Friendships today aren’t limited to your classmates, colleagues, or neighbours only. Many os us now have friends from all over the world that we have never met face-to-face but feel deeply connected to, thanks to the rising internet connectivity. The digital friendships of today can be just as real and meaningful as in-person ones, but like any other relationship, they require nurturing. To maintain and keep online friendships strong over time, you need to put in effort and balance out consistency, respect, and creativity. Let us explore various ways in which you can keep your online friendships strong, even as time passes by.

Communicate Regularly

Communication is the backbone of any friendship, be it online or offline. But in online friendships, communication becomes even more important because you don’t get to see each other by chance at school, work, or the gym. Regular communication does not mean that you need to spend hours chatting daily; regular messages, even short ones, show that you care about the other person and are more than enough to maintain a sense of presence. Plus, regular communication prevents friendships from fading into a “remember when” connection.

Show Genuine Interest

Strong friendships thrive on care and curiosity, whether they are offline or online. Instead of keeping your conversations superficial, you should dive deeper and ask about your friend’s life and inquire about his/her studies, work, hobbies, and goals. Celebrate their achievements, whether big or small, acknowledge birthdays, and remember important events like anniversaries, as these can make your friend feel special and valued.

Showing genuine interest in someone’s life means that you genuinely care about them as a person, not as someone to pass time with online. This sincerity lays the foundation for long-term friendships.

Respect Time Zone and Schedules

One of the biggest hurdles to online friendships is different time zones. You might have friends for whom your day might be their night, which makes spontaneous communication difficult. Instead of getting frustrated over time zone differences, you should learn to respect these differences and try to catch up when you are both free. If you have sent them messages and know that they are asleep, then you should leave messages for them to read later.

Be considerate of their commitments, including work, school, family, and personal commitments, because a friendship built on patience and flexibility is more likely to last through a lifetime.

Engage in Shared Activities

Friendships grow stronger when you do various activities and things together. Online friendships are no exception to this rule, and you should try to perform different activities together. Technology today offers countless opportunities to share experiences even when you are living on different continents of the world. You can play games online together, watch movies together, try the web version of Omegle, co-create projects, etc.

By engaging in shared activities, you add another layer to your friendships to make them more interactive, as they move beyond casual conversations.

Manage Misunderstandings Calmly

Misunderstandings can arise quite easily in text-based conversations. A message meant as a joke might be taken seriously, or silence might be misinterpreted as disinterest. This can happen quite often in online text-based conversations, and when this happens, you should avoid jumping to conclusions. Instead, you should ask for clarification and try to manage things in a cool and calm manner. Don’t let minor issues turn into major conflicts. Approaching misunderstandings with patience and calm ensures that your friendships stay strong and resilient.

Respect Privacy and Boundaries

Not every individual is comfortable sharing every single detail of their life online, and that is perfectly normal. You should respect the privacy and boundaries of your friends to maintain healthy friendships. You shouldn’t pressure them into video calls if they aren’t comfortable or pry into their personal matters that they aren’t ready to discuss. By respecting boundaries, you create a safe space where your friends feel comfortable opening up at a pace and time of their own choosing.