GirlGI | Girl Gone International Issue 7 | Page 59

ence shortly after beginning her graduate studies, and immediately found an
ally to bond with by accomplishing a
common goal.

4 | You Can Bond Over
the Bad Stuff, Too
One of the quickest ways to make
friends is to have a common enemy.
Sounds weird, we know, but sometimes
loathing the same thing can make you a
new friend. When Rachel felt frightened
by an intimidating French professor, a
girl named Marie approached her afterwards to commiserate. They then had
fun mocking the professor over coffee.
Voila! Sometimes revenge is sweet.
groups via Meetup.com or Facebook!

5 |

Be Open

If you live in a big house, you might not
feel that lonely. Still, it’s always better
to have a group of friends outside the
house. Sometimes, the house will bring
friends to you in unexpected ways; one
of Rachel’s housemate’s closest friends

is a girl who almost took an empty
room in the house – but backed out at
the last minute. The universe works in
mysterious ways…

6 | Reach out to Alumni
Networks
When Jess decided to move to Beijing,
she emailed the president of her
college’s alumni club in Beijing. Within
days of arriving, they met up and his
friends had become hers. It was easy
to bond, because they’d all gone to the
same college and were living in a foreign place.

7 | Find a Partner for
your Favorite Activity
Jess loves running in London and really
wanted to find someone to run races
with her. She posted on a local online
message board looking for women who
lived in her neighborhood who also
wanted running partners. Now, she’s
run three races with the most amazing

Swiss woman whom she never would
have met otherwise.

8 | Be Bold
Rachel’s always been a little bit passive,
but that wouldn’t fly in London. Waiting
in line for tickets to a play, she heard
two American girls chatting behind
her, so she turned around to introduce
herself. Today, one of these girls has
turned out to be one of her longeststanding friends in the city. Jess met
one of her good friends standing in line
for the bathroom at a music festival in
Melbourne. Use your foreign status as a
means to strike up a conversation.

9 | Follow your Passion
Going to events and venues is the best
way to find like-minded people. Book
clubs, knitting circles, film events and
intimate music gigs will lead you to
people who share the same passions.