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Building meaningful relationships in the digital age is becoming more challenging, especially when so many people work from home. Perhaps you want to create new friendships, reconnect with old friends, or build deeper business relationships but don’t know where to start.
Here are 18 practical ways to connect in meaningful ways and build lasting relationships.
1. Be Your Real Self
Let your personality shine. Being authentic makes it easier to find your tribe and build genuine connections. Speak truthfully and openly, encouraging others to be real and connect more deeply.
2. Join a Group
Connect with like-minded people by joining a local or online group. Forming connections with others is easier when there’s a shared interest. We naturally look for similarities when trying to build rapport with someone.
3. Start an Online Group of Your Own
Start a group for your hobby or interest, or if you’re a business owner, consider starting an accountability group for like-minded people. You can connect via video platforms like Zoom or Google Meet or start a group with the MeetUp App.
4. Become a Volunteer
It’s rewarding to help others. Whether you devote time to an animal rescue or volunteer to help at a food pantry, you’ll meet people with the same interests and form new relationships that could turn into friendships.
5. Reach Out to Others
Perhaps you’ve lost contact with someone you used to be close to. Instead of feeling embarrassed about the time-lapse, reach out to your friend and be honest. You could say, “I’m sorry we haven’t been in touch for a while, but I’d really love to reconnect with you. Would you like to meet for a coffee?”
6. Follow Up With New Connections
If you’ve made a new connection, try reaching out with an invite to meet up again. Tell the person what you liked about meeting them and why you’d like to meet again. For instance, you could say, “I enjoyed our chat at last Wednesday’s networking meeting. I’d love to meet again.”
7. Be an Active Listener
Instead of being glued to a screen looking for the next dopamine hit, put down your phone and listen to the person talking to you. Nothing is more rewarding than being the center of attention. It’s intoxicating when someone genuinely listens and engages in conversation. Actively listen by showing genuine interest by nodding, making eye contact, and asking questions such as “Joanne, so when you started your business, what was your worst fear?”
8. Express Gratitude
Whether entering a new friendship or trying to reignite an existing relationship, expressing gratitude is a beautiful way to show appreciation for another person. In long-term relationships, showing gratitude to each other is crucial. It can help the relationship stay alive. At first, telling someone what you like about them might feel awkward, but it will reap dividends in building meaningful relationships.
9. Step up and Be Brave
Most people fear rejection but don’t let that hold you back. When you meet someone and get along, ask to see them again. If the other person isn’t open to meeting up — for whatever reason — let it go. There are plenty of other people in the world eager to build meaningful relationships with others.
10. Share Your Vulnerability
Meaningful relationships develop from trust and openness. Sharing vulnerability is an excellent way to grow deeper relationships. The digital world can make us feel alienated from society, so finding creative ways to reconnect is essential.
Don’t be afraid to express your feelings. If your friend forgot your birthday and didn’t apologize, be honest and express that you felt hurt. It takes courage to be vulnerable, but the benefits to your relationships are worth the effort.
11. Be Compassionate and Empathetic
Feeling heard is a significant component of building a healthy relationship, but the digital age can disrupt meaningful interactions with others.
If a friend has issues in a relationship, you can still express care, even if you haven’t experienced the same thing. Show compassion and understanding. You don’t need to offer solutions. Show your friend empathy by listening and offering support.
12. Build an Online Presence
It’s possible to build strong relationships with an online presence. Share valuable content on your social media platforms to show you are positive, helpful, and engaging. Always be genuine and professional, respond to comments, and engage with your followers.
13. Focus On Building Quality Relationships
It’s easy to have dozens of superficial relationships. However, building real connections with like-minded people is more rewarding when searching for meaningful relationships. After a while, you’ll notice who turns up regularly and adds more to the conversations than others. Foster connections with those who step up, engage and provide value in your relationship.
14. Attend Networking Events
If you’re in business and working remotely, it can be a lonely digital landscape, so consider attending local or online networking events. Some networking events are better than others, so choose one focusing on collaboration. You may discover significant differences in pricing, services, and what the networking providers expect from members. Most companies offer a free trial, so you can see if it’s a good fit. LinkedIn is an excellent platform for sourcing event recommendations.
15. Help Others Become Successful
In business relationships, help others by sharing their details with your contacts, introducing them to potential customers, recommending their services, inviting them onto your podcast, or sharing their website link. Don’t assume. Ask new business contacts what they need, such as more clients, referrals, business tools, software guidance, etc. By becoming the “middleman” in your interactions, you’ll be known as the person to be around. This approach will lead to recommendations for your business.
16. Provide Value Without Expectations
Whether attending a networking event, joining a class, or building a new relationship, focus on providing value without expecting anything in return. The natural bias of reciprocity means that when we give to others, they naturally feel inclined to give something back. Still, don’t let that be the primary factor for providing value in your relationships.
Offer help, share expertise, and be selfless in your interactions. This approach will help you develop deeper, longer-lasting relationships.
17. Embrace Diversity
To broaden the scope of your relationships, consider connecting with people from diverse backgrounds. In the excellent book Rebel Thinking, author Matthew Syed discusses how companies typically combine a team of like-minded people for brainstorming. The downside is they all think the same. Ideas are quickly approved, the status quo doesn’t change, and it’s harder to achieve growth.
Bringing a diverse team together stirs up a hornet’s nest of debate. Although change can be uncomfortable, embracing diversity inspires innovation.
18. Play the Long Game; Be Patient
Some friendships happen fast, but building meaningful relationships usually takes longer. People need to trust you and know they can count on you. Do the groundwork, be consistent, trustworthy, and genuine, and you’ll find a new depth in your business and personal relationships.
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