it out of my head and onto paper.

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