As a grown up, your circle of friends will usually carry a strong influence over different parts of your life, including your finances. Getting into the wrong company of friends could push you towards making unwise financial decisions and spending way more than you intend to. 

Here are a few types of toxic friends that can wreck your financial happiness and are therefore, bad news for you.

Friends who pressurize you to spend

These are the types of friends that think something’s flawed with you, when you operate thriftily and refuse to splurge your cash the same way they do. These friends maintain a lavish and expensive lifestyle – and expect that you do as well. And if you refuse to keep up with their extravagance, you risk being left out of their crowd. Assess your friendships to see if they’re doing you more harm than good. Make sure that you’re associating yourself with true friends, and not investing in hollow relationships built on status and glamour. 

Friends who stop you from working hard

Fighting your way through a tough work environment to earn a pay-check is hard enough these days. Having a toxic influence that drags you down ever further is certainly not something you need in your life. There will be friends that, whether through overt or subtle directions, try to stop you from investing too much time in work and keep your career from moving forward. In most cases, these friends are lower down the financial ladder than you are and clearly lack ambition. They may even envy you if you’re on track to fulfilling your life goals and surpassing them financially. 

There are two ways to deal with such friends. You could deal with it with sensitivity and care, and confront such a friend. Or you could do what most people would do in this situation, and stop associating with them altogether. 

Friends who judge you for frugal choices

There are a class of people that are especially good at judging others, especially with regards to how much money one has and how much money they throw around on a day to day basis. Being cautious with spending or having a financially frugal lifestyle would be looked down on by such people. 

But when the situation is such that your own close friends are the ones judging you, then it’s time that you recognize that they’re not really your friends. For example, anyone who shames you for not keeping up with the latest trends in fashion, or for not spending hours of your time shopping at expensive outlets at the mall, probably doesn’t deserve your time and friendship.

Friends who are freeloaders

These types of friends exist to attach themselves to all relationships, to load up on the freebies. If you’re the type that’s generous, then be wary of freeloaders. These so-called friends will try to exploit your generosity through their association with you.

They’d always be willing to take, but never give back or reciprocate your generosity. They never pay out of their wallets in most situations, thereby forcing you to be the sponsor for every event and every gathering you’re attending with them. Spot the signs and cut such people out of your circle quickly. Friends who are only there to associate with you under the condition that you’re paying for them are definitely not worth having around.

In conclusion…

Friends are meant to be a system of support and encouragement for most people, helping to keep you motivated and confident. But when that same system seems to turn toxic and negative, it’s time to let go and start afresh if you want to ensure that your financial life stays secure.

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