An easy way to hang with locals who share your interests

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Join Meetups in your area.

Want to associate with people in your area who have the same love of movies, new restaurants, social media, sports, cooking, travel, books, or other interests that you have with no strings attached (and often, no cost)? 

There’s an incredibly easy way to do so and it makes making fast friends with like-minded people a snap. All you need to do is sign up for Meetup for free in your city and then use the Meetup search engine to look for topics or groups that are of interest to you. 

Simply sign up and then explore Meetup options in your city.

Here are just a quick example of the types of Meetups that you can attend or join. 

After that, you will receive regular email or text alerts notifying you of events that you might want to attend. If interested, simply sign up to attend an event and then show up. It’s that easy. Some events are free; others may involve nominal attendance fees; while others are events like concerts or sporting events where you simply buy your ticket like everybody else.

Choose from a variety of broad topics such as those listed. above. The Meetup system will email or text you
about events or clubs that are scheduled in your area related to your preferred topics.

I attend a social media Meetup for free, as well as a LinkedIn Meetup for a nominal fee in my area (St. Louis, Mo.) and have found both to be a non-threatening way to build my social networking skills and meet people who care about the same things I do. Often, after an event, interested attendees wander over to a nearby restaurant to get better acquainted … so even such learning events can be fun.

Here are examples of the types of Meetups that I receive notifications about. I can attend whichever ones I please
and invite Facebook friends who might also like to attend.

If I was new to a city, I would definitely sign up for dining and entertainment Meetups to befriend people who like to do the same things that I like to do.

How can Meetups benefit you?

• If you are a job seeker, recent graduate, new to town, or just want to improve your skills, join local Meetups that delve in professional development or business networking.
• If you are shy, single or lonely, join Meetups involving fun events, such as movies, plays, concerts, theme restaurants, etc., with people who may normally feel as reticent as you about socializing, but who also want to have fun in a non-threatening environment.

Don’t like a group? Stop showing up! There are no long term commitments required. You just do what you want, when you want. So if you want an easy way to hang with people who like the same things you do … Meetup with them! It not only can help you get a job (if that’s what you seek), it can expand your mind, entertain your soul and bring about lasting friendships.

Meetup!

By the way, I receive no compensation for talking about Meetup … I’m just a big fan of attending non-scary social and learning events!

Related article

How to land a job in a different city

What advice do you have for people who want to meet like-minded people through Meetup or other such networking efforts? Share your thoughts on Getajobtips.com or the LinkedIn discussion board that might have brought you to the blog. Thanks! Kathy

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