How to Be More Social

If you have trouble making new friends or talking to people, you need to learn how to be more social. Below, you’ll find a list of 8 simple ways to become more social. Remember, practice makes perfect, so take your time when embarking on the journey of becoming more social.

Tips to Become a More Social Person

Talk to strangers.

If you have trouble talking to other people, practice talking to strangers. Talking to strangers can often be easier than talking to someone you know if you struggle with that. You don’t have that fear that you will mess up your words and the feeling that they might remember the next time they talk to you.

Since they’re strangers, you probably won’t talk to them again, and it just allows you to practice your conversation skills so you don’t seem anxious or nervous when you try to make friends. You can talk to strangers in person, or to make it even easier, you can practice on a chat line. That way, no one can see you, they can only hear you, and it takes even more pressure off the situation.

Go out often.

If you want to be more social and have more friends, you must put yourself out there for it to happen. If you stay home a lot, you’re not going to have any opportunity to make new friends or at least socialize with new people. If you work at home, you can try working at a coffee shop once a week.

This will get you in the habit of leaving your house. You can also go on a walk around your neighborhood and mingle with your neighbors. If you have a dog, that’s another great way to socialize more. Start saying hello to other people walking their dogs, and start up a conversation.

You don’t have to have an incredible bond with them, but if you start talking to them, eventually you’ll talk to them every time you see them on your walks, and if you do that with multiple people, taking your dog on a walk is suddenly another way you are socializing.

Work on your self-confidence.

Part of the reason you might not be very social is that you don’t have self-confidence. Perhaps you doubt yourself a lot, or you don’t feel confident about your appearance, or something about your personality.

The truth is the people that choose to engage with you in a conversation or activity accept you as you are, and they’re not bothered by the things that bother you about yourself.

Tell yourself that before leaving your house, and hype yourself up with a quick pep talk in the mirror. Doing these small things will slowly start making you feel better about yourself.

Catch up with old friends.

Just because you’re not very social doesn’t mean you don’t have friends. When you’re not very social, you could have friends, and you just prefer to spend your time alone. Although it’s good to have some alone time, it’s important to have balance and also socialize.

Try getting in touch with old friends you haven’t seen, and do something with them. It doesn’t have to be a crazy activity; you could meet up for some food and catch up.

Set a day of the week to socialize.

Some people don’t socialize because they are simply too busy to do so. If you have a work environment surrounded by people and you’re in a relationship, that might not be too big of an issue because you see other people, and you might socialize on your lunch breaks or when you get home to your partner.

However, if you work from home, and on top of that, you’re single, you probably don’t socialize much because you get carried away working as many hours as you need to to get your task done. Your weekends blend into your weeks, and you turn into a workaholic.

This is when it’s a good idea to set at least one day of the week for socializing. Whichever day is more convenient for you, choose that day to get out and see other people.

Ask your friends to introduce you to their friends.

If you don’t mind talking to other people but have a hard time finding good people that you could be friends with, ask your friends to introduce you to their friends. This is a great excuse to see your current friends while also making new friends at the same time. If they like these people, it’s very likely that so will you, and you’ll probably have lots of things in common with them.

Surround yourself with extroverts.

The reason why you don’t socialize a ton could be because you’re more of an introvert. If most of your friends are also introverts, you probably tend to hang out with them one-on-one or in small groups, and your activities tend to be doing something very laid back at home.

That’s fine, but it will not make you very social. If you want to be really social, you need to surround yourself with extroverts. They will force you to go places with more people and do more than your introverted friends.

Practice starting conversations.

If you’re not very social because you have a hard time starting conversations, you need to practice doing so. You can practice with a friend, a mirror, or by recording yourself with your cellphone. Try making a list of conversation starters to have in the back of your mind, so that you’re ready to go when you meet someone new. Remember, giving a compliment is always a great and easy way to start talking to someone.

What to Avoid

Don’t drink too much.

When you’re being more social, don’t drink too much. You don’t want to get sloppy and make the wrong impression and the new group of people you’re hanging out with. Plus, if they don’t know you, they might not care too much about helping you out, so always be careful about how much you’re drinking.

Don’t commit to things you won’t do.

It’s easy to get excited that you’re making new friends and get carried away making plans with them. However, you don’t want to commit to things you’re not actually going to do. It’ll make you seem flaky and like you don’t really want to hang out with the people you made plans with.

If you don’t want to do something, it’s okay to say you’re not really interested in that activity but that you’d like to catch up with them afterward to get something to eat or something like that.

Don’t say things you might regret.

Be conscious of the things you say. Not everyone forgives if you say the wrong thing too often. It can also make you seem very inconsiderate or rude, so avoid saying things you might regret later on.

Think About Why You’re Not a Social Person

Part of solving this issue is understanding where it stems from, ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you have social anxiety? People with social anxiety have a hard time socializing because they get overwhelmed easily when they’re in social situations or around a lot of people. It can be overstimulating for them, so spending time with many people isn’t easy or enjoyable. If you have social anxiety and want to be more social, take it one step at a time and only do what you’re comfortable doing.
• Do you have a hard time opening up to new people? For whatever reason, you might have a hard time opening up to new people. You might not be very trusting because other people have let you down in the past, which might be a huge roadblock for you when you’re trying to socialize.
• Are you an only child? If you were an only child, you probably grew up in a more calm environment. You’re not used to being around so many people or sharing your time with a lot of people. Socializing doesn’t come as naturally to you as it does to people with a lot of siblings because you weren’t forced to socialize.
• What was your childhood like? If you moved around a lot, it would make sense that it was difficult to keep friends because you were never in one place long enough to make real friends, for example. Ask yourself if there was something in your childhood that could explain why you’re not as social as you’d like to be.
• Have you experienced bullying? If you experienced bullying, you’re probably much more closed off to socializing and getting to know new people because you had a bad experience with people you did and did not know. Anyone can bully you, they don’t have to know you to bully you, so you might associate strangers you could potentially be friends with, with people that didn’t know you and judged you and bullied you anyways, making it hard to make friends.

Not everyone is a social butterfly, and that’s okay, but it’s important to have balance in your life and try to be a little bit social. You don’t have to become the most social person overnight, but it’s a good idea to slowly practice some of the things mentioned above to slowly become more social.