How To Make Friends When You Have None

Places to Find Friends as an Adult

When did everything get so hard?

Somewhere along the way, we grew up. Life started getting bogged down with responsibilities and plans for the future. While much of this is exciting, what happens all too often as we start laying aside our childhood, is we unintentionally put aside our innate ability to make friends easily.

Don’t believe me? Think back to when a trip to the playground ended in a ‘new best friend’ after about 20 minutes of sharing the swings with a stranger.

Now ask yourself, when is the last time you connected that quickly with someone new?

The problem is, adult friendships are crucial, not just to our mental well-being, but to our physical health as well. It’s been proven that having friends leads to less stress, less chance of heart disease, and longer life.

How To Make Friends When You Have None

But where do we find these new friends?

Try an App

Hey!VINA works much like a dating app, but with one very significant difference. Here the goal is to find someone with like interests you may want to befriend. A quick swipe of your finger starts a conversation, leading to a connection and eventually, friendship.

Try a Meetup

Looking for some fun group activities in your area? Meetup.com is easy to use on your computer, tablet, or phone. Here you search for events of interest to you.

You’re then presented with a variety of groups who like to engage in those activities, giving yourself a chance to meet several interesting people at once.

Last update on 2025-09-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Learn Something

Signing up for a class allows you to indulge in a new interest at the same time as meeting someone new. Always wanted to cook gourmet dinners? Been thinking about taking flying lessons? Whatever interests you, this is a surefire way to meet new people.

Grab a Book

Your local library or independent bookstore is a great place to indulge a love of reading while at the same time, getting to know someone new. Book clubs stimulate you intellectually and introduce you to people in the community who share a love for the written word.

Take a Walk with a Furry Friend

If you have a dog, why not explore more than your own backyard? By taking Fido to your local dog park, you’ll have an opportunity to meet other dog lovers, while at the same time, giving your faithful friend a chance for a little puppy socialization. This is a win all around!

Meeting people doesn’t have to be complicated. Opportunities truly are everywhere. So be bold and try something new. You’ll be glad you did!

TAKING-ACTION STEPS
 
1.   Think about your most important friendships. Who are the people in your life that you count on being there?
 
2.   Reach out to a friend that you haven’t spoken to in a while. Check in to see how they are doing.
 
3.   Show your appreciation to someone you care about. It could be as simple as a message or something more substantial like a gift.

Reasons Why Adult Friendships are so Important

Why is it we never put enough emphasis on the important things in life? Are we really that busy?

Sadly, we tell ourselves precisely that. In fact, studies have shown we’re not taking the time for friends like we used to. According to a survey taken in the 1980s, the average adult had a minimum of three friends they were close to.

Thirty years later, the same study came out with some chilling news. As many as one in four people claim to have no friends at all.

Why is it we don’t enjoy adult friendships? Could it be we’ve somehow gotten the idea they’re really not necessary? This is absolutely not the case. In fact, below, you will find five reasons why adult friends are crucial to your life and your good health.

Friends Give Necessary Support

We’re not meant to go it alone. We need friends to act as everything from cheerleaders to a shoulder to cry on.

Friends Teach Us How to Act

How do we conduct ourselves? If you’re socially awkward, it might be because no one taught you specific social skills critical to success. Friends are where we learn those skills. It’s with friends that we practice, finding out both what’s acceptable and what’s not.

What’s more, friends help us get out of the ruts we fall into and challenge us to try social situations we might not otherwise consider.

Friends Give Us a Reality Check

Who else but a friend is going to tell you when you’re lying to yourself or wandering down the wrong path entirely? This kind of tough love is what keeps us from disaster and guides us away from the pitfalls of life.

Last update on 2025-09-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Couple Friendships Guide Our Own Relationships

Not everyone was blessed with parents who modeled good relationship skills. Having “couple friends” is where we form our impressions of how couples in romantic relationships interact. It’s from these relationships we learn how to balance things like work and romance and how to handle the parenting component.

Being able to talk to other couples about challenges unique to this kind of relationship also gives a much-needed place to learn.

Friendships are Good for Your Health

Studies have shown people who sustain healthy friendships live longer and enjoy a better quality of life. People who regularly spend time with friends are shown to adopt healthier lifestyles, experience fewer physical ailments such as heart disease, and have fewer issues with dementia as they age.

In short, adult friendships are an important part of your life and worth exploring. Now is not the time to hold back. Get out there, meet people, and discover all that life has to offer. Making time for friendships should be a priority for all adults.

Tips for Making Friends

Who are your friends?

A recent survey has determined you might not have a lot of close relationships in your life. In fact, the number of people who claim to have more than three solid friendships in their lives is only 37% or one-third of the population.

Even more discouraging is the idea that fully 27% of adults say they have no close relationships at all.

Making friends as an adult is a daunting idea. For one thing, we’re swamped. We get caught up on our personal responsibilities and business goals that frequently we don’t make time for a social life outside of loose connections with our children’s friends’ parents and professional networking. Who has the time?

Thankfully, you do. It actually takes less time than you think to discover the joy of adult friendships. You can start with these simple tips:

Start with the Old

Why reinvent the wheel? Instead, ask yourself who your friends used to be. Is it possible you can rekindle some old friendships? In this era of social media, tracking down your best friend from high school is easier than ever.

Why not shoot someone a quick message or text to open up the conversation all over again?

Become a Listener

When in groups of new people, rather than working hard to be the life of the party, why not take a step back? Making a point to actively listen to people makes you more attractive to those around you (everyone loves a listener) and puts you in the position of discovering the things which intrigue you most about others. It’s a simple way to learn about shared interests, so you can strike up a friendship.

Take it to the Next Level

Have acquaintances but aren’t quite ready to call them friends yet? Try opening up a little. Being vulnerable forges intimacy with others and deepens the friendship, taking it to the next level.

Stay in Touch

Worried about how to hang onto the friends you have? If you want to keep people from falling off the radar and becoming distant, make a point to check in with them once in a while. Send a text, make a call, set up a chance to get together.

By checking in, you’re telling the other person they’re important to you and worth your time. A general rule of thumb? Connect about every two weeks.

Make a Group

Even better? Start putting your friends together in one place by creating a group of friends. There’s nothing more fun than hanging out in a gathering of people who enjoy each other’s company.

Start simple, with a lunch date or drinks after work.

TOP TIPS FOR MAKING FRIENDS

In our hearts, we are social creatures. Even the most introverted of us require social interaction from time to time. Even if it is just a few, having trusted friends helps make our lives a little brighter and more fulfilling.

As we grow, age and transition, it can be harder to maintain these friendships. Luckily, if you remember these nine tips, you will be able to maintain any friendship.

1. Be Honest

Most of our relationships are based on honesty. If we aren’t honest with our friends (and vice versa), then our whole friendship might be predicated on these falsehoods. We should be honest with our friends because they deserve it. 

• Learn to Keep Secrets

There will be times when our friends need us to keep a secret. Now, of course, these shouldn’t be secrets that hurt other friends, but we should be willing to keep secrets for the most part. It’s important friends know they can trust us.

• Make Time For Friends

We need to strive to make time for our friends. We all live our own fast-paced lives, but it’s important to carve out at least a little time for our friends. What’s the point of friendship if we don’t even have time for the people in our lives?

• Show Up When Needed

It is especially important to make time for our friends when they need us most. In times of great need, who do we want support from? Our friends! The same is true for them as well.

• Give Friends Space

While we need to spend time with friends, we also need to give our friends space when they need it. We can’t take it personally if our friends ask for a little space, it’s likely they need it, and it doesn’t reflect on us at all.

• Take It Easy

We need to try and remember that we all have our own lives. Sometimes plans will fall through. Life happens to all of us, so we need to keep our expectations in check when dealing with our friends.

• Show Your Appreciation

While most of our best friendships don’t require much management, it’s still important that we share our appreciation with our friends. It’s always nice to know that someone cares and appreciates us, so make sure your friends know it.

• Address Your Misunderstandings

Even the best friendships will have their fair share of misunderstandings. The key is to make sure these misunderstandings don’t linger or take a turn for the worse. We need to address any issues we have with our friends in a timely and mature fashion.

• Be a Positive Force

This might be the most important tip of all. When it comes to our friendships, we should strive to be a positive force. We should build our friends up, support them and introduce positivity into their lives.