I think we take for granted that our friends are always on the same level us. Studies show that people generally have the same level of income as most of their friends or people they most frequently associate with. But is that always true in a down turned economy?
I have seen reductions in income, but I have always managed to pick up the slack by cutting back or developing other income streams. Such other business, spin off from others businesses I own, or even blogging. Do our friends take the measures as we do?
The amount of time I have been spending with my friends has diminished over the course of the past several months. Now granted I am extremely busy, but I will reserve some time to chit chat or even go out to dinner. It has seemed that my friends are just as busy as I am, but in some cases that might just not be true.
I came across an article entitled "The Recession Ruins Friendships" from the blog Double X by Emily Bazelon discussing how the recession can ruin friendships. "We often sidestep relationships in which spending habits don't match up exactly," Bazelon writes, "to spare ourselves feelings of inadequacy or insensitivity those awkward breaches that make that make intimacy feel like work."
This article got me thinking about why my outings and hanging out with friends has diminished. It could be that most of them are truly busy, it could be they just don't want to hang out with me, or it could just be for financial reasons.
I have friends who are always showing up late when we have dinner plans with other members of our circle of friends. Who don't even end up eating when they finally do arrive. Is this because they still want to hang out, but don't have the money to spend on dinner?
Other friends just ignore my phone calls to call back days or even weeks later to tell me "Sorry, I am just too busy." I know all about busy, having more than one business and writing this very blog have me going non-stop, but I can still pick up the phone real quick and say "I'll call you right back or later or tomorrow." At least let me know you are alive. Is it because they just don't want to be asked to go out in fear they may be financially embarrassed?
Are you experiencing similar situations with your friends? Or are you one of the friends avoiding your friends because you can't afford to go out? Let us hear from you.
I have seen reductions in income, but I have always managed to pick up the slack by cutting back or developing other income streams. Such other business, spin off from others businesses I own, or even blogging. Do our friends take the measures as we do?
The amount of time I have been spending with my friends has diminished over the course of the past several months. Now granted I am extremely busy, but I will reserve some time to chit chat or even go out to dinner. It has seemed that my friends are just as busy as I am, but in some cases that might just not be true.
I came across an article entitled "The Recession Ruins Friendships" from the blog Double X by Emily Bazelon discussing how the recession can ruin friendships. "We often sidestep relationships in which spending habits don't match up exactly," Bazelon writes, "to spare ourselves feelings of inadequacy or insensitivity those awkward breaches that make that make intimacy feel like work."
This article got me thinking about why my outings and hanging out with friends has diminished. It could be that most of them are truly busy, it could be they just don't want to hang out with me, or it could just be for financial reasons.
I have friends who are always showing up late when we have dinner plans with other members of our circle of friends. Who don't even end up eating when they finally do arrive. Is this because they still want to hang out, but don't have the money to spend on dinner?
Other friends just ignore my phone calls to call back days or even weeks later to tell me "Sorry, I am just too busy." I know all about busy, having more than one business and writing this very blog have me going non-stop, but I can still pick up the phone real quick and say "I'll call you right back or later or tomorrow." At least let me know you are alive. Is it because they just don't want to be asked to go out in fear they may be financially embarrassed?
Are you experiencing similar situations with your friends? Or are you one of the friends avoiding your friends because you can't afford to go out? Let us hear from you.
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