Making friends as an adult:

a how-to guide

1. Small talk and vibe checks

I learned from my friend Jenn as a teenager that I can’t just trauma dump at strangers and have that go well, bc since they haven’t earned my story, trusting them before they show who they are means they might take advantage of vulnerability. And even if they don’t, they might think that it’s breaking the social contract in the form of demanding reciprocal disclosures which I hadn’t earned yet. And they’d be kinda right. That’s not ( buddies )

As I understand it, these are the basics building blocks of making friends as an adult. There are plenty more though, so leave your secrets in a comment, because I’d like to be a better friend to you.