The age of social media means that we are constantly bombarded by Instagram pictures of celebrities with their girl gangs of ten beautiful women, traveling the world and having fun. This depiction of the “squad” makes it seem like we should all have big groups of close friends who do everything together. Of course, it’s natural to want a lot of friends, especially when it seems like everyone online is so popular. We see a picture of a group of girls at the beach and joke, “Wow, squad goals!!” It’s extremely unlikely, however, that they are all equally close. That’s just unrealistic. In such a large group, there will probably be people who don’t mesh well, which is totally normal. You don’t need a concrete group of friends who are all friends with each other, and you can have close friends who are not necessarily close on another. We all know, logically, that social media is unrealistic. But, it’s still hard to not see that huge group as the norm.
In reality though, there’s no reason you really need that many friends. It’s perfectly fine to have just a few close friends! The fact of the matter is that most of the relationships I have will fizzle out once we are not in close proximity to each other. The loyal ones who are always there for you and put in the effort to see you are the ones that actually matter. Quality over quantity is always a good motto, and it holds true for friendships. It can be fun to go out with a bunch of people, sure. But when it comes to genuine conversations, I only go to two or three of my best friends. What’s the point in trying to be best friends with everyone? I personally don’t have the time or energy to invest in having a close relationship with that many people, and you probably don’t either. Spending quality time with one friend at a time is much more important to me than partying with the whole extended friend group.
We all grow out of some friendships, but the ones that stick are there for life. And really, what else do I need?