Friendshipable

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya talk with Cathie Briggette of Herself 360 about women, friendship, and how the three of us met.

Cathie and Lyvia created Herself360 as a way for women to help each other by sharing their stories--so we can learn about ourselves by telling our own stories and from other women by reading about their experiences. Cathie, Lyvia, and Herself360 are part of the Project BFF origin story, too, as we have supported each other as friends and businesswomen from the start of our project.

Herself360--a media platform and online magazine that supports and encourages women and offers a space to connect through stories. 

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about family and friends and how they compare as relationships. 

They are different types of relationships and serve different purposes in a lot of our lives. The key to a meaningful and supportive relationship, family or friends, is the quality of the relationship. 

Family is related to you no matter the circumstances, and friendships can wane--someone might not always be a friend. And both types of people in our lives can be kind, loving, and supportive.

Family vs. Friends: Comparing Key Relationships, LoveToKnow

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about cousins who are also friends and our own relationships with our cousins.

Articles

Growing Up With Cousins is Growing Up With Friends For Life

10 Reasons Why Your Cousins Are Your Best Friends

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about friends who are family members.

How do we define a friend? Some people consider kin as friends, while others do not. Some use the label only for long-lasting, close relationships, while others use it more liberally to define almost anyone they've met. And it can change over time with the same people. 

Articles:

• When Friends Are ‘Like Family’, Deborah Tannen, New York Times
• Friends, family, and family friends: Predicting friendships of Dutch women, Social Networks (via Science Direct)

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri and Manya riff on managing financial disparities in friendships.

Whether you are the one with more money in your bank account, or the one with less, there can be some challenges in navigating friendships. 

Americans don't like to talk about finances with their friends. But when not out in the open, disparities in income (or disposable income) can crop up and inconvenient times among friends--like getting the bill at a restaurant or planning a vacation together.

For the cash strapped friend:

• Set boundaries. It's ok to say no or to pay for your own tab separately. 
• Make suggestions that do work for you
• Pick up extra costs if you can, to treat every once in a while.

Resources we mention:

How not to be a bad friend in a rich-poor friendship, by Brittany Wong on Huffpost
A survey of 2,000 Americans found they're more likely to talk about politics and relationships with their friends than money, on Business Insider.

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri and Manya riff on the differences in the ways women and men approach friendships.

It turns out that men tend to prefer more activity-based friendships, and what are referred to as side-to-side, shared activities like sports. Women tend to prefer talking and spending time together, more intimate, face-to-face contact like sharing feelings and disclosing secrets.

Article we mention:
Female vs Male Friendships: 10 Key Differences, on PsychCentral

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about famous women's friendships.

Did you know Frida Kahlo and Georgia O'Keefe were friends? And that Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe were friends?

Resource:
These famous women were friends? Read 5 stories of sisterhood and support, Washington Post

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about female friendships on TV, from Living Single and Friends to Parks and Recreation and The Good Place.

We talk about some of the shows we like, mostly from the past, the tv friendships we love, the Bechdel test, and how the way friendships are portrayed impact our enjoyment of the shows.

Resource:
Then vs. Now: The Portrayal of Female Friendship on TV, Her Culture
Why the Bechdel Test is More Important Than You Realize, Gizmodo

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about the power of female friendships and how it appears that women are genetically wired for friendships in a different way than men.

According to a UCLA study, women were genetically wired to befriend and tend to people in times of stress, while men were more likely to exhibit a fight or flight response. And across their entire life cycle, females are more likely to mobilize social support in times of stress--they seek it out more, receive more support, and are more satisfied with the support they receive.

"Abandon the cultural myth that all female friendships must be bitchy, toxic, or competitive. This myth is like heels and purses – pretty but designed to SLOW women down."
- Roxanne Gay, Bad Feminist

Resources:

Why there's nothing in the world more powerful than female friendship, in Glamour UK
Biobehavioral Responses to Stress in Females, UCLA

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]

From Project BFF HQ, Terri + Manya riff about the 2021 American Perspectives Survey about friendship: changes, challenges, and loss.

About half of Americans report losing touch with at least one friend during the pandemic and nearly half (46%) made a new friend over this same period.

We discuss how many friends people have, and how people meet friends. Most people (49%) seem to have about 3 or fewer close friends, with people equally like to have more than 10 close friends (13%) or no close friends (12%).

Most of us have situational friends or place-based friendships—people mostly see in certain places such as work, school, the gym, or the park.

References:
American Perspectives Survey 

#BeAFriend  

*****
Thank you for listening.

After much reflection, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Project BFF and the podcast. Our last podcast episode aired on August 23, 2024. We are leaving the podcast live on Buzzsprout through the end of 2024.

We are proud of this podcast and honored to have hosted such amazing and engaging guests.

Our hope is that Project BFF and Friendshipable have inspired you to form new friendships, strengthen existing ones, and encourage others to do the same

Thank you for being a part of our story. The two of us have truly deepened our friendship during this time, and we look forward to new and memorable adventures together in and around New England, which serves as the adopted home for both of us.

With gratitude and friendship,
Manya and Terri

To contact us, you can email Manya at [email protected]