How to start a new social group.

16th July 2019 by Kent Index in Advice.

Tagged: group, making friends, social, theme.

So you are thinking it would be great to develop a wider friendship circle – a new social group. How do you do that?

Starting your own social group can be both satisfying and a lot of fun. You get to spend time on something you enjoy and meet people who share your interests. With a clear focus for the group you want to establish and with a few preparations ahead of time, you can make your new group a success.

Step one – Brainstorm a theme.

All social groups and friendship circles have shared values and interests. When you set out to establish a new group, you want to first identify what values and interests you will all share.

For example, will you all be Liverpool supporters? Are you looking for a shared love of Pokémon? Maybe you want to spend time with people who appreciate real ales?

Consider the groups that already exist in your area. Does your theme fill a need in your community? Start your search online. Type into a search engine your theme along with words such as “group”, “club” or “meeting” along with the name of the area you want to cover. If there are any that already exist, you will be reasonably likely to find them. Other places you can look include common social gathering places such as a local community centre, churches, college, or university for similar groups.

If you still want to start a new group but there is already one or two with a similar theme you may wish to avoid copying their theme. Think of an approach or angle that allows your group to stand out as different in some way.

Step two – find interested people

Most groups start small and grow slowly. Reach out to friends and family members who would be interested in such a group, at least for a while. If you are part of a church, college, or other wider organisation, ask around to see if other people might be interested in joining you.

If you are starting the group as part of a church or place of education, consider asking someone to act as a mentor or advisor. Having someone support you may enable you to obtain a dedicated meeting pale, funding, or other support.

You may also wish to reach out to the wider community with an advert. We will cover that more shortly.

Step three – make a simple plan.

Pick a location where your first meeting will take place. For your first meetings, you should pick a public place such as a pub or a café. When meeting strangers from the internet stay safe and use common sense.

Outline your plans for the first meeting. Give a time and place. You might want to suggest a way to identify each other.

If you are going to put out a classified advert, be sure to detail the kind of group you want to start including the theme and meeting schedule (weekly, monthly, etc.). Explain what you hope to come out of the event. Regular drinking sessions, Pokémon Go raids, new friendships…

Step four – phrase you and to appeal to people who share your interests.

Pick a headline that will catch the eye of people that have the same interests as you. You may wish to include an indication of the location of your new social meeting.

For example, Gotta catch ’em all – Pokémon Go meet up. Canterbury.

For example, Do you love real ales as much as we do? New ale tasting group, Deal.

Your first meeting

Before the meeting starts it may be best to make sure everyone is settled and reasonably comfortable.

You could kick things off simply by introducing yourself. Even so, it can help to have an icebreaker activity. For example, have your new social group introduce themselves and state their experience with the group’s theme.

Avoid pressuring shy members to speak when they do not want to. Instead, reassure your group that they can pass if they don’t feel comfortable sharing. Shy members will most likely open up when they feel more comfortable around the new faces.