Choosing friends that are either similar or different from one self can be a difficult task. Friends that share many similarities can offer a common purpose and way of life that is reassuring. Friends who are vastly different, on the other hand, may challenge and expand one's mind, opening new vistas of thought where there were none before.

Despite powerful arguments for both sides, I prefer friends who are different from me. First of all, choosing friends who are different from me allows me to learn from others. For example, I have a dear friend, who although not academically inclined like myself, is a master with technology. He works with television news stations preparing their broadcasts for dissemination to the public. I,

On the other hand, am technologically challenged. Despite my technological weakness, my friend has taken me under his wing and showed me some ‘trick of the trade' in sound and video editing that I would have mastering technological innovations, without becoming friends with someone who has a disparate skill set than my own, I would have never learned about the work that goes into producing a television broadcast.

Secondly, choosing friends that are different has challenged me to reassess my own world-view. My best friend growing up in the United States was a recent immigrant from South Korea. His family was a traditional Korean family, espousing communal values over individualistic ones, and promoting tradition and respect before innovation. Being American, however, I was raised with an individualistic attitude toward most aspect of life. Rather than ask for help, I would often struggle to overcome the challenge myself. Spending time in my Korean friend's home made me ponder the opposing world views of ‘communalism' and ‘individualism'. I eventually came to the conclusion that incorporating a bit of each perspective in my life would provide me with the greatest balance.

In conclusion, I prefer choosing friends that are dissimilar from me. Having such friends has allowed me to learn from the skills that they have that I do not share.

In addition, choosing friends who are different from me has helped me realize that opposing approaches to viewing and interacting in the world can be blended into a harmonious, personal world-view. Friends are vital to life. Having friends that are diverse is both a challenge and a joy, two factors that help provide a rich and rewarding life.

选择性格跟自己既要有相似又要有不同的地方是很困难的，朋友就是可以有很多相似之处并且提供一个共同的目标和生活的方式。朋友有很大的区别，而另一方面，可以扩展一个人的思维，前所未有的开放我们的思想。

尽管双方都持有有力的论据，我更喜欢我的朋友跟我性格有所不同。首先，我们可以从一个性格不同的朋友身上学到很多。例如，我有一个朋友，虽然不是跟我一样具有学者风度，但是个技术高手。他在电视新闻台向人们展示他们的节目。

在另一方面，具有技术上的挑战。虽然我的技术相对弱一些，在朋友的带领下，我学会了声音和视频编辑，并且掌握了技术上的一些创新的“诀窍”，没有拥有不同技能的朋友，我应该也不会接触到电视广播的工作。

其次，选择性格不同的朋友对重新审视自我的世界观是具有挑战的。我最好的朋友从韩国移民到美国，并在美国长大。他的家庭是一个传统的韩国家庭，在个人主义的人信奉共同价值观，创新才推动传统和尊重。身为美国人，但我提出与对生活的大多数方面的个人主义的态度。与其求人，我常常会努力克服的挑战自己。在我的韩国朋友家花时间让我思考'地方自治主义“和”个人主义“的对立的世界观。我最终得出的结论是结合我生命中的每一点角度会为我提供了最大的平衡。

最后，我宁愿选择朋友是跟我性格有差异的。有这样的朋友也让我学到不同的技能。

此外，选择性格不同于自己的朋友可以帮助我认识到，反面的方法来观察和世界的互动可融合成一个和谐的，个人的世界观。朋友是人生至关重要的。拥有不同性格的朋友既是挑战同时也是一个乐趣，两个因素有助于提供一个丰富而有意义的生活。