10 Ways to Upgrade Your Social Life

1. Read! – I know reading is a solitary activity, but talking about the latest thing you’ve read can be a great jump starter for conversation. So grab a book, a cool magazine, or check out an interesting blog – that way you’ve got something to keep people talking. My latest cool reads: Stephen King’s On Writing, and O Magazine.

2. Take a class! – Your high school teacher told you to never stop learning and as soon as you graduated you forgot that along with how to say “where is the bathroom?” in that foreign language you studied. Want to work on that screenplay or learn how to merengue? Sign up for a class/workshop and you’ll come out with new knowledge and meet some new people in the process. My last cool class: Beginner’s Acting at Pro Actor’s Studio.

3. Get out of your comfort zone! – Set a goal of doing something once a month that is completely out of your typical routine. You dig sports? Go to an art gallery. Into rock music? Go to a live jazz show. Doing something different every once awhile can keep you from getting too comfortable doing your same ole, same ole. Comfort Zone Stretcher: I usually go to soul/hip hop shows, so I went to a rock show at the Star Bar to see band, The Lord is My Shotgun.

4. Talk to strangers – While you are upgrading your social life, you are bound to see some new faces. Take advantage of the opportunity and become a better conversationalist. Great conversations are about the balance of listening and talking, do too much of one or the other and you may find yourself the central character of someone’s terrible night out story. Site for some convo tips: Did You Know? Conversation Starters

5. Go it alone – Going out by yourself has its plus points. You don’t have to worry about staying at a horrible event too long or leaving too early from a great one all because your ride is ready to go. Rolling solo can also make for a great way to meet people, since you don’t have the comfort of chatting it up with the friends you came with.

6. Feel good – Run, walk, yoga, kickbox, lift weights, skip, cartwheel, whatever you have to do get your cardio up and some endorphins flowing. When you feel good about you, it shows, so tighten up those abs, decrease the complaining, and think a little more positive. My favorite workout feel good: Yoga. I dig how it’s relaxing and strenuous all at the same time. I stand by a Rodney Yee video...I guarantee it! A hot yoga blog is coming soon…

7. Join a team – If you like sports, joining a team can be a great way to expand your social horizons. If you’re like me and you’re not into sports, sweating, and the like, cheering friends from the sidelines can be just as fun. ☺

8. Volunteer – From cleaning up in the community to delivering meals and reading to kids, there’s always something you can do to help someone else. When you volunteer you get to be a part of something bigger than you, and the good feeling afterwards makes the whole thing priceless. Find a place to volunteer.

9. Tagalong – We’ve all got friends that are into some interesting stuff. I for one have friends who love trees, hiking, scrapbooking, Indian food, and a host of other things that I would never have been into before I met them. Let the people you know act as tour guides to a new experience for you. My last tagalong adventure: A tree walk. I know sounds strange at first, it turned out to be a cool experience and now I know the difference between a Japanese maple and a dogwood (thanks Bethany!)

10. Find your passion and DO IT! – If you are struggling to get out of bed each morning and drag yourself to your job, you may need to find an outlet to do something you love to do. If you have a dream you haven’t pursued take at least one step towards accomplishing it. Pursuing my dream as a writer is one of the reasons I’m typing this to you. ☺ How to Find Your Passion

Next up: New social adventures…I will be reporting back on how I’m upgrading my social life, inviting your comments and suggestions along the way.