DEAR HARRIETTE: A good friend just asked me if I can hire his college student daughter as an intern this summer. The internship that she was supposed to have fell through, and she is scrambling for something to do. I do have interns on occasion, so I am familiar with working with young people in the summer and teaching them about my work.

The thing is, I don’t know if this young lady is a good fit for me. As I remember her, she tends to be quiet and shy. I have barely had a conversation with her, even though I have been around her since she was little. While I know that the role of an internship coordinator is to guide and teach the students who come to work with you, I don’t think I have the time or inclination to draw this young lady out of her shell.

I thought it might be best to talk to her to get a sense of her interests and to see if it might be a fit for us to work together. I mentioned that to her dad and he said OK, but I could tell that he was a little taken aback that I didn’t just say yes. How can I manage my friend's expectations? I don’t want to disappoint him, but I also need to make sure I don’t agree to do more than I have time to manage. -- Internship

DEAR INTERNSHIP: Treat this potential internship like a job -- because it is. Talk to the young lady and determine if she's a good enough fit for it to be worth your while. If so, invite her to join you for a specified period of time. If it really doesn’t seem like it will work, talk to her about that directly. See if you can refer her to someone in your network who might be a better fit. Then speak directly to her dad and let him know that you passed, but you attempted to find her an internship for the summer.

If your friend seems upset with you because you didn’t take her, explain that the relationship has to be beneficial to both parties in order to work. You did not think her working with your company was a match, but out of respect for him, you did try to find her an appropriate placement.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I have a friend who always promises to meet me places, but who rarely shows up. I mean, we could be on the calendar and have verified that we would meet only for me to be sitting around waiting and she is a no-show. I don’t get it. I am tired of being stood up, but I don’t want to walk away from this friendship. How can I get my friend to be more responsible? -- Rogue Friend

DEAR ROGUE FRIEND: Stick to talking to this friend on the phone. That way you aren’t being stood up over and over again. Another option is to invite her to join you and a group. In that way, if she doesn’t come, you are still having fun. You should also sternly tell her that you don’t appreciate her blowing you off all the time; therefore, you are going to stop inviting her to hang out with you. Creating boundaries with her may be the way that you can manage your time better.

(Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR HARRIETTE: My next-door neighbor recently took up the piano. He practices every evening. Sometimes it is pleasant. Other times it’s annoying, as he is not good at it yet. But I admire his tenacity. It’s pretty cool seeing an adult take up an instrument.

I don’t play anything, but I do like to watch TV, and my wife and I watch a lot of movies and stuff on Netflix. Sometimes we binge-watch shows well into the night. We try to keep the TV at a respectable volume, but you know how some movies are -- there are loud scenes with music, gun fights or other loud sounds.

My neighbor has begun to complain about the noise from my TV. He even went so far as to speak to the super about it. I was appalled. I have endured his music well into the night -- or even during the day, when I don’t want to hear it. I have never once complained. And now he’s trying to get me in trouble with the building. How should I handle this? -- Too Loud

DEAR TOO LOUD: Before letting your anger get the best of you, knock on your neighbor’s door and ask if you can sit down and talk. The goal of this conversation should be to come to a compromise that both sides feel comfortable supporting. Tell your neighbor that you received the formal complaint from management, and you thought it best to talk face-to-face before going down a more formal road.

Tell your neighbor that you know that you sometimes play the TV loud and late, and you will try to be more conscientious of the time and volume moving forward. In turn, tell him that you are sometimes bothered by the constant piano playing. While you never mentioned it before, it does irritate you at times. Ask if he can curb playing at certain times in exchange for you lowering the volume.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I am working on a project for which I had to sign a nondisclosure agreement. I did so, and I don’t have any reason to talk about what this company is up to. Or at least that’s what I thought. But I’m noticing that as I talk to my friends about the work I am doing, I sometimes share bits here and there about this project. My friends are just regular people and not in the media or anything, but still, I’m wondering if I should be saying anything to anyone. It’s hard to work on something and not be forthcoming about the project. My friends are accustomed to me telling stories. How can I manage my friends and this NDA at the same time? -- Shhhh

DEAR SHHHH: When you sign an NDA, you need to take it seriously. It is a binding legal document that states specifically how you are to protect the intellectual property to which you become privy by virtue of working with the company. That likely includes details about the project and the people with whom you are working.

How you handle this with your friends is by telling them that you have signed an agreement that forbids you from talking about what you are doing. Apologize for not being able to share juicy tidbits the way that they have grown accustomed to in the past. But stand your ground. Change the subject. You never know what might happen if one of your stories gets relayed to the wrong person.

(Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR HARRIETTE: One of my best friends and I have lost contact. I could blame this on the fact that she got a job and moved to another state, but something just does not feel right. We checked up on each other while at separate colleges, so I know distance can’t be the single factor in breaking our bond.

She recently celebrated her birthday, and I reached out to her on Facebook and wrote a heartfelt message. I noticed that she viewed my message, but she never responded. This shocked me, and I have no clue as to why she no longer talks to me. I am not sure how to resolve this, but I want my friend back. -- Lost Friend

DEAR LOST FRIEND: Whatever occurred with your friend has prompted her to remain distant from you. You cannot control whether she will respond to you, but you can take one more step. Call her and see if she will answer the phone. If she does, tell her how much you miss her and point out that you know that something is off between you two, but you haven’t got a clue as to what it is. Ask her to tell you what’s going on. Request that she tell you if you have done something to offend or hurt her.

If she doesn’t answer the phone, send her a note that outlines your questions. Do not approach her in an accusatory way. Instead, tell her that you miss her and want to have your friend back, but it is clear to you that something is holding her back. You would like to know what it is. Even if she does not intend for you two to remain friends, let her know you would appreciate hearing from her as to why she has broken from your friendship.

DEAR HARRIETTE: One of my good friends decided to let her hair go gray. It looks nice on her, I suppose, but I have no interest in “going natural” like that yet. In my industry, it is hard for women to stay strong and vital after a certain age. Even though that sucks, I need my job and feel like keeping a youthful look helps me. My issue is that now my friend keeps pestering me to be like her and go gray. How can I get her to stop? -- Go Gray

DEAR GO GRAY: You hit a nerve when you start talking about image, age and work, especially for women. On one hand, we live in a time that is more welcoming to women. We have at least six women running for president of the United States. This is impressive. And yet, sexism still exists. Equal pay remains a dream rather than a reality for most women. And ageism, especially for women, is real in the workplace.

The good news regarding beauty and hair is that many women are feeling comfortable enough to choose different looks and colors. That your friend chose to go gray is fantastic for her. That you are making a different choice should be just as fine for you. Tell her that you begrudge her nothing for making her personal choice. Ask her to respect your choice and to stop badgering you to follow her lead.

(Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)