Goal: I’d like to get to know more people in my local area

Goal: I would like to get to know more people in my local area

The starting point for this one is, of course, checking out local groups that you are already looking into for other reasons such as professional local groups as you are likely to meet like-minded people at these events and develop a relationship over time. However, another great way to meet local people is to meet them through a local group or meetup that is linked to a common interest that you might have.

After all, if you have something in common you are more likely to have a more meaningful connection and better conversations to build upon (there is no point in meeting someone – simply to meet them and say hi). Of course, if you don’t have a particular interest in mind the “thing in common” could always be location and the fact that you are looking to meet new people. There are often “new to the area” networking events held in lots of the cities.

Other suggestions might be things that you need/want a buddy or an accountability partner for – e.g. going for a run.

Also don’t exclude online communities for looking for local contacts, if you know someone through an online community you might well find there are in real life meet-ups as well. Such as NaNoWriMo for Writers.

Goal Strategy:

If this goal sounds like something you want to do you should come up with your own personalised strategy for reaching this goal, but here are some examples:

1. What type of people do I want to meet and why?
2. I want to meet more people who are interested in food and eating out at restaurants and trying new places.
3. Do Research. Where can I meet these type of people? Identify a selection of groups and the pros/cons of joining them.
4. Select a group or meetup and give it a go.
5. Review your experience – did it align with what you are trying to get out of the group. Were the attendees your kind of people?
6. Repeat process until you find a group that you want to join.
7. Sign up for online communities with a local presence.
8. Sign up for Meetup. Sign up and try out a few meet ups.

Further Reading:

• A Beginner’s Guide to Networking
• Your Networking Strategy
• Different Types of Networking Groups – Explained!
• How to Choose a Networking Group
• Researching Networking Groups – Questions to Ask.
• Goal: I would like to meet more people in my field