Keep the people who remember your little brother’s name and which song you hate. That’s attention, and it’s rare.

There is a difference between someone liking you and someone knowing you. Liking is easy and carries almost no obligation. Knowing means they filed away the small unimportant stuff, your brother’s name, the song that makes you turn the volume down, and that only happens when a person is listening rather than waiting to talk.

Notice which friends bring back details you mentioned once, months ago. Those are the ones worth protecting when your life gets busy. Try it in reverse too: repeat one small thing back to somebody this week and watch their face change.