Friendship IRL: Real Talk About Friendship, Community, and What It Actually Takes

Creating Traditions that Stick (Hint: Sustainability is Key!)


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Traditions are incessant. They HAVE to keep happening. That’s what makes them traditions! 

So how do you create traditions that stick around month after month, year after year? In my opinion, it’s all about sustainability. Traditions have to be something you can maintain on some level as life changes. Otherwise they fizzle out and aren’t traditions anymore.

In this episode, I offer tips on how to create traditions that are sustainable for all the people in your life, from your formal communities to your historic and present friends. 

Traditions matter. They offer safety and security in our relationships by creating consistency and frequency with which we see each other. They don’t need to be elaborate or expensive or energy intensive; they just need to be meaningful and maintainable. 

So start small. Be consistent. And let things evolve naturally over time.


In this episode you’ll hear about:

  • What traditions look like for formal communities, defined/historic/present friends, etc. 
  • Different options for touchpoints: in-person gatherings, text threads, virtual chats, neighborhood walks, porch parties, restaurant outings, etc.
  • My own Thursday morning ritual with my business friends that has morphed into a Monday morning paddleboard meet-up
  • Questions to ask when trying to decide if a tradition is sustainable – plus, let’s change the energy behind being the initiator! 
  • Questions to ask if you’re starting new traditions, including: what connections do you want to deepen? What’s already happening naturally that could be more intentional?


Resources & Links

Listen to Episode 100 about the Wheel of Connection and Episode 52 about pulling off simple neighborhood gatherings.

Like what you hear? Visit my website, leave me a voicemail, and follow me on Instagram and TikTok!

Want to take this conversation a step further? Send this episode to a friend. Tell them you found it interesting and use what we just talked about as a conversation starter the next time you and your friend hang out!

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Friendship IRL: Real Talk About Friendship, Community, and What It Actually TakesBy Alex Alexander

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