How many people can honestly say that they have stayed in touch with their childhood or high school friends? You most probably lost the little piece of paper on which your best friend wrote the number you could use to stay in touch when you parted ways after high school.
Even if you had a mobile phone by then, the memory likely got full, and you deleted most of the unnecessary things, including contacts you barely used. However, the time came when you desperately needed those numbers you erased. As you come to realize the importance of backing up all of your contacts, you decide it is time to secure new friendships for life.
Using a mobile app is the ideal way to start forging those friendships. After all, 77% of Americans own smartphones, and about 25% of adults are almost always online. Since 69% use social media, you could try these ways to expand your social or even professional circle using a mobile app.
Become Proactive about Your Interests and Hobbies
Sometimes, you don’t even have to go out looking for friends; the right ones will gravitate towards you because you will have shared interests. If you are a gamer, you should look for apps that allow you to communicate, whether you are playing or not. Some gaming apps come with features that enable you to knock on a player’s door to check if they can play.
Alternatively, you could join groups that have the same interests as you. Nowadays, people are ready to reveal lots of details about themselves. During the onboarding process, you fill out your hobbies, personality, and interests. Through these answers, your app could even suggest linking you up with people based on similar hobbies, and that could spark the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Be Less Judgmental
Behind the keyboard, people can be very mean when talking about what they disagree on, reasoning it is their right to express themselves. Winston Churchill said that everyone favors freedom of speech but only if they can say what they want without another person contradicting it.
Even if you allow yourself to read more into people without discriminating against them for one comment they made, you are well on your way to finding new friends. You can’t base your opinion of people on the few things they have said. They have other admirable qualities and ideas which could be useful even in your business if only you give the relationships time to bloom.
Remain Authentic
It would be best if you did not try to fake it till you make it when you are looking to secure a friendship for life. Whatever you do, be real even on social media platforms or other online sites you hope to make a friend. While it may seem harmless to lie about the kind of business you do or some minor details, remember that they could cost you dearly in the future. Any misleading information will hurt any relationships you attempt to build because once you break people’s trust, it cannot be recovered.
Moreover, allowing people to see you for who you are, ensures that you attract like-minded people. There is no need to pretend you drive a Porsche when you ride the bus, yet the people you can easily connect with are those with whom you can crack a joke about how commuting sucks because they understand.
Don’t Be in a Rush
Matshona Dhliwayo, a Canadian-based author, once said that great things take time, and that is why seeds persevere through dirt and rocks to bloom. Take your budding friendship as a seed that will need some time to blossom. Therefore even when you find that person online, and you click instantly, take a pause. The chemistry may seem to be there online, but sometimes, you realize that you might be mistaken when you met a person physically.
Even if it takes months before you are comfortable meeting the person physically, you should not give in if your gut tells you to be patient. Although you cannot be sure if your online friend has your best interest at heart, at least carry out some due diligence like talking on the phone – video calls are perfect in this instance. If you find that you were disillusioned about the person when you meet, don’t give up on meeting other friends online; you never know what the future holds until you go knocking on the door of opportunity.
After scouring the mobile apps and getting tons of friends who also turn into customers, you want a safe place to store their contacts and other information. Being negligent and failing to protect the privacy and personal data of EU customers could have crippling penalties.
Fortunately, you can rest assured that with Gretel, your contacts are safe because you can only share contact information with those you designate. Besides, once you fall out with certain people, no need to block them; the app enables you to delete their profile, and on their end, yours is erased. On the other hand, if your contacts update their information, you can always reach them because Gretel automatically updates it on your end.
