Friend Forward

Three weeks ago you and a friend exchanged heated words at a group dinner and you’ve been left feeling a mix of regret, anger and embarrassment. Since then, you’ve been reliving every detail of what happened over and over again, replaying what you both said, what her words might have meant, and whether or not this indicates that she’s been getting increasingly frustrated with you over the past year.

This negative and unproductive overthinking is called rumination, and in today’s episode, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson talks about the consequences of rumination, and particularly the impact it can have on our relationships, due to the ways in which it can hamper our ability to reconcile with friends. Danielle shares her acronym ‘IDEA’ to cover the four key reasons why rumination can be so dangerous and damaging when it comes to our relationships.

Tune in to find out more, and as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework.

REFERENCES:

• STUDY - "Socialized to Ruminate? Gender Role Mediates the Sex Difference in Rumination for Interpersonal Events" -   https://spu.edu/depts/SPFC/clinicalpsych/training-research/faculty-research-teams/ace-lab/documents/2011-26235-002.pdf

Click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode. And remember, you can send us your questions on Instagram or at www.betterfemalefriendships.com

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward

**OFFER ENDS ON OCTOBER 1st**

Sign up for Danielle’s Friendship Elevated, a 12-week program for modern women who want to experience a real transformation in their female friendship landscape:

https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/membership

Book a private coaching session with Danielle at www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

It's National Women’s Friendship Day and what better time to announce the return of the Friend Forward Podcast!

In Season 5 of The Friend Forward Podcast, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson will be bringing you more of the content that you’ve been loving for almost four years now. She’ll be sharing the latest research on women’s cooperation, communication and conflict, paired with a healthy dose of self-love and actionable strategies, to enable you to create better female friendships.

Season 5 kicks off this coming Thursday 21st September. Click ‘Follow’ now to not miss an episode. Until then, you can send us your questions on Instagram or at www.betterfemalefriendships.com

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward

**OFFER ENDS ON OCTOBER 1st**

Sign up for Danielle’s Friendship Elevated, a 12-week program for modern women who want to experience a real transformation in their female friendship landscape:

https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/membership

Book a private coaching session with Danielle at www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

Have you ever had a birthday approaching and, instead of feelings of excitement, you start to feel a sense of apprehension at the prospect of potentially being let down by your friends who, for the last few years, haven’t quite showed up for you in the way you’d hoped?

Birthdays can be a pivotal point in female friendships and, if not managed correctly, can leave you feeling disappointed, let down, and resentful.

In this episode, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson breaks down some reasons why birthdays can feel like a tense time when it comes to friendships, and offers some advice on how you can minimise any sense of disappointment that you may feel around this time.

And as always, stay tuned for this week’s homework, to help you on your way to better female friendships. 

Watch the viral video Danielle references in this episode here

Click here to sign up to Danielle’s weekly newsletter so you can continue to get your Friend Forward fix while the podcast breaks before Season 5!

And make sure you don’t miss Danielle’s exciting surprise in a few months time by subscribing to her YouTube channel here

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson and www.betterfemalefriendships.com

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at www.instagram.com/friendforward

Book a private coaching session with Danielle before she goes on break for the Summer, at ⁠www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private ⁠group chat ⁠for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at you upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

When a friend lets you down, ticks you off or hurts your feelings, how do you respond to that situation?

Research shows that people who lack the skill of emotional regulation have less relational satisfaction (you can read the study here) They also tend to group with people who also don't know how to manage their emotions, and are more inclined to receive feedback from others as hostile.

This is a topic that our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson recently discussed on her weekly 30-minute Tiktok Live workshop, where her community shared how they initially respond when a friend disappoints them. All relationships take some kind of emotional toll, but it’s how you respond to those situations that makes all the difference, and has the power to make or break your friendships. 

So today, in this more technical episode of The Friend Forward Podcast, Danielle breaks down what emotional regulation is, how you can improve your skills in this area, and what the consequences can be if you get it wrong. She also provides four tangible things that you can do in that moment before you react to something a friend might have said or done, to help you on your way to better emotional regulation, which will in turn lead to healthier female friendships. 

And, as always, stay tuned for this week’s homework.

Danielle will be beginning weekly ‘Lives” on Instagram every Monday at 12:30pm EST, starting from late July, so don’t miss this opportunity to connect with her and her community.

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson and www.betterfemalefriendships.com 

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at www.instagram.com/friendforward

Book a private coaching session with Danielle before she goes on break for the Summer, at ⁠www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private ⁠group chat ⁠for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at you upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

In Part 1 of our Men’s Friendship episode, we met several men who shared their experiences of male platonic relationships. Despite the differences and the nuances of their various situations, their stories all supported the recent findings that most men are having fewer friendships that they had just 30 years ago, and that the friendships they do have fail to offer a safe space for them to share emotional support. 

In this episode, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson explores what we can do about this issue, and the men share their advice for other men, and for us women, on how we can support the men in our lives.

Danielle also speaks with Melanie Hamlet, a journalist who wrote an article for Harper’s Bazaar, entitled “Men Have No Friends and Women Bear The Burden”, and they dive deep on the many implications of this.  

And as always, stay tuned for your homework.

For more resources surrounding men's friendships, and to connect with the men featured in this episode, head to https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/post/mens-friendship-crisis

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson and www.betterfemalefriendships.com

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at www.instagram.com/friendforward

Book a private coaching session with Danielle before she goes on break for the Summer, at ⁠www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private ⁠group chat ⁠for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at you upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

In three years of the Friend Forward Podcast, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson has only ever focused on female friendships – until now.

If you search “Men’s friendships” online, you’ll likely be hit with a tonne of recent headlines about the current ‘crisis’ concerning men’s friendships, and maybe this is something you’ve even observed with the men in your own life, perhaps in your husband’s, father’s or brother’s relationships.

A recent survey on the matter found that the percentage of men with at least six close friends has fallen by half in the last 30 years, and the number of men who say they have 0 close friends has increased fivefold.

In this episode, Danielle turns the spotlight to the men, to shed some light on what is going on and what men themselves have to say about. She speaks with seven men from all different walks of life about their personal experiences of navigating friendships as a man.

This is Part 1 of this 2-part special episode, so make sure you tune in when the next episode drops, in just one hour’s time.

For more men’s resources and to connect with the men featured in this episode, head to

https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/post/mens-friendship-crisis

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson and www.betterfemalefriendships.com

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at www.instagram.com/friendforward

Book a private coaching session with Danielle before she goes on break for the Summer, at ⁠www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private ⁠group chat ⁠for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at you upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

A few months back, you met someone special - he’s cute, funny, attentive, ambitious, and basically ticks all of your boxes, but whenever you speak to your best friend about how things are progressing, there is something that feels ‘off’ about her advice. Is she jealous or projecting, or is it rooted in love for you and is she just being cautiously sceptical with your best interests at heart? 

Our romantic relationships and friendships both have a great influence on our lives, so how do we work to bring harmony between the two?

In this episode, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson talks to Sex and Relationship expert Dr. Tara, a Tenured Professor and Coach, whose spicy but educational content has amassed more than 2 million followers on Tik Tok. In this conversation, they explore the intersection between dating relationships and friendships, and discuss the obvious and not-so-obvious ways your friendships may be impacting your dating life.

And, as always, stay tuned for this week’s homework.

To get in touch with Dr. Tara, you can reach out to her at www.instagram.com/luvbites.co and www.luvbites.co

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson and www.betterfemalefriendships.com 

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at www.instagram.com/friendforward

Book a private coaching session with Danielle before she goes on break for the Summer, at ⁠www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching

Join our private ⁠group chat ⁠for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at you upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

There’s so much talk on how to effectively set boundaries, but what about receiving them?

If you’ve recently found yourself in a situation where a friend called you out on something, you might have been left feeling confused, defensive, indignant, and not quite sure how to respond. But these are the moments that test the strength and resilience of a friendship, and so it’s crucial they are handled with care. In this episode, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson shares valuable insights on how to navigate these potentially challenging moments.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

- three key ways to avoid reacting negatively when a friend sets a boundary with you

- the importance of remaining curious in your friendshuips, and empathising with the emotions behind the boundary, even if you don’t agree with the details

- the distinction between a healthy boundary and one established to control or overcorrect a past crossed boundary

- practical advice and scripts to handle these situations with your friends

And as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework.

To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson and www.betterfemalefriendships.com 

Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at www.instagram.com/friendforward

Book a private coaching session with Danielle before she goes on break for the Summer, at etterfemalefriendships.com/coaching⁠

Join our private ⁠group chat ⁠for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Book Danielle to speak at you upcoming conference or event, by emailing [email protected]

Coordinating a bachelorette party, divvying up bridesmaid responsibilities, and navigating the engagement party group chat-- to the untrained eye, this all looks like a bunch of unnecessary wedding drama. But for women who are in the thick of wedding season, they know that it's about so much more: during wedding season, a lot of our secret friendship stuff bubbles up to the surface, and we're forced to deal with it publicly and in real time. But how do we navigate tension, express expectations, and accept the fact that some relationships will... "transition"?

In this episode, we're talking to bridal coach and therapist ⁠Kara Maureen⁠, who specializes in helping brides manage relationship drama during wedding season, She'll tell us three ways this time period can shift our friendships and what to do about those changes.

If you have a story to shard about how your friendships either deepened or ended during a wedding, please submit it to our blog here!

You can also visit us any time on Instagram @⁠friendforward ⁠or connect with Kara @⁠karathebridalcoach⁠

*Book Danielle Bayard Jackson to speak for your upcoming event by contacting [email protected]*

Have you ever wondered where to find your crew?

What if we told you it's not a matter of joining the right clubs or pretending to be more of an extrovert? In this episode, we interview Laura Tremaine (⁠https://www.lauratremaine.com) ⁠host of "10 Things to Tell You" podcast and author of the new book "The Life Council".

You'll learn:

-why the search for an "all-inclusive" bestie might be restricting your joy

-the beauty of not being everyone's everything

-how to find more satisfaction in your friendship landscape

As always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework.

A FEW NOTES:

We're currently reading "All about Love" by bell hooks for our Friend Forward Group Chat ⁠monthly book club⁠.

Book a ⁠private session ⁠with host and resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson before she goes on break for the summer!

Book Danielle to ⁠speak ⁠at your upcoming conference or event.