Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of IHeart Radio.

Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's tip is to host a friend of a friend gathering.

Plan and get together with your friends and invite each of your friends to bring along a friend of theirs too.

This is a great way to meet new people with whom you already share something meaningful.

Today's tip comes from writer and style expert Shira Gill.

In a recent Substack article, she shares a dilemma that she says stumped her.

How does one make new friends as an adult without the built-in social structures of school

or a consistent work community?

That is a question I hear from a lot of my listeners, too. What Shira came up with

is what she calls a friend of a friend party. Here's how it works. Just invite half the number of people

you can comfortably accommodate in your home and ask each of these people to bring someone who is not on the

invitation list. Be clear that you expect them to bring a friend. This is not just an offer to

bring a plus one if they would like. It's more like a potluck, where all the guests are counting

on each other to contribute to the party, so there is a full spread. Except, instead of

bringing brownies or a pasta salad, you are bringing a friend who is open to new friendships.

The obvious benefit of a friend of a friend party is that everybody gets to meet new people.

All of these new people already know someone that you like and know,

so that is a pretty big plus mark for them.

But you may be in for another treat, too.

You may get to know your old friends better,

because the new friends will bring out sides of them you haven't seen before.

You may never have heard about Colleen's experiences living in Madrid as a middle schooler,

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