Author: Rich Gorecki

We all have at least one guy in our group of friends who is generally fun to hang out or interesting, except that he has that one glaringly character trait that drives you crazy! Be aware though, you can also be “That Guy” and not even know it! In my last post about Barriers to Friendships, we learned about some of the qualities that make you a good friend. But there are also some traits that can drive a wedge between you and other guys that can actually keep you from gaining any really close friends. Steve Kamb provides a very funny description about the different species of “That Guy” in this guest post on The Art of Manliness. Some of the species are far more deplorable than others but they all have one thing in common: a trait that irritates the snot out of friends. As you read each

Ralph Waldo Emerson may have offered the best advice for making and keeping close pals: “The only way to have a friend is to be one.” Then, why do so many men have a hard time making and keeping friendships? The honest answer may be that many of us don’t know how to make friends. In my last post, Finding Your First God Buddy, I suggested you need to overcome the fear of rejection. You can start the path toward friendship by finding commonality with another guy. You can also try pursuing friendship with someone you admire. Both mean taking a little risk. So what keeps us from reaching out to someone with whom we want to develop a friendship? David Smith, author of the book Men Without Friends may have given the best reasons in his list of six characteristics that prove to be barriers to friendship for men: