Find people you can sit in silence with. That’s how you know it’s real.

Most friendships run on constant input: jokes, music, something on a screen keeping the room from going quiet. That works fine, but it hides whether the connection does anything on its own. Silence removes the machinery. If it still feels comfortable, you are actually at ease with the person rather than with the noise the two of you generate together.

Notice who you can be quiet around without reaching for your phone. A long car ride is a decent test. If someone passes it, tell them something true sometime, because that kind of friend is rarer than the contact list suggests.