Making Friends – Building New Friendships / Growing Your Circle?
Finding real friends – how do you actually make close friendships these days?
After several relationships and multiple moves, my friend group has pretty much completely fallen apart. I'm in my late 30s now and I'm realizing that at this age, making new close friends is honestly not that easy anymore.
What about you? Do you also find it quite difficult to form new friendships nowadays?
Unfortunately it's not as simple as it was in kindergarten, when you could just walk up to someone and – boom – instant best friend.
What happened? Why has it become so much harder?
How do you meet new people and build real friendships now?
Does anyone have good tips for how to actually meet potential friends and gradually build a new circle in your late 30s or early 40s?
If you’re struggling to make new friends it might be your mindset holding you back. Are you being too introverted or shy? Try taking the initiative and approaching people. Just be friendly and make the first move. The more people you connect with, the better. Every now and then, one of those casual interactions naturally turns into a real friendship.
Hey,
I totally get the struggle of trying to make new friends! I think a big part of it is that a lot of people become way less flexible once they’re in a serious relationship, have a family, kids, etc. Their priorities and interests often shift and don’t line up as much with yours anymore.
Maybe try joining a sports club or something similar. Just live your life, keep doing the things you love, and stay open to meeting people. Usually, that’s how at least a couple of good friendships end up happening naturally. Real friendship pretty much only works when you share similar attitudes, lifestyles, and ways you like to spend your free time.
Also, check if your city has a “New to Town” Facebook group. Tons of people—both long-time locals and newcomers—meet up there looking to make new friends. I’ve made some really nice acquaintances through those groups and even a couple of solid friendships. Worked great for me!
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