Making genuine friends as an adult - signs your friendship is real and ways to actually meet new people.
You're probably reading this because you’re an adult and you want to make some new friends. Which is genuinely a really great place to be! You’re already 10 steps ahead of all the people (and sadly there are alot) that are super lonely but don’t have the energy, confidence or desire to do anything about it.
I’m sure you’ve seen all the stats plastered all over social media - loneliness is an epidemic, adults are spending more time alone than ever, making friends as an adult is really hard etc . All definitely true but maybe not the full picture. The more you believe that making genuine friends as an adult is an impossible task, the more it will actually become an impossible task (speaking things into existence and all that).
So here is what no one tells you about making new, genuine friends as an adult…
It doesn’t have to be as hard as it is made out to be. I’ll say that one again. It doesn’t have to be as hard as it is made out to be. Now this is 100% true and I have tested this time and time again myself. The good thing, I suppose, about lots of adults struggling to make new friends is that there are a lot of adults out there looking for new friends. The adult friendship dating pool IS MASSIVE. All you need to do is figure out how to actually find these people (I’m going to tell you how)
You don’t need 100 best friends. Just a few in your circle you genuinely value. You’re probably picturing that one person you know who seems to have about a million different friends. This isn’t actually necessary to feel genuine human connection, have fun with other people and spend quality time socialising with non-romantic connections. A few close friends that you have real relationships with is life changing.
Connect over a common interest. Use your hobbies and interests to meet new people and make friends. This is the EASIEST way to form a relationship with someone. Think of a hobby you love (art, photography, hiking, surfing, whatever it may be). If you meet someone who also loves *insert hobby* chances are you will probably get along. A common hobby is a really easy first step to connecting with someone new.
Try and meet people local to you. It's all well and good making a new best friend but if they live 100s miles away it's not ideal for actually hanging out in person.
Use technology to help you actually connect with new people. We live in a digital age and there is no need to fight it. Technology can be used so effortlessly and effectively to connect with new people (look at dating apps). My biggest advice is to use friendship finding apps as a stepping stone to connecting with new people but actually bridge that new connection to real life. Go on a friendship date and do something you both enjoy. Forming a genuine friendship is much more likely if you actually see this person in real life.
How to actually do all of this?! It really couldn’t be easier… Introducing Buddee! Buddee is an app (think easy & efficient connections) that connects people that share the same hobby (something in common already) and are truly local to you (a friend you can easily meet up with)! The app is totally free to use and is the perfect solution to finding new friends and maybe even doing more of your favourite hobby.
Simply download the app (available on ios & android), set up a profile and add your favourite hobbies. Set your search preferences. Browse, match and chat and meet at your own convenience. (I told you it was really easy).
The hardest thing about making new friends is actually connecting with new people in the first place. Putting yourself out there can be daunting but it helps massively if ‘potential friends’ are in the exact same position. Take the first step to amazing friends and download Buddee. Go on, have some fun.
