The second area that I feel want to be bold in this year is the arena of relationships. While I’m an introvert, relationships are what my job is all about. I’m pretty good at my job and I absolutely love it, but the focus full-time on relationships means that sometimes I retreat from relationships outside of work. This doesn’t mean that I don’t want, need, or desire these friendships. But at the end of the day, week, or busy season I’m just tired. I need rest, solitude and time to regroup. It is not at all unusual for me to come home after a particularly people focused and full day to never turn on the t.v. More than half the time I spend much of my evening in absolute silence without even noticing. It is absolutely the INFJ in me.
I’ve been blessed to have friends who allow me the space to be that way; to be who I am. I have several close friends who I can go weeks without talking to but when we’re together it seems like no time has passed at all. {Ironic that several of these friends are also INFJs, which is funny because it is the rarest of MBTI combinations. I think there is a dissertation topic in there somewhere.} I’ve moved away from friends at various transition points, all of them until this year, happened natural separation points. Thinking about 2011 reminds me how blessed I am in the area of relationships. And how much I want to be bolder in this area.
- I want to be intentional in relationships. I want to set aside time to keep in touch with old(er) friends. I want to write more letters, make more phone calls, send more emails. Be intentionally deeper in my attempts to stay in touch with those who matter most. I want to text message less- in many ways this technology has made me a worse friend.
- I want to go out on a limb more. As a strong Introvert who values deep friendships, it takes me a while to open up to people I don’t know. I have much too high of expectations sometimes. I want to be bolder in trying to make friends. This might mean putting myself in more situations where I can meet new people, even if I feel hopelessly awkward.
I have learned so much from my friends. I have laughed, been encouraged, cried together. It’s how life should be. What are you doing for relationships this year?
And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12
