4. They respect your space and emotional energy.
One of my clients recently was struggling with a close friend who was simply taking up too much of her emotional energy. She was jealous of my client's new romantic relationship, and wanted a lot more of her time and attention than she could give. Further, this friend had a lot of negativity in her life and would end up sucking the conversation down a vortex of critical thoughts. It left my client feeling depleted and unsure if she could even remain friends with her at all. An outstanding friend respects your space and emotional energy. We all sometimes need a shoulder to lean on and hey, that's what friends are for. But true friendships have a reciprocity of give and take and know when and how to respect your space.