Those who have a small circle of friends will understand and vouch for having a smaller group. If you’re able to count your friends on your fingertips, it’s great! If not, then you probably need to ask yourself how many of them you really share a close bond with? How many of them you’re in touch with? How many of them really matter?
Contrary to the popular sentiment, a person who has a large circle of friends may actually not feel fulfilled. A person who goes out often with a large bunch of people and celebrate seminal moments of life may not always have people by their side when they need them the most. So, clearly there’s no correlation between number of friends and the level of contentment. However, those who have a few close friends may report a higher level of satisfaction.
“I continue to enjoy a great camaraderie with my school friends. I am 30 years old and even though there are a lot of people with whom I am pally with, the amount of comfort and contentment I share with my school friends is simply unparalleled. We have evolved over the years, but our friendship has only grown stronger by every passing year. So, yes, I don’t have many pictures to post with them. I don’t have a big group of friend to party with, but I have friends who I can count on in challenging situations. At the end of the day, this is what truly matters,” says Swati, a consultant.
Listed below are some reasons why people should have fewer close friends.
More meaningful connection
The best kind of friendships are those with whom you feel comfortable with and deeply connected to. With fewer friends, it is always more feasible to form deeper bonds. It is the meaningful connections in life that improve the quality of life vastly.
Give more time
Every type of relationship needs time. For friendships to blossom, one needs to give time and attention to one’s friends. With fewer friends, it definitely becomes easy to maintain friendships. One is able to invest more time into them and as a result, one is able to build strong ties with one’s friends.
Improves mental health
It always feels reassuring for a person to know deep down that they have friends whom they can rely on. So, as a result such individuals better satisfaction and better mental health. They experience a certain degree of positivity in life when they have fewer friends.
Enjoy a healthy balance
If a person has a large group of friends, then chances are one may not be able to devote time to other things, as maintaining many friendships is an art and requires time too. On the contrary, if an individual has fewer friends, one is likely to strike a better balance between different aspects of life.
