Friendship by Interest: How to Identify?

George Alvarez 26-05-2023
George Alvarez

A friendship of interest However, a person can be interested in a multitude of things in your life, with you quite oblivious to it. With this in mind, let's discuss a bit about the difference between envy and interest, as well as teach you how to identify and limit the openness you should allow to people outside your life.

First of all, we recommend the book The other Mrs. Parrish

Amber is a modest-looking woman who shows up at Daphne Parrish's gym. Upon meeting, the two women connect instantly and build a friendship filled with important openings. By bringing Amber into every environment of her life, Daphne doesn't realize that Amber is interested in everything she has.

Do you know how we know about that? It turns out that the book The other Mrs. Parrish It is narrated from Amber's perspective! Thus, we have access to the reasoning of how a friendship of interest is built from the point of view of the self-interested woman. For this reason, even before we write about it, we recommend this book to our readers. With this novel by Liv Constantine, you will learn a lot about influence and manipulation. This is why reading is fundamental!

The difference between envy and interest

Now that we have given you a reading idea for this month of March, let's concentrate on explaining the difference between envy and interest. It is often common to confuse friendship out of interest with a relationship that is actually based on envy, so it is very important to know the difference.

Envy

Envy is considered the "hidden joy of seeing someone else do badly", in informal language. Thus, it is not necessarily linked to interest over what the other person has. For the envious person, it is not always important to have the goods of the other. Thus, a very well married person full of money can be very envious of someone who has a better financial or marital condition, equal orlower than yours.

In other words, envy is the feeling that makes him wish that the other would lose everything he has. This is an extremely important difference. A friendship out of interest that is also jealous is very toxic For this reason, it is very important for you to be vigilant in investigating the intentions of someone who approaches you. While many friendships are sincere, others may be intent on destroying you.

Interest

On the other hand, interest is a state of mind one has towards that which one thinks is worthy of attention.Thus, interest is not necessarily a bad thing for a friendship.Take for example a super popular schoolmate.The envious interest friendship would wish that person to lose his popularity.On the other hand, The righteous interest desires to know the person who is worthy of so much attention.

In this sense, having a friendship out of genuine interest is quite positive. It means that you can be drawing people's attention in a positive way. Like it or not, all of us at some point are friends with someone because we are interested. If it were otherwise, how would we ever get into a loving relationship? Before dating or marriage comes interest, doesn't it?

With all this in mind, you can never say that you have never been friends out of interest. This is an evil we are all guilty of!

How to identify a jealous friendship of interest

In the family

The family is not a neutral environment, in which there can be no envy It is possible that you have been the envied or the one who has envied. Furthermore, it is possible that you have felt or been the victim of envy without even being able to name the feeling at the time. Take for example a cousin who is jealous of another cousin because she is less well-off. To make the 'rich' cousin feel bad, the 'poor' cousin mistreats and belittles her.

See_also: What is Conscious in Psychoanalysis Read Also: Consumerism and Consumption: definitions and differences

At school or college

At school or college envy can take many forms. While there are people who befriend you out of interest in your abilities, there are those who are actually envious. In this context, it is important to keep in mind that the envious person, in principle, can only do you harm if you allow it. Envy is, above all, an undeclared intention, it may or may not manifest itself through attitudes or comments.

Although it is often explored in soap operas and series, you don't lose a grade on an assignment because of someone, it is also very difficult for you to be harmed in any serious project because of it. In that sense, you will suffer at the hands of a jealous person if you walk too closely to them. But at school, it is very difficult for you to be affected by someone without them losing something because of italso.

At Work

Work is already an environment to be much more careful with your relationships. Depending on the position you hold, it is possible that other people are interested in your position. In this context, it may be the case that someone forms a friendship with you out of interest with the intention of harming you. See for example what happens with some of the protagonists of the movie Parasite which was recently awarded the Oscar.

In the relationship

Regarding the relationships you have, it is very important to take care to look after them. It is certain that you may not lose a child or your parents because of someone's jealousy. However, it is possible that you may end up suffering in your marriage or dating because of a jealous friendship. Remember that the person is interested in making you lose what you have of value.

See_also: Psychoanalysis Movies and Series on Netflix

How to Limit the Openness of an Interested Person

In view of all that we have told you, remember that the action of a person who acts out of envy depends very much on the openness you give. Remember also that the term friendship out of interest is not only made up of envious interest, but also of the sentimental bond. Therefore, it is important that you are careful about allowing a person to become part of your intimate companionship.

Always observe and open up to those you trust.

I want information to enroll in the Psychoanalysis Course .

Final comments on friendship by interest

In today's text, you get the recommendation of a very good book and a very good movie. Both deal with the theme of friendship of interest and, besides entertaining, are very useful to teach about people's behavior. Finally, let's make one last recommendation: enroll in our complete and 100% online Clinical Psychoanalysis course. With it, you will learn much more about the human mind and acquire extra training!

George Alvarez

George Alvarez is a renowned psychoanalyst who has been practicing for over 20 years and is highly regarded in the field. He is a sought-after speaker and has conducted numerous workshops and training programs on psychoanalysis for professionals in the mental health industry. George is also an accomplished writer and has authored several books on psychoanalysis that have received critical acclaim. George Alvarez is dedicated to sharing his knowledge and expertise with others and has created a popular blog on Online Training Course in Psychoanalysis that is widely followed by mental health professionals and students around the world. His blog provides a comprehensive training course that covers all aspects of psychoanalysis, from theory to practical applications. George is passionate about helping others and is committed to making a positive difference in the lives of his clients and students.