Expanding your social circle helps you link with people who like and respect you. Positive, friendly circles of sociality provide ways to find support in a new place or city, and isolation worries can be dispelled. Some of us need a re-boot after the pandemic and we’ve come to realize that more friends in our area would be nice to have.
Friend groups will tend to overlap. Someone from your church asks you to coffee with a person from her bridge group whose company she thinks you would enjoy. A colleague at work has a child close in age to your child and begins sharing fun video and book suggestions and play dates. You decide to join Toastmasters Club to sharpen your speaking skills and learn that someone else from your place of work also attends. Your professional life often takes you to networking and cocktail events where colleague and friendship-building combine.
But how do you expand your social circle? How do you meet others who share interests and similar passions?
You can wait around and see who pops into your life or you can get out and begin meeting people. While the latter suggestion may push some of us out of our comfort zones, it is the most productive way to expand your circle of friends.
If you’ve moved
Overcome Relocation Depression
Take a class in an area of interest
Establishing new circles of friends is hard, no doubt about it. But getting out there, regardless of your personality type, offers you greater advantages.
Making small talk and making personal introductions can feel annoying, but it is necessary to building genuine connections. Employing the etiquette guidelines of showing up on time, keeping your word when you make a commitment, and communicating well and timely will help build trust and respect with your new group.
Close friendships within a social circle come down to shared time together. Discovering common interests calls for scheduling more time to spend on those interests with each other. Say “Yes” to invitations and stretch yourself. It’s wise to step into your social self!