Tips For Moving To A New City
Moving to a city new to you should be an exciting part of your life full of discovery and new experiences, so don’t let your worries get in the way! When you move to a new city, you get to start over, make new friends, and go around exploring and finding new favorites in town. Here are a few tips to transition your mind from unease to excitement as you settle into a new city you’ll soon be calling home.
First apps, then friends – Making friends will probably be one of your priorities when moving to a new city and sometimes that can take time and it can be hard, so here’s how to make friends in a city you don’t know anyone. Thankfully nowadays, there are apps for almost everything. Technology will be your best friend before you start to make some human ones, so download away! Meetup is a great app that allows you to search for people who share the same likes or hobbies as you. Once you’ve joined a group that share your interests, you can be notified about organized times and places to meet up in the city with your group. Don’t sit around, go download Meetup and start meeting with awesome people for various activities like hiking, cooking, practicing a language or just hanging out at a bar.
Smacktive is a similar app to Meetup, but focused on sports, exercise, and physical activity. This app will not only get you connected with people near you in the city, but keep you active and healthy as well. You can easily find people to play a game of soccer or a workout buddy to join a gym with. Making friends after a move doesn’t have to be awkward and difficult. Becoming a part of an organized group is a simple way to meet people in a new city and start authentic conversations based on mutual interests.
Put yourself out there – When moving to unfamiliar territory, you may feel compelled to dive into a deep hole of Netflix marathons. Push yourself to avoid this and get out there! Find a local coffee shop you can get comfortable with and get some work done outside of your new abode. The more you regularly frequent a location, the more likely you will be able to meet locals to talk to. Get to know the people at the job you just started, invite them out for a cup of coffee or offer to buy them lunch, and if they invite you to something say yes! Someone who lives in the area will be a great resource for finding good places to go eat at, a good library to join, or the best trails to run. You can also rely on good old, trusty Google to inform you about events happening in the area or volunteering opportunities that will expose you to the community. Facebook and the local city web page are also great resources to keep up to date about events. Don’t limit yourself to the couch and the refrigerator after your move. Although it can feel a bit intimidating to step out of your comfort zone at first, doing so will make a new city start to really feel like home.
Time is on your side – Moving to a new city and feeling like you can call it your own isn’t going to happen overnight. Give yourself a sufficient amount of time to get accustomed to your new routine and your job, to build relationships with people, and become familiar with the hot spots in the area. Be proactive about continuously seeking out chances to meet people and trying out new things before feeling like the move was a mistake. Don’t get yourself hung up on what you left behind in your former residence, rather live in the present and keep your sights forward to the new and exciting places and friends you’re about to discover! Be sure to keep a positive attitude and an open mind about the people you meet and the places you go. Soon enough, locals will be coming to you for tips about the best spots in town.
