“Become friends with people who aren’t your age. Hang out with people whose first language isn’t the same as yours. Get to know someone who doesn’t come from your social class. This is how you see the world. This is how you grow.”
Imagine growing up in the same environment, and around the same people for years. You may meet people who have a similar thought pattern to yours and stick to them. Over time, you start to realize that you have a narrow-minded view of life. When you hang out with a new crowd you almost cannot relate to the way they think, or how they do their things. That, in summary, is the reason why you need to make new friends.
Hanging around new company will help you to expand your social capital, which, in the long run, allows individuals to work together in a group to effectively achieve a common purpose. In Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we learn that love and belonging are third from the bottom of the needs. Making friends, in hindsight, is more of a need than self-actualization.
As an adult, you may lose your friends due to distance, conflict, or you may even naturally drift apart. However, here are five reasons why you should spend time around new company and make new friends.
- Expand your perspective
The realization that our perspectives are based on personal experiences and circumstances makes you see that this world is indeed limitless. Spending time with new people will show you diverse ways of thinking, and, if you’re lucky, you will pick a few beautiful lessons from it. Maybe you just moved, started a new job, or are experiencing a significant change in your life or circumstances. A new friend can provide a fresh perspective as you journey into a new season and make the process smoother for you. That’s the importance of expanding your circles and spending more time around new company.
- Build your network
You have probably heard the saying that your network is your net worth. Depending on your age, the friends you make now are what will become a ‘connection’ for your children. Marketing Expert Porter Gale says, “Your ability to build a network of authentic personal and professional relationships, not your financial capital, is the most important asset in your portfolio.”
Networking will take you places, emotionally, mentally, financially, and even spiritually. But more than that, these social relationships form a foundation where you can collaborate for the realization of the higher good.
5 Tips On How To Network In A New Environment
- Learn things about yourself
Making new friends not only expands your perspectives about other things but also helps you as an individual. New people encourage you to try new things, and maybe even offer a little extra motivation. You may find that you actually excel at that thing you thought you couldn’t do, or love the thing you thought you would despise. New friends will help you to discover new things that you like or dislike about yourself, and in the long run, you can take steps to improve your quality of life.
- It is a fresh start
Making new friends is refreshing. It’s like opening the blank page of a book. You get to fill in the pages and rewrite your story. New friends don’t know much about your past and are therefore not likely to judge you based on your past mistakes. You can share what you want with them when you choose to do so. So if you’re seeking a fresh start, then you definitely want to consider finding a new set of friends.
- They push you out of your comfort zone
If you have introverted tendencies or suffer from social anxiety, then you probably find yourself sticking around a particular crowd, or even by yourself. The very act of making new friends will push you out of your comfort zone and force you to listen to fresh ideas and fresh minds. In doing so, you may start to see the benefits of socializing with people, and you may end up liking it! Relationships: How To Socialize As An Introvert
Here are 6 Types Of Friends We All Need. Also check out The Benefits Of Having Older Friends
