Best Ways to Connect in a New Community

When you become part of a new apartment community or a new city, finding ways to connect is one of your biggest hurdles. Feeling like a stranger in a sea of people is challenging, but you can be strategic to find ways to communicate with those around you. It does take some effort, but putting in that effort will help you feel at home and surrounded by caring, loving, supportive people. Here are some strategies to use.

1. Find a Place to Volunteer

Is there a cause you feel passionate about? Chances are others who feel the same passion will be good friends, as you will likely have a mutual internet or two. Volunteering with a related organization gives you a chance to connect to that community of like-minded people.

2. Visit an Outdoor Market, and Return Regularly

The farmer’s market or an outdoor craft show is an excellent opportunity to get to know your local community. You can shop for sustainable, local produce, enjoy getting to know local growers, and interact with others in the community at the same time. If you return to the same market with some regularity, you may start building relationships with the farmers themselves and other regular shoppers.

3. Do a Kindness for Another Person

Making a kind gesture toward someone else is a great way to spread goodwill and start a conversation. It can be something as simple as just getting an item off of a high shelf in the grocery store or helping a neighbor in your apartment community carry their bags up a flight of stairs when you have a free hand. These small gestures will help you build camaraderie even while getting to know people in your community.

4. Attend Local Events

Festivals bring out people in the community from multiple walks of life. Check out the local community boards to see what is coming up and make plans to attend. Try to strike up some conversations while you are out and about. You never know who you might end up meeting when you do.

5. Be Friendly, and Be Yourself

If you move into an apartment community, you have a built-in community within your larger city or town. Being friendly is the starting point for making connections. As you move about your community, visit the fitness center, take advantage of the pool, or make use of other community amenities, smile, and make small talk with your neighbors. You might find that you build some friendships if you do. However, as you try to interact with people, be yourself. Don’t put on a front. You want to connect with people who like the real you as you move forward in your new community.

Getting established in a new community takes time. Step outside your comfort zone a little, smile at the people around you, and soon you’ll find yourself making connections and establishing a new community around yourself.

This article was sponsored by Link Apartments®, a new brand of apartment communities focused on connecting you to what matters most.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or the management of EconoTimes