Do The Friends You Make In College Affect You?
by Sheila Rios | Thursday, Oct 17, 2024You often hear the expressions, “you are the company you keep,” “birds of a feather flock together,” even the classic “show me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are,” but how much of an influence do your friends really have on you? Do the friends you make in college really make a difference? Some say they do. Many of us believe we have total self control of our actions, and while that may be true to a certain extent, on a subconscious level, there are many ways that the people around us influence our everyday actions, like how much we eat, drink, and sleep.
Friends are incredibly important to have as a growing adult, especially in college. Your friends in college will be the ones to go through everything with you-the people you'll share your feelings with and ask advice from, for the next few years. The highs: parties and road trips, and lows: pulling all nighters and failing exams; all these new experiences will be made with them. It's thought that the more friends you have, the happier you become. However, it's important that the quality of friends you choose is set to a high standard, because that is how you achieve real long lasting happiness. But how do you know when you've picked good-quality friends?
Here's a list of good characteristics to have in a friend:
- Supportive
- Trustworthy
- Honest
- Dependable
- They don't try to influence you to do the wrong things
- They also don't try to make you do things you don't want to do
- They allow you to be your most authentic self
Don't be afraid to create your own list of qualities you'd like in a friend, but it's important to remember that someone who has all those qualities may not exist, because people aren't perfect. Just keep in mind that if someone doesn't have your best interests in mind, they're probably not a friend you need. Surround yourself with people who try to make you feel good about yourself. Your self-esteem is always higher when you have amazing friends that lift you up.
The reason it's so important that the friends you surround yourself with are of good quality is because, over time we subconsciously tend to do as our friends. In a group of friends, it's not odd to conform to the group's beliefs and start behaving as the group. If your friends, as a group, begin to stay out late partying, there's a high chance that you will also stay out with them to party out of fear of missing out. However, if your friends begin to wake up early and go to the gym there's also a high chance that you will begin to go as well. It's said that when you surround yourself with friends that are optimistic and happy, you will become happier as well.
So, as you can see, the quotes you’ve probably heard so many times are true. The type of people you surround yourself with are incredibly important. For they have the ability to, not only influence how you see yourself, but how you see the world and the type of life you decide to live. Of course, these aren't the only things that can influence your actions and perhaps you're one of the few that aren’t susceptible to outside influences. One of our fundamental needs as a human is a need to be accepted! Just remember to create a group of friends that have supportive and successful qualities because then you will treat yourself better, and you will do better too!