In today’s world, more and more young Americans are finding themselves moving to a new city to go to college or to work a new job. And while such a proposition can be exciting, it’s also pretty scary. There’s a big adjustment period and most likely, you’ll need to make new friends. So as a newcomer, how do you go about expanding your now very limited social circle? Consider the following ideas –

• Volunteer – Volunteering is a great way to branch out and network. Not only is it a great means to form new friendships, you’ll also receive a sense of satisfaction by giving back to the community. You’d be surprised what kinds of new opportunities volunteering can bring.
• Online – As we move further into the digital age, more and more people are turning to the Internet as a means to meet new people. One great site to safely form social connections from is Meetup.com. Dependent on where you live, you’ll be able to find hundreds of social meet up groups with a variety of interests whether it involves yoga, bar hopping, stargazing, dancing or book clubs. Simply name it and it probably exists! Meetup.com also gives you the opportunity to create and manage your own meet up group in whatever category you’d like.
• On the Job – Jobs are actually great platforms to form new friendships. You’re constantly around these people, so you might as well be friendly with them, right? Perhaps you’ll be invited to go get drinks with your new co-workers sometime. Also, don’t be shy about doing the inviting yourself. Forming new friendships at the workplace is nothing to shy away from.
• Take a Class – You don’t necessarily need to be enrolled in a university to take some kind of class. Performing a simple Google search on your area will return results for a number of fun night courses where you can learn something new while meeting other people.
• Get Contact Info – If you’ve been friendly with someone in the above listed settings for a considerate amount of time now, don’t be afraid to ask for contact info. Also, adding them through social media sites like Facebook can help you and your new friend discover each other’s common likes, helping further develop the friendship.
• Use Your Apartment – Inviting friends over to your place is a good way to further develop a relationship. Also, tell them to bring along a couple of their buddies. You’ll be able to expand your social circle by being open and inclusive.

Get Started

In some instances, you only need one or two good friends to start out with. From there, you’ll be able to meet new people by joining their social circles.