Is Regular Communication The Key To Maintain Your Friendships?

Are you the type of person who has to constantly talk to your friends and keep in touch with them every day? Or are you the friend that shares memes and funny videos with each other all the time but knows that your friends will have your back in troubled times? Or are you the ones who go on for days or months without meeting up with your friends because both of you are busy?

Let's dig deep and discuss whether maintaining friendships with constant contact and communication is necessary to stay friends. 

How do you define friendship?

There are many definitions of friendship. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines friendship as the quality or state of being friendly. The one attached to another by affection or esteem, acquaintance, one that is not hostile, one that is of the same nation, party, or group. 

In simple terms, for most of us, friendship is a close relationship in which we can constantly share our secrets, feelings, hardships. We know that our friend always has our back and will support us no matter what.

But this relationship should go both ways, while we trust our friends, our friends should trust us equally. A good friendship is a relationship in which both sides are respectful of each other. You know that they will always be there whether it be tears or laughter.

In real life, friendships are usually not as smooth as these ideal definitions of friendships in a dictionary. There are many different obstacles to overcome in order to maintain and survive a friendship. There are sometimes constant arguments, tears, and disagreements, but if these obstacles are not an obstruction to your relationship with your friend, then you are truly best of friends. 

Is communication the key to friendship? 

Do you never text your friend unless it is something very important and just send each other funny memes and videos every day? Do you think communication is important in maintaining a good friendship? There are sayings that ‘communication is the key to everything,’ but is it expected in a good friendship? 

It is true that communication is important in a workplace, a romantic relationship, and with your professors in the university, but I do not think that it is vital in a friendship. Everyone has their own worries and is busy with their own things, so they might not have time to talk to each other on a daily basis.

You might not chat or text your friends but you keep in constant contact with them by sending each other funny memes or stuff from the internet that you know they would relate with you. Just knowing that each person is still alive and sane and not swamped with stressful situations is enough. 

I have many friends who are from different countries so meeting up with them on a daily basis is something that is almost impossible. We were high school friends who saw each other every day and after high school graduation, I have not seen them since. We totally rely on social media and video-chatting apps for communication.

Sometimes, months would pass and we would not chat with each other but just send each other funny posts on Instagram and memes or ask for a drama recommendation. But in our occasional chats, we would ask each other how life is going and try to motivate and cheer each other on. 

From my own experience, constant communication with friends is not necessary for maintaining a close friendship because I know if one day we were to meet up again, nothing would change in our relationship. We would be crazy together and talk nonstop for hours. We’ve had group calls where we would talk for hours endlessly about really random topics. 

According to me friendship is a relationship that need not be maintained. Having to maintain other relationships in daily life is already hard enough, a friendship should be something that should grow naturally. When having a fun and happy experience, share it with your friends so they can enjoy laughter too. But also, when you encounter tears or stressful situations you can also share with your friends and ask them for advice or just tell them to get things off your chest. 

But not everyone likes this type of friendship or communication method. I am someone who doesn't like having conversations often and connecting with people. I talked to one of my friends recently and they were disappointed that I had not been communicating and chatting with them during the year of the pandemic. Therefore, not everyone is comfortable with a friendship that is not maintained with constant contact, so communication is the key. Talk to your friends and see what type of friendship they are comfortable with.