A Young Professionals Guide to Making New Friends: Part 1

I always thought that I was the only young professional who struggled with meeting new people. We do that, don’t we? We assume that we’re the only one on earth with issues.

Well, as shocking as this might sound, we all have issues. And one of the most common issues for those in our demographic is making new friends. Yes, we have our work friends. We have our friends from college, high school and friends of the family. But when was the last time you made a brand new friend? I will argue there is a difference between business contacts and friends, although some of us workaholics have a hard time since we spend the vast majority of our time focused on business.

One of the easiest ways to meet new people, albeit outside most of our comfort zones, is through interest groups. Personally, I have met a ton of new people through the South Suburban Young Professionals and Yelp, as well as #MKEFoodies and other food-related meet-ups. We all have our hobbies. Two of mine happen to be eating and talking about YP issues. Why not do something you know you’re going to enjoy, while opening yourself up to making some connections? What’s the worst that could happen? You don’t meet anyone. Well, you still got to do something you enjoy doing. You get the idea.

I do not consider myself to be a horribly outgoing person. Honestly, I’ve struggled with anxiety most of my life. I am easily intimidated by groups. Personally, I am drawn to groups with a social media component. I can connect with people before I ever have to step foot outside of my comfort zone. And if you don’t think you can meet new friends online, I would beg to differ.

Case in point: my “Twitter Friend Tony.” Me and Tony met by reading each other’s reviews on Yelp, we then connected on Twitter (Hence “Twitter Friend Tony”) and chatted back and forth. This went on for months before we met at a Yelp event this summer. Would I have met Tony without the help of Yelp and Twitter? Most likely not. Just think how many “Twitter Friend Tonys” are out there! Interest groups and social media make it easier than ever to expand your circle of friends.

As young professionals, especially, we find ourselves losing friends. It happens. People change; they move in different directions, they move to different states. We need to make new friends that are a good fit with our current interests and where we are in our lives, people that will open us up to new things, and push us to continue developing ourselves. As young professionals, this is one of our biggest challenges and often something we don’t talk about or even realize. Making new friends isn’t just for kindergarteners or a lyric to a song you sung in Girl Scouts (“One is silver and the other’s gold”) - it’s a part of life and an important thing to master as an adult.

Start here: Join the South Suburban Young Professionals!