Hello + 5 Ways to You Need to Start Thinking Differently About Friendship

Welcome to the Friendship IRL Podcast! I’m your host, Alex Alexander. <br/><br/>My friends will tell you I like to ask the hard questions. Before starting this podcast, they kept threatening to secretly record me for my insight on friendship. I don’t consider myself a friendship expert by any means – just a person who cares deeply about it. <br/><br/>My mom passed away when I was 13, and a lot of raising my younger brother and sister fell onto me. In high school and college, I really leaned into my friendships, which was my respite from this responsibility at home.<br/><br/>At the time, I had no idea what I was creating, but it became a support system unlike any other. Today I’m in my 30’s, and the close relationships I have with so many friends surprises people. Nobody has that kind of friendship as an adult, they say. <br/><br/>I’m not here to tell you how to be a friend or have a friend; what I’m here to do is ask questions so you can build the right support system, made up of all the people – friends, family, romantic partners, children – whatever that looks like for you.<br/><br/>In this episode you’ll hear:How valuing and talking about friendship is counterculture – and why it shouldn’t beHow, in small ways, you are already choosing what’s important to you through how you spend your time, resources, attention, etc.How to do, ask, and expect less in your friendships, because it doesn’t have to be hardHow sometimes, all this friendship stuff can get uncomfortable – and why it’s okayAbout the book I wrote after my year of obsessing about friendships and community, which will be released in 2023!Reflection Question:<br/><br/>Where does friendship stand on your hierarchy of importance?Resources & Links<br/><br/>Visit my website, leave me a voicemail, and follow me on Instagram! <br/><br/>Want to take this conversation a step further? Send this episode to a friend. Tell them you found it interesting and use what we just talked about as a conversation starter the next time you and your friend hang out!