Ever since COVID has started, it has become incredibly difficult to stay connected with others. In fact, because of COVID, scientific studies have shown an increase in loneliness which has led to higher rates of depression and anxiety. As a result, it’s extremely important to stay connected to others during this time. Not only that, as a college student, especially if you’re a freshman where it’s hard to stay connected to others on campus, it’s essential to maintain a social life where you feel connected to others so you feel more at ease once things return back to normal. A lot of my friends have asked me how I’m a “social butterfly,” and how I have so many friends despite being at home where I’m not on campus and can’t meet anyone due to COVID. As someone who has made many friends over these past few weeks, I’m here to tell you—it’s not impossible. While it does take much more effort, the results are worth it, as one feels more connected to campus and it helps you maintain some sort of normalcy during these crazy times. The most important thing is that one should have a genuine interest in others. Otherwise, it comes across as fake and people will feel like they’re being used. And no one wants to feel used. With that being said, here are six tips to help you make friends during COVID:
1. Reach out to people on social media. I know what you’re thinking, “Isn’t this obvious?” You’d be surprised how many people don’t use social media. While social media can be seen as a place where people curate their feeds to showcase the best versions of their lives, it can also give an insight into what others find important. More than that, a lot of CLU students share what year they’re in on their Instagram bio, so it’s a perfect way to connect with people in your class and upperclassmen as well. Strike up a conversation, and you’ll never know who you’ll connect with. For example, I’m a senator at CLU’s student government, so I decided to follow all of my co-senators to get to know them a little better. Do I know all of them on a deep level? No. But has it helped me connect with the others and strike up conversations that I otherwise wouldn’t have had the opportunity to do so? Yes. And to me, that’s worth it.
2. Join clubs. I know, I know. You already have so much schoolwork and online classes. The last thing you want to do is stare at your screen after the school day. However, joining clubs is one of the only ways we retain some sort of the normalcy of feeling like all of us are still in college. Also, joining clubs is a great way to socialize with people outside of class, which is even more difficult to do because of COVID. Not only that, if you join clubs, then you end up seeing the same people every week, so you’re bound to make friends. Studies have shown that we develop the closest connections to those we see the most often.
3. Create group chats with people from your classes. In terms of group chats, people usually need help with their schoolwork. So why not take advantage of that? You can send out a mass email where you can ask for people’s contact information for those who are interested in sharing their phone numbers, where you can discuss the class, ask questions, and share comments about the class. While you’re not as likely to develop close friendships this way, it still helps you stay connected to your classmates and socialize in general.
4. Phone Numbers. For the ones that you’re interested in getting closer to, get people’s phone numbers so you can text, call, and facetime them. Remember all good things take time, and this includes friendships.
5. Plan Social Events Together. To take things further, you can even plan online social events together. For example, when you and your friends are free, spend time together. For instance, you can virtually watch a movie and play games. My friend/co-senator has an article about various online games you can play with your friends, which you can read here.
6. CLU’s Online Events. Finally, attend CLU’s online sponsored social events, which I know seems weird right now. You may not even feel like attending events because you feel like you have to force yourself to go. However, you may learn something new, have fun, and meet new people. Obviously, don’t force yourself to attend every event. But whenever you have time and have a genuine interest in a social event you see on @clustudentlife’s webpage or on the MyCLU Hub, it doesn’t hurt to check it out.
I hope these tips were helpful to you. Finally, while reaching out to people, show interest in others. People love talking about themselves and it shows that you’re friendly and approachable. Of course, not everyone will reciprocate to you reaching out to them, but always remember that someone will appreciate the time and effort you have made to do so.