How to make friends when you’re already mature? Sometimes life happens, and you can get overwhelmed by many occupations such as work, employment, and family with your children, and spouse, you can be very busy; the very definition of a very busy person. But with all that, you just woke up one day and still feel lonely, although you have a loving family with whom you might spend time and a job where you interact with your colleagues.
We all indeed need mates, friends with whom to laugh and share little secrets, as it happens. It is not everything you can share with your children, your colleagues, and in some cases with your partner or spouse. You happen to realize that you have no real friends apart from your closest family.
A woman needs a friend to do ”girly things” (girls’ day out, meet for a drink, cool off away from family life, pampering time,.), as does a man too. So how to make friends when you are older and have missed all the usual opportunities such as when being at school, college, university, or neighbours.
Well, you can still make friends, even being older. You need to know where to look. It is never late to make friends; here, we share some tips on how to make friends.
NEIGHBOURS
You can start making friends in your neighbourhood. Making friends with your immediate neighbours is a good idea. You will have a lot of opportunities to make a move. Start by greeting them, and grab any opportunity to engage in a conversation. Try as much to make yourself useful, helping out whenever possible. Please invite them for a cup of tea. Try you might be surprised.
CHURCH
Attend your local church or any church for that matter. Most churches’ attendees are very welcoming. Don’t be shy; interact with people after the service, at the refreshment. You will luckily meet new people and potentially make new friends.
SOCIAL MEDIA:
Another great way to make new friends is online. Especially nowadays, you will be spoiled for choice. Different online social platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter… made it possible to make friends all around the world without moving. You can join numerous online groups according to your hobbies, and work.
RECONNECT WITH OLD FRIENDS
You can get in touch with old friends. If you feel lonely, nothing prevents you from reconnecting with some old friends with whom you lost contact. Nowadays, it is much easier to do that. You can reconnect through social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and WhatsApp.. type in their names, then follow or send a request.
DO NOT BE SHY
Shyness is not your friend, and one could say that being somehow shy is what makes you lonely in the first place. Shyness can prevent people from making friends. Do not hesitate to make the first step, the first gesture. Take the initiative; you can invite your neighbours for a cup of tea or someone you want to associate with, and give compliments when you feel too, …
JOIN A CLUB If you are a book lover, do not isolate yourself, you can join a books club to share your passions with other book enthusiasts. Check with your local authority or google; you will indeed find a group nearby.
GO OUT OFTEN To make friends, you need to put yourself out there. Take every opportunity to show out. Go out as much as you can, attend events such as a festival, concert… go to bars, clubs. You are probably to meet new faces and to make new friends.
The list goes on and on. There are a lot more ways to make friends when older. These ways include going back to school to be a mature student; finding new hobbies to enlarge your chances; using dating sites to make friends; doing some voluntary work; making friends with your colleagues; making friends with your children’s friends’ parents….. As you can notice, there are numerous ways to make friends. Just do not be shy, go for it. Do you know any other ways? Please share.
CONCLUSION
How to make friends when you’re already mature? Quite simply, follow these recommendations, including approaching neighbours, going to church, going on social media, reconnecting with old friends, stop being shy, joining a book club, and going out often.
Do you have other tips? Would you please share in the comments section?
