Do you have a Friendship Budget?


"Friendship fails the same way money does: small, untracked expenses."

(2–3 minute read)

Hey Reader,

Thanks for catching this before the weekend!

👥 THE FRIEND

Warren Buffett has a simple thought experiment.

Imagine you’re given a punch card with 20 total decisions for your entire career.

Every yes costs a punch. Once they’re gone, that’s it.

It’s not about being afraid to decide. It’s about deciding on purpose.

Buffett doesn’t treat attention as unlimited. He treats it as scarce.

Friendship isn’t that different.

You only have so much social energy.
But most of us never stop to notice where it’s actually going.


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Now back to the answers you seek!


🛠️ THE FIX

Call it a Friendship Energy Budget.

Take five minutes. Write down the five people you spend the most social energy on.

Next to each name, mark one:

- Energizing

- Neutral

- Draining

That’s it. Just notice the math.

This week, do one small thing with or for someone from the plus column.

Many of us don’t need more friendships. We need better allocation.

📌 THE RECO

They may sound obvious, but as a new parent I just rediscovered The Y. Free childcare while you work out. Classes, swimming, pickup games, leagues. It’s easy, affordable! and gets you out of the house a few times a week.

Also, I have a crazy nostalgia for it because I started going when I was a baby and now I'm taking my two boys. Life really coming fully circle.

See you next week!


Matt
The Friendship Guy

As always, please share this with a friend. They can sign up for the Friendship Challenge by clicking here.

The Friendship Habit

Helping 20,000+ busy adults build better friendships — one small move at a time. From Matt Ritter, co-host of Man of the Year, the #1 podcast on adult friendship and and author of The Buddy System on Audible. Start the seven day challenge today— and make connection a habit.

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