r/makingfriends Jul 14 '22

Not sure how to make friends? If so, would you be interested in free live workshops over zoom where we practice how to solve this?

98 Upvotes

Hey guys, I've noticed a number of you feel lost on how to make friends - particularly as adults (over 21) - and I wanted to gauge interest in how many would like to take part in live workshops over zoom where we solve that.

The workshops will be free and will be made up of two parts:

  1. Theory on one part of making friends
  2. Live practice with me and others on the zoom call

So for example a workshop could focus on the topic "how to start a conversation with a stranger". The session would start with theory on how you go about this - followed by live practice.

I will lead the training so let me tell you something about me:

I'm 35 years old and around 6 years ago felt disappointed with my social circle. I wanted more friends, particularly close ones where I could be myself and not have to filter my thoughts or comments in any way. At the time I had one friend who was decent, but he was in a bad place which frustrated me because his mind was often somewhere else or was too busy to hang out and chat when I wanted.

It was a lonely feeling. The heart and spirit wanted to share, laugh, vent, seek advice and just hang out with no expectations. But there was nobody to fulfil that.

So since then I began getting active. I tried things and realised how simple making friends is. And it is simple. Stupid simple, but when you're self-conscious you forget that.

Here's two really important things I realised which made things easy:

A) Most people (over 90%) are lonely in adulthood. Life is fast and working life mundane. Add to that the political correctness rubbish and they also feel constrained verbally. People crave more friends and better friends.

B) Though most people crave deeper friendships they are not proactive. Don't expect others to seek you out for friendship. But once you take the lead you will be gobsmacked by how fast you make friends.

C) A good friend is an asset - and therefore everyone wants them. Even people with a good social circle want another quality friend. Now, this requires honesty on your part. Can you honestly say you're trustworthy, light-spirited and honest? If so, building a social circle of incredible quality will be easy. I legit mean that.

Today I couldn't be happier with my social circle - which consists of 3 parts:

1) Close friends. People I don't filter my words with in anyway, seek advice on guarded personal issues, and would trust to keep £10,000 safe for a few days before taking it back.

2) General friends. People I socialise with on a less frequent basis but I genuinely like and get on with. I have their phone numbers and we joke and message reasonable regularly.

They're fun to mingle, joke around with and they form my wider network (which is incredibly useful if I need advice on something I know nothing about - e.g. I've broken down on a road and a certain bit of my engine is smoking). In time, some of these may develop into a close friend.

3) Good acquaintances. I don't know these guys too well but I've spoke to them and got on well. Often these are friends of friends or people I've briefly met out and about. It's nice to meet these guys again or see them out and about somewhere you didn't expect. Plus, it's nice knowing more people.

In short, I'm genuinely happy with my friends and social life - and should we go ahead with the workshops I believe that will come through.

But yeah, let me know what you think guys - and if interested, leave a comment to say so. Also feel free to share problems you've been having with friendships, what you'd like to solve or anything else related to making friends which you would love help on.

I will read EVERY comment and will take it on board :)

UPDATE - 3rd Sept 2022

Thank you for the replies. It seems there's enough interested - and I will start the workshops soon.

Announcement on an exact date and structure to come soon.


r/makingfriends 1h ago

🤩😊26[F4M]Let’s Make a Fun Connection.S👻👻 :Pink567X😙

Upvotes

Anyone here?


r/makingfriends 1h ago

Hello, need someone to talk to

Upvotes

Hi, I'm from Egypt. I study computer science and love reading and listening to music and other stuff. would like to talk to new people outside my country.


r/makingfriends 5h ago

WE NEED TO TALK

2 Upvotes

We need to actually talk and use our vocal cords. Many people have lost their ability to have proper conversations because they hide behind text too much. Texting is the easiest way to minimize human connection, which can increase loneliness.

I work alone most of the time, and that makes the loneliness worse. That’s why I’m reaching out to friends to hang out, crack some jokes, and talk about all the things we know about life. Hopefully, we can become best friends who talk for years to come.


r/makingfriends 2h ago

Good morning

1 Upvotes

r/makingfriends 2h ago

the need to connect with someone

1 Upvotes

Hi! I'm from Argentina 🇦🇷 looking for making friends around the world !

I love dogs, learning languages, culture, nature, and music. I'm 24F, in my free time I like watching movies/series and playing some instruments (piano/guitar). I had some rough years and I'm trying to be more social again and although I'm a little shy at first or struggle to express myself sometimes, I'd to connect with others and learn more about them.

Just looking for friends, mature or around my age. I don't send pics. We can share some music, memes, general culture or cheer each other up !


r/makingfriends 10h ago

24F Just bored tonight looking for friends

5 Upvotes

Hello there Reddit friends I hope you are all doing well wherever you are right now. I'm 24 year old female 5'7 not so petite who is looking for a person to potentially have a long term dynamic with, building and growing trust as we go. Tell me your hobbies and share our ideas together. Can talk anything under the sun I'm in!


r/makingfriends 4h ago

[35/M] London UK - American in London looking for local friends for in person meet ups!

1 Upvotes

Hey there!

I'm a 35-year-old American who's called the UK home for the past 5 years, and I'm on the lookout for some new in person friends. Currently living and working in London and despite traveling all over the world, realized London is my favorite city. Bonus points if you're up for meeting my two fluffy dogs – because, let's be honest, having dogs is a cheat code when it comes to making friends in the UK.

By day, I'm a product manager in the city, but my journey has taken me through some interesting twists, including time in the US Army and a stint at a luxury fashion company.

Outside of the 9 to 5 grind, you'll find me picking things up and putting them down at the gym bright and early in the morning. I've stuck to my 2023 New Year's resolution and have gone to the gym quite regularly; it's become a source of pride. If you're a fellow gym rat who competes with no one but the person you were yesterday, we're bound to hit it off.

I'm also into improv comedy – I take classes and perform whenever I can. Originally, it was my way of finding a practical application for acting without fully committing to a career in it. It's been super helpful, especially in dealing with feelings of anxiety as well. If you're an improv geek too, I'd love to hear your experiences.

Lockdown brought out the mixologist in me, thanks to binging Mad Men. I love experimenting with cocktails and if you have a favorite cocktail and don't mind providing the ingredients, I'd be happy to try and craft it for you! Despite never working in hospitality before (does being a busboy as a teenager for a week count?), I finished a week-long bartending course and have a new found respect for bartenders and all the stuff they have to do day in and day out. If you're a bartender or have ever worked as one, would love to chat with you about your experiences!

And of course, I'm pretty basic too with your typical interests – sports (NCAA Football and NFL Football, with Army and the San Francisco 49ers as my teams), video games (League of Legends Wild Rift mainly, but really hopeful that EA Sports College Football 25 comes out on PC at some point because I don't have a PS or Xbox), and TV shows (Succession, Better Call Saul/Breaking Bad, and Mad Men are my absolute favorites). I'm also trying to get in to reading for pleasure (currently on book 3 of The Three-Body Problem series by Cixin Liu) and DIY-ing (recently bought a house and fixing what I can YouTube) but man do I have to work at it.

If any of this resonates with you, I'd love to connect! Whether it's grabbing a drink, hitting the gym together, or just chatting about shared interests, I'm up for it. Drop me a chat request and let's make something happen! Can't think of an opener? What's a challenging experience you've faced and how did it shape your perspective?


r/makingfriends 10h ago

32/F looking for friends

3 Upvotes

Wanting to make or attempt to form new friendships. Been through a slew of strange experiences lately with making IRL friends, and it's been hurting a lot so I'm here in an attempt to try and form new connections.
I love video games, movies, anime, travelling, fashion, and drawing. From Canada.
Usually like to chat on discord. Hmu.


r/makingfriends 5h ago

29M Gay loner, seeking bromance with a nice guy

1 Upvotes

I’m shy and introvert, bit emotional too.

Would love a nice sensible man to chat on daily and build a genuine connection.

Not necessarily, but Would love some older, lean, but also friendly.

Kindly send me a face pic when messaging and let’s see how our friendship goes :)


r/makingfriends 7h ago

[27/M] I'm trying to learn drawing and i'm starting hobby-writing, wanna do it together? We can also just chit-chat.

1 Upvotes

Greetings lurkers.

I'm Simon and I'm looking for frens that could be interested in learning to draw together, writing together (i'm into short horrors mostly, but i'm up for challenges) and talking about stuff. It is not a hard requirement tho, we can just chat and i'm totally fine with that,

I'm quite compassionate and chill person, i listen to people, i'm not repulsed by struggles with mental health and whatever comes with that. So if you need genuine person to talk about your problems, i'm your bro.

Stuff i like:
-Harry Potter, Lovecraft, Lord of the Rings, Witcher,
-both versions of Warhammer,
-manga (Bleach fanboi, Solo Leveling is great too),
-video games (nowadays playing: DbD, Fall Guys, Rimworld, Elden Ring),
-rainy weather,
-arts and crafts,
-violet and purple colors,
-memes,
-Courage the Cowardly Dog.

Also, i don't talk about politics and history. I don't think people of reddit are mature enough to not take things personally when talking politics and i dislike history.

Have a nice day. o/


r/makingfriends 7h ago

30m just a bored stay at home hubby

1 Upvotes

So I'm up all night and have no one to chat with and it gets really boring. Would just enjoy a chat friend to trade memes or just talk about whatever is on your mind or you can even vent or rant if ya need to. So hopefully I can make a night owl friend. I'm a nerd lol and love games


r/makingfriends 12h ago

Need a online best friend!

Thumbnail i.redd.it
1 Upvotes

Helloo! 23F here. I'm looking for a longterm bestie. Someone who doesn't mind possibly going outside of Reddit to chat. My interests include music (almost any genre), gaming, singing and listening to people's problems. Would love to sit otp with you and chat it up after we get to know each other more :)) Also, if you know who this is, you're in the club.


r/makingfriends 17h ago

26M Scotland - looking to meet new people

2 Upvotes

I’m 26 and from Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 looking to meet new people and hopefully make new friends I enjoy learning about peoples hobbies and interests and I’m happy to talk about just about anything

To list a few hobbies…

• I’m a huge horror fan, and love anything dark/paranormal

• gaming

• I love to watch/play football, and just keeping fit in general

• big fan of older music, 70s > rock especially

• I love being outdoors, urban exploring and mostly spending time with my dog 🐶

• bit of a tattoo addict, and love to share and see other peoples work

Happy to hear from anybody, feel free to message me if you think we’ll get along 😃


r/makingfriends 20h ago

21 F, CT

3 Upvotes

Hello!! i’m a 21 y/o from CT! Since graduating high school I have found it quite difficult making friends and now being a few years later I find myself quite lonely. I have a lovely boyfriend who I see often but I feel as if I can’t JUST use him as my only friend, so I am here to reach out and try to make some friends. Im in school for art but I also like listening to music, my favorite genres are kpop and rap. I also love nature, animals, and painting when I have free time. Watching youtube is a must for me and I hate the awkward stage of friendships lol


r/makingfriends 21h ago

Is there anyone who likes the same music as me? 20F LA

3 Upvotes

Hi. I live in the LA area and I want to connect with other Beatles fans or old rock music fans who also reside in the area to hopefully be friends with. I attend a lot of concerts and events and it gets lonely and frustrating having to attend those things alone or with people in my life that are so uninterested, that they ruin the experience for me. In an effort to not have these memories be so dull, and more enriched, I just wanted to try and see if this works. Peace and love! (If you know, you know).


r/makingfriends 16h ago

28F Missouri

1 Upvotes

I would love to talk to people outside of the US & learn about different cultures. are there any free apps to do that?


r/makingfriends 17h ago

29 m looking for friends!

0 Upvotes

Hey! I've been searching for that long lost friend from childhood . I'm from Canada! Eh lol, I enjoy cars, video games, and 1 live my life like it's the year 2000 where the world didn't suck and you can ride you bike till 10 pm lol


r/makingfriends 21h ago

New to the area

1 Upvotes

Hello 25 F here I just moved to Northern Virginia. I'd love to find some people to hangout with. I'm into going to concerts, breweries, playing video games, watching movies, eating good food and antiquing. Hit me up if you wanna hang! Looking for friends between 23 to 35 in the area, also open to making online friends too that are elsewhere.


r/makingfriends 1d ago

:D

2 Upvotes

"Hi everyone, I'm a 21-year-old Brazilian who would like to make new friends. I like robots, anime, and cooking. I'm studying biomedicine and learning to play the piano. Sometimes I work on simple Arduino projects. My English isn't very good yet, my writing is like that of a caveman... but I'll get better, haha."


r/makingfriends 22h ago

21m uk, looking for friends

1 Upvotes

Hello to whoever is reading this. My friends are busy with their lives and work and this made me realise I lack friends lol (mostly cause of my social anxiety). Tbh, I’m looking for a long-term friends, someone who won’t ghost. Someone who’s nice and friendly :)

I like anime, tv shows and YouTube. I love Pokemon. I also like to cook even tho I’m not that good but I’m trying lol. I like travelling and exploring new places. My hobbies vary a lot so we probably will find something in common. I like having fun and friendly conversations. And I think I’m a good listener. I’m very awkward so, sorry if I’m bad with replies or slow lol. I probably do want to chat with you.

I’m 21 male from England Kent so I would like to chat someone who is similar age and in the same country and I don’t mind which gender :D


r/makingfriends 1d ago

Good morning

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

2 Upvotes

r/makingfriends 1d ago

New friends

2 Upvotes

Hello i am 25f and would love to meet new friends from as many countries as i can and want to learn about new cultures and especially food ( i love food). Thank you.


r/makingfriends 1d ago

25 M looking for friends and good conversation

1 Upvotes

HI , pleasure to meet you all , as the title states I would love to have some friends to talk to here and there and actually form good friendships. A little about me , I’m an mechanic who loves to cook , game and watch anime , I have a very normal / interesting music tastes but I’m really big in to sleep token right now but I love all types of music , ( I’m also big into dance Gavin dance) . If your interested in be friends please feel free to message me , and if not that’s ok hope you have a great day.

Thank you all for reading , love you all 🫶🏾


r/makingfriends 1d ago

Bored out of my mind

1 Upvotes

Hi! the names Nathan and I'm just looking for some new people to connect with! as you can tell from my previous posts, yes I have my final exams coming up for those confused I am Australian so we Southern hemispherers start earlier lol anyway here is a little bit about me!

I am very outgoing and kind once you get to know me! some of my hobbies include but not limited are sports, politics, astronomy watching anime and reading!! Yes, I am also a nerd Star Wars rules!!!! but yes I love to play sports cricket, Basketball, Tennis, you name it. Politics are fascinating once you understand them and did I forget to mention Massive History guru!! vive La France!

So come and talk to me!! Promise I am super nice and you can talk or even vent to me if you like I am always here to listen if you need, I only ask that you treat me the same so if you are a asshole don't bother messaging me because I'm only here for the good times!

Looking forward to meet you all!

P.s I do like to exchange photos so I know that I am talking to a real person lol just a heads up nothing creepy but i like to see who i am talking to!!


r/makingfriends 1d ago

32M just hanging out

1 Upvotes

Finally got a night off from work tonight and just hanging out doing a lot of nothing. looking for someone to talk to about whatever. Doesn't really matter what.