Get Out of the House and Rediscover Your Life
Rediscover your life? Do you feel lost or adrift? Perhaps all this pandemic isolation has gotten to you. If your friends have vanished over the years, you might find yourself spending too much time alone at home. It doesn’t take long before you feel lonely and out of touch. It’s easy to build a social life once you have a couple of friends, but the first couple can be challenging to find. It’s not possible to have an active social life if you won’t leave the confines of you home.
If you need to build your social life from scratch here are some ideas to help you.
Take responsibility for your social life.
It doesn’t matter if your parents embarrassed you in the third grade or made your clothes out of old drapes. Your current social life is your responsibility to manage and change. Take responsibility for your relationships, too. While it might be easier to blame others, you lose your power that way. Maintain control of your life. Meetup.com is one popular place to find and connect with others.
Take part in a hobby that you can’t do at home by yourself.
Salsa dancing, bowling, contract bridge, and volleyball are few examples. Find something that includes other people and an environment outside your home.
Get out and talk to others.
The world is full of people. Head to the coffee shop and strike up a conversation.
Call an old friend.
If that doesn’t work, call another old friend. Keep calling until someone will talk to you. Invite them out for a beer and catch up. How did you arrive in your current situation? Have you always been a loner? Did you start working at home and ignore your old friends? Assess your situation.
Reject rejection.
The only rejection you might face is being ignored. All the negative chatter in your head is self-created. Most people are very nice and welcome the opportunity to add a new friend to their social circle. Everyone else is insecure, too. Be gentle with them.
Be positive.
No one wants to spend time with someone carrying a bad attitude. You don’t want to deal with someone that’s complaining. Neither does anyone else. We like to be around people that lift our mood. Be that person for others.
Branch out.
Social media provides a useful way to expand your social circle. On Facebook, you can send a friend request to anyone you please. Follow someone new on Twitter. There’s just one catch, stay local. Making a new friend in California won’t get you out of the house if you live in Atlanta. Look at the friends of your friends. You already have something in common.
Make a list of what staying home is costing you.
Think long-term. If you’re without a social network, you’re probably lonely and isolated. It will only get worse if you don’t take steps to change it. How will your life look in 10 years if you fail to act now?
Don’t revert back into bad habits
When your social life recovers, vow to maintain it going forward. You’ve already had more friends than you’ll ever need. You’ve just allowed them to slip away. A quick email or phone call once a month will keep most people in your orbit. Relationships require maintenance.
Work on your social skills.
Buy a book or hire a coach. Social skills are learnable. You can become a social butterfly, even if you lack the necessary confidence at this time. Find the resources you need and start working.
Make your social life a priority and you’ll soon have plenty of reasons to leave the house. It’s okay if you’re shy or nervous. Plenty of people are happy to be friends with someone shy and nervous. Use every opportunity to connect with others. An active social life can be yours.
