It seems that in 2019, our lives can be so busy. Society has become so fast paced and most of us are in our own little race that basically revolves around eat, sleep work repeat, contrary to the popular song that substitutes working for raving. Losing touch with our mates is something that we always promised would never happen, but inevitable, as life happens to all of us, our priorities and relationships change and we as people change too.
The journey that life takes us on is so unpredictable. While our decisions have a lot to do with the path we take, there also is also a reasonable amount of luck, be it good or bad, that ultimately leads us to where we are supposed to go. We fall in and out of relationships and we find partners along the way, and as it all runs its course, often it’s our mates that we start to drift away from. However prioritising time with mates is something that we need to make more time for.
The good times that we spend together with our mates are some of the only times that we can truly let our hair down and properly switch off. Good mates are excellent for your overall health and are there to help you celebrate in the good times and they are there to support during the not so good times. Having a solid social network increases your general sense of well being, lifts your mood and is one of the best outlets for having fun.
When it comes to mates, the saying quality over quantity couldn’t be more accurate. Take a look at social media for example, where we see influencers coming out the wazoo with hundreds of thousands of “friends”. It would be fairly safe to assume that although the number of likes coming in is probably what keeps these people on the straight and narrow, there wouldn’t be a genuine friend amongst them. Whilst its great to have a big circle of extended friends and acquaintances, you really only want to nurture a few truly close friendships, who become more like family and who will always be there for you through the good times and the bad.
As adults, when we drift apart from our friends, the prospect of making new friends can become difficult or daunting. As kids all you had to do was throw a stick at someone and they pretty much became you best mate. Funnily enough back then, it was pretty easy to just walk up to another kid as ask them to be friends and you were on like Donkey Kong. Its not so easy as a grown up. In fact if you walked straight up to someone and asked to be friends, you’d probably be determined to have something wrong with you. Amazing how judgemental we become as adults compared to when we were kids. Today however, there are so many opportunities to meet people, and not only that, with the power of social media groups you can really focus on areas of common interest quite easily. Without a doubt one of the more beneficial applications of social media. You do have to put yourself out there which takes a certain level of self-confidence, but when you do you will be rewarded tenfold.
Here are some of the benefits of having some really good mates:
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Reduce stress and increase overall feeling of happiness
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Increase your sense of belonging (one of Mr Myndfit’s five fundamentals to survival)
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Improve your self confidence (social situations are always easier when you’ve got mates around)
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Help you cope with bad times, trauma and loss.
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True friendships will last a lifetime
So, get on the front foot and make time for your friends. Give them a call, organise an activity and go and have a good time. You might not realise it now but maintaining those relationships will create memories that will stay with you for a lifetime.
