Host a friend-of-a-friend gathering

Meet new people and get to know old friends in new ways

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,
This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
tip is to host a friend of a friend gathering.
Plan and get together with your friends and invite each
of your friends to bring along a friend of theirs too.

(00:26):
This is a great way to meet new people with
whom you already share something meaningful. Today's tip comes from
writer and style expert Shira Gill. In a recent Substack article,
she shares a dilemma that she says stumped her. How
does one make new friends as an adult without the
built in social structures of school or a consistent work community.

(00:51):
That is a question I hear from a lot of
my listeners too. What Shira came up with is what
she calls a friend of a friend party. Here's how
it works. Just invite half the number of people you
can comfortably accommodate in your home and ask each of
these people to bring someone who is not on the
invitation list. Be clear that you expect them to bring

(01:15):
a friend. This is not just an offer to bring
a plus one if they would like. It's more like
a potluck where all the guests are counting on each
other to contribute to the party so there is a
full spread, except instead of bringing brownies or apasta salad,
you are bringing a friend who is open to new friendships.

(01:37):
The obvious benefit of a friend of a friend party
is that everybody gets to meet new people. All of
these new people already know someone that you like and know,
so that is a pretty big plus mark for them.
But you may be in for another treat too. You
may get to know your old friends better because the
new friends will bring out sides of them you haven't

(01:59):
seen before. You may never have heard about Colleen's experiences
living in Madrid as a middle schooler, or John's love
of botanical drawing, or Morgan's Nascar fandom. But with new
people added to the mix, your perspective on your old
friends may get broader when you see your old friends

(02:19):
through new eyes. You may be wondering whom to invite
to a friend of a friend party. If you have
a circle of friends you get together with regularly, they
could be the basis for the gathering. Each of those
friends could bring a friend of theirs, whom the others
in your circle may not know, but really a friend
of a friend gathering could work with any assortment of people.

(02:42):
You can invite a group of people with something in common,
for instance, new parents or people without kids, avid readers,
or newcomers to your town. You could ask each of
them to invite someone who also shares that characteristic. You'll
end up with a group of people with a ready
made topic to connect over. If you're not comfortable hosting

(03:04):
a bigger group in your home, you could also do
a friend of a friend gathering with a smaller group,
or you could have the event somewhere besides your house.
You could rally two or three friends for a picnic
in the park and ask them each to bring a friend,
or you could have everyone meet up at a bar
or coffee shop. Whatever the guest list and venue, a
friend of a friend gathering can be a great way

(03:25):
to meet new people and enjoy time with people who
are already friends. You learn new things and will find
a ready made way to connect. If you host a
friend of a friend party, I would love to hear
about it. You can reach me at Laura at Laura
vandercam dot com. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks

(03:49):
for listening, and here's to making the most of our time.
Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas,
or feedback, you can reach me at Laura at Laura
vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia.

(04:17):
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