Remember when you were little? You’d make plans to meet up with your friends after school and then as soon as you got home you’d hear “you’re not going out tonight” from your mum and dad. Maybe they had other plans, maybe you did something wrong, or maybe they just wanted to keep a close eye on you.

Well, now every night is like that. Family, work, kids, rent, bills… going out can be tricky for us responsible grown-ups. We can’t be as spontaneous as we used to be. Luckily, MixingOut is here to makes things a little bit easier.

2. Your awesome toy collection isn’t going to impress anyone

Okay, that’s not entirely true. There might be a few guys and (possibly) girls out there who are really interested in your Mint Condition Death Star – but generally speaking these are subjects to avoid bringing up in a grown-up conversation. Instead prepare to discuss mortgage rates and the best place to buy a decent coffee table.

3. Crashing at someone’s house isn’t cool anymore

When you were a student living in a grubby flat, crashing on random people’s sofas was as much a part of the norm as waking up in the middle of the afternoon. Try that now with somebody you’ve only just met, and they’re likely to give some spare change for a cup of tea and walk the other way.

4. You’ve got to make the most of the free time you have

If you really want a fulfilling social life now that you’re an adult, there can be no room for forgoing opportunities to go out and meet friends. When you were younger, you had all the free time in the world. Now life is a whole lot busier, you need to find those moments to enjoy yourself and make them count.

Now and again we like to strap on our thinking caps here at MixingOut. And without getting too deep about the whole thing, there’s definitely an element of meeting new people and making friends that serves us in good stead, philosophically speaking. We’re ‘social animals’ and hardwired to seek out human companionship. Friendships have benefited us from the moment we first learned to walk upright and step outside of our caves.

But what about today? It’s not as if we’ve got giant wooly mammoths and sabre toothed tigers to contend with nowadays. Self preservation has shifted from survival to spiritual harmony. And if magazines, television and movies have taught us anything (because that’s pretty much where our researchers get all their information from) here’s precisely what we mean:

Friends will give you new and exciting experiences

Did you ever see The Hangover? How about The Goonies? All the great adventures begin with one thing: friendship. Why, even The Lord of The Rings begins with a gang of tiny buddies drinking in a tavern. You might not end up scaling the mountains of Mordor, but having an active social life is likely to give you new and exciting experiences.

Friends will help you overcome heartbreak

There’s fewer things more painful than a broken heart this day and age. Thankfully our friends are there to pick us up when we’re at our lowest. Read any copy of Cosmopolitan or catch any episode of any US sitcom ever. Failing that, watch Swingers, perhaps the funniest movie about friendship and heartache.

Friends will help you succeed at work

No, we’re not talking about that hilarious Pepsi advert where the lead’s friends help him rig a job interview so that he gets the job. Provided your mates aren’t keeping you out till all hours, having a fulfilling social life can make you happier and more productive at work.

Nowadays, it doesn’t always come so naturally. Over the years we’ve gotten a little more self-restrained, a little more self-conscious, and a lot less impulsive. In other words, we’re much too scared of saying or doing the wrong thing, out of fear of looking like an idiot in front of other people who would then reject our friendship. And it’s not reflective of some flaw in our personalities, or some innate inability to make friends; it’s just a part of growing up.

With that in mind, shouldn’t we each take a leaf out of our six-year-old-selves and start living a little more… childishly. Or to put it another way, a little less seriously. So to show you what we mean, here’s 3 ways of making friends when you were young and how to translate them over to today:

‘Give me a crisp and I’ll be your friend’

A classic example of playground trickery resulting in instant friendship. Of course, it was never about getting your greedy mitts on somebody else’s food, it was about getting somebody’s attention.

These days, you can’t exactly go around asking potential mates for a swig of their pint or a bite of their lunch in exchange for your friendship (they’d think you were mad). But you can do the next best thing, making yourself known.

Sharing your best felt tips

Finding a coloured felt tip pen that hadn’t run dry was always the most challenging thing about class (that and making sure you’re colouring stayed within the lines). So it was always going to be instant BFF’s when somebody shared theirs with you.

Hopefully by now you’ve learned to use a proper pen, but that shouldn’t stop you from attending to the needs of others, sharing what you have to offer in order to get to know somebody else a little better. In short, it’s your round at the bar.

Inventing stuff 

If you were a girl, it was probably daisy chains and rose-petal perfume. If you were a boy, it was probably something altogether different and involved new ways of making the girls cry.

Either way, coming up with new and exciting things to do together can often form the basis of a longer lasting friendship. So the next time you’re out with a group of people, why not propose a future activity to experience for the first time together.

Above: Some of the guys at the Verve Bar, Leeds.

After meeting up with organiser Francy, we got our drinks ordered and settled in for a night of fun and frolics. Most of the group had never been to a comedy club before, so there were quite a few worried faces (we’ll be okay, just so long as we don’t sit at the front!). But everybody quickly loosened up once the show got started. It was great, everybody had a really fun time, and the crowd was awesome too; friendly, lively, and totally up for a laugh – which made the whole night even better.

In fact, the night went so well that some of the group decided to make ‘comedy nights’ a weekly occurrence. So if that sounds like something you’ve always wanted to experience, then check our events page and sign yourself up!

Our next event that week was for a night out on the town, and this time we were in Derby. After meeting up with a group of entirely new faces, we made our way to Revolution de Cuba, a really energetic bar situated in one of liveliest parts of the city centre – perfect for a Saturday night. The crowds were in full force; vibrant, sociable, and up for a really good time.

Above: Everybody enjoying themselves at Revolution de Cuba, Derby.

It was MixingOut’s first event in Derby and we’re pleased to say it went down a storm. Everybody who attended had an amazing time; drinks, music, dancing and friendly company – just what everybody needs after a gruelling week at work!

]]> https://www.mixingout.com/blog/laugh-riot-busy-making-new-friends-leeds-derby/feed/ 0