15 Ways to Mend a Broken Friendship

Ask what went wrong

Before you make the decision to pick up the phone, it’s a good idea to think about what went wrong. Why are you and your friend no longer on good speaking terms? Did something happen that altered the course of your friendship?

Look at your life now

Where are you today and how does that differ from who you were years ago? One explanation for distance in your friendship could be growth or maturity.

Let go of pettiness

Why are you still holding on to an argument or situation that happened years ago?

Get over it.

The time has come to move forward with your life and not be held back by your past.

Fix your jealous ways

Jealousy and envy does absolutely nothing to nourish a relationship–regardless if it’s romantic or a friendship. If you truly love someone, you’ll want nothing but happiness for them.

Read Signs You Have Jealous Tendencies

Find commonalities

Even if a certain amount of time has passed, that doesn’t mean you can’t become close. Try to find commonalities in your life that will draw you together. It could be a hobby or interest in the same type of entertainment.

Accept change

Unfortunately things don’t always stay the same. Just because you and your former friend aren’t in the same place doesn’t mean there’s no room to develop a bond. Life events (e.g. marriage and motherhood) and careers have a way of changing people.

Don’t force your ideals on others

Unless your friend is participating in something illegal or a toxic lifestyle, you might want to be careful how much you try to force others to live the way you do. Just because someone does something differently does not mean they lack home training.

Lower your guard

It’s okay to let folks in from time to time. Sure there are those who burn us, but don’t let a few bad apples spoil the bunch. Try to work on lowering your guard so you aren’t on the defense all the time.

Reduce your ego

“If she wants to make this friendship work, she needs to come to me.”

How can you expect to have room in your life for friends when your ego takes up most of the space?

Stop playing victim

Cue the sad music.

At some point you need to stop blaming others and take responsibility for your actions. Friendships are a two-way street and require effort from both parties. Yes there are times when someone does something horrible, but that doesn’t mean everyone is always wrong and you’re always right.

Take the first step

Someone needs to budge in order to get this ball rolling–and if it happens to be you, don’t think of yourself as being weak for extending the olive branch.

Pick up the phone, send an email or shoot over a text message.

Discuss what happened

Who has time to act like nothing happened or that everything is okay?

Work on staying in touch

All relationships require communication so please make an effort to stay in touch. This doesn’t mean you need to get on the phone with your friend every other day, but do try your best not to let too much time pass you by.

Let it go

News flash, you aren’t going to get very far in life until you learn how to let things go. How can you honestly forgive someone and try to move on if you still bring up the same old mess every time you see them?

Stop treating others like they’re expendable

Just because someone did something you didn’t like doesn’t mean you automatically end the friendship. Stop being so black and white when it comes to life and not forgiving folks if they happen not to live up to your expectations. Yes there are certain situations that cause of immediate dismissal, but not everything should be that way.