Many of us have only a handful of good friends. Sometimes this is all you need – quality of friendships is more important than quantity. However, many of us can still gain a lot from meeting new people.
Beyond school and college, it can become harder to form friendships. Often, you have to go out of your way to meet new people. Below are a few tips on how you can do this.
Don’t be afraid to talk to strangers
Forget what you were told as a kid. Talking to strangers is the only way to meet new people. It’s much easier to talk to strangers when we’re introduced to them by someone else or when we’re forced to interact with them. Sparking up a random conversation with someone on the bus or someone in the park is a lot more scary – in these situations, strangers may have no desire to talk to you. However, unless you try to speak to these people, you’ll never know if they’re feeling sociable or not.
Try to keep conversation starters natural and genuine. In most cases, you’ll get the hint when somebody doesn’t want to talk to you. Most conversations won’t turn into friendships, but there could be cases where you end up meeting people that you have a shared interest with.
Go to more social events
Social events like parties, weddings, concerts, festivals and sports games can be great places to meet people. Everyone is likely to be in a social mood at these events (and if there is alcohol it will likely make things easier). Don’t shy away from these events if you’re eager to meet new people – try to embrace them whenever they come up.
An event doesn’t even have to be a big event. In fact, it could even be a small get-together. You could even organize your own get-together and encourage friends to bring along their friends. For some people, these more intimate settings can be better for getting to know people.
Join groups and clubs
Another great way to make friends is to join social groups and clubs. This could be anything from a book club to a martial arts class. You’ll be forced to spend time with the same people every week, which will make it easier to form friendships. There will be certain people you’d rather not see week-after-week but this is the trade-off of joining a club.
You could even consider starting your own club related to a passion of yours. Perhaps you’ve been looking for a chess club in your area but there isn’t one – why not start your own? This could be a great way of meeting people with a specific interest.
Connect with people online
You can also meet people online. There are many websites designed for meeting people. Dating websites are an obvious example, but there are also sites simply for finding friends. Such sites can be very useful if you’ve moved to a new town or city and don’t know anyone.
Another option could be to create a social community online. Such communities may not ever meet in person, but you can still get to know people. This could be ideal for connecting with people all around the world who may share a niche passion.
Get to know friends of friends
It’s worth getting to know friends of friends. Some of these people could eventually become close friends. They may even introduce you to new people – friends of friends of friends!
Of course, you’re not going to get on with all of your friends’ friends, but it’s worth making an effort. Some people may put up a barrier at first, but you may find that you become good friends after a few meetings. Only give up if they continue to annoy you.
Enjoy social time with work colleagues
You may be able to expand your social circle by getting to know colleagues. Sometimes it’s difficult to talk to people on a personal level in a work environment – you’re more likely to get to know them out of work hours. If some of your colleagues regularly go for drinks after work, consider tagging along. Alternatively, don’t be afraid to invite people out for a drink. You don’t even have to go to a bar after work – you could invite colleagues out for lunch or go for a coffee. You could find that certain colleagues loosen up out of work hours.
