To be friendly to the people you have a good relationship with goes well. But how much are you willing to be friendly to the people you don’t know or to people that you might consider as an enemy?
People who are unfriendly will not expect anyone else to be friendly. However these are the people who need the friendliness the most of everyone. You never know what is going on in their life and what the reason is the changed to be unfriendly. They might have been hurt before when they were being friendly to someone. Their hard exterior doesn’t mean that they don’t deserve to receive some friendliness in their life. Of course cuddling a lion is not what we mean by friendly to someone. You don’t have to do everything for them, just be equally as friendly as you are to others.
It is easy enough to be friendly to one’s friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business. – Mahatma Gandhi
Being friendly to someone is not done to get an advantage. Rather to make them feel better and to feel the positive vibes yourself. The friendlier you are the more it will reflect to others and let them be friendly. This in turn will make the world a better place for your children later on or for the people that you care about when they need help. Without the need of getting advantages you will notice a difference. It can be as simple as smiling to the neighbors, even and especially when they are grumpy, now or all the time. They are the ones who need it the most.
When you initially are friendly to someone you may not instantly get an advantage from it. It’s rather a collection of moments that will pay off in the end. Imagine saying hello or giving a smile to your neighbor every day. They will threat you better even if there are some problems between you. Of course, only if they see you meant to be friendly and that you are not only pretending. Find it in your heart to be friendly and you will in the end receive the rewards from it. Every time you are being friendly to someone your day will feel better as well.