Moving towns can be a scary thing, even if it’s for a really positive reason. If you’re moving to a new city for college or a promotion, there are lots of things you can do to make the transition a little easier.
1. Find a New Regular Place
A good way to start putting out roots is to find a coffee shop, diner, or bar where you feel comfortable and make it your new regular. Get to know the wait staff. Find new favorites on the menu. Before long, they’ll be asking if you want your usual, and you’ll feel like you belong.
2. Make an Effort to Connect
Making friends isn’t as easy as it was when you were a kid. You have to make an effort to connect with people. Join a gym or a yoga class. Look for little things that start to build bridges. Smile and make eye contact. Sooner or later you will click with people and start to build up a social life.
3. Accept All Invitations
When you’re the new guy, it makes sense to say yes when your colleagues or fellow students invite you out. Now is the time to try new things and go to that free meditation class or your colleague’s exhibition opening. You never know who you might meet or what new interest could blossom.
4. Enjoy Being a Tourist
Go and check out everything your new city has to offer. Many people miss out on some of their town’s best experiences because they take them for granted and never make the effort. Maybe your new city has a world-class art gallery or theatre, or you now live close to some great hiking or skiing areas. Don’t waste the opportunity to try new experiences.
5. Don’t Hold Back
Don’t wait for the perfect date, house, or job to come along. You can waste a lot of your life by being too picky. Take a chance and say yes to whatever comes along. If it’s not right for you, you can stop any time. But it may turn out to be better than you could have believed.
6. Never Stop Learning
If you spent your whole life in your new town, it’s likely you would never exhaust its possibilities. Ask people what their favourite places are or why they like living there.
Stay curious and keep finding out more about the great place you’ve moved to.
