your friend is a wolf in sheeps clothing

To be completely clear and up front; I love my friends. They're needy, but there when needed. They're time consuming, yet always willing to give up some of their own time. They're also expensive, yet always willing to give to a friend in need. So why, if I am so content, do I feel like I have a knife in my back?

There are a lot of you, family included, that consider yourselves to be friends to a lot of people. But to be honest, your friendship is biased and is only available to others in a time of convenience, your convenience. Your willingness only goes as far as it's a benefit to you, and no further. No, you are no more than a fair-weather friend which is defined as: a person who supports others only when it is easy and convenient to do so. Ungrateful family members, this definition pertains to you as well.

So how do we avoid these, self proclaimed "friends," and ensure we don't fall into this trap? One simple step. Never lend yourself more than once. These predators care about one thing, and one thing only, themselves. So when I say never lend yourself more than once, I mean it for all areas of your life. Money, personal items, and even time. Trust me, when you have run out of these things, like a vulture they will move on to the next prey. So the key is to run out of these items quickly.

To test the value of this "friendship," ask for its return soon. I don't mean put a time limit on it, but like checking a water's temperature before getting in, dip your toes in a little bit, and see what your jumping into. For money, even if you don't need it, tell them you may need to borrow some from them too. Then in time, borrow it. Even if it's just $50 bucks, ask to borrow it. If you keep getting excuse after excuse of why they can never loan it to you, it's time to cut this friendship short. The same goes with personal items, and time. Even if you don't need it, ask for it. They're asking you to put your time on the line, so why shouldn't they do the same for you.

For family members, it's tough, but trust in this one step to get you through them too. After all, family is no more than a friendship, based on trust and connected by blood.