As the years pass, you would think that finding ways to mix your diverse group of friends would be simple. People often handle meeting new friends with a level of grace that is admirable. Sadly, this is not always the case; there are times when personalities will clash. However, you will see that there are indeed successful ways to mix your diverse group of friends, regardless of what age bracket they fall under.
1 Introductions
There is a reason why first impressions stick with you long after you have met someone; how you handle introducing people to one another directly correlates to one of the first ways to mix your diverse group of friends. When taking care of introductions, make sure that you say at least one positive thing about the friend being introduced that indicates how much you love and trust said friend. This will show the other people that you trust them to be open-minded enough to give your friend a chance; they should be mature enough to gracefully welcome other aspects of your life.
Frequently asked questions
2 Time
One of the most important points to remember is that you should not rush things. It's understandable to want all of your friends to get along; that being said, the best way to ensure that this is successful is by proceeding with caution. Give your friends some time to get to know one another without adding any undue pressure onto them!
3 Patience
If your friends don't hit it off immediately, don't automatically lose all hope and cease effort. Becoming discomfited will not solve anything – it will only cause your friends to become irritated and frustrated. If things don't work out one way, it doesn't mean that it won't ever happen. Remember to be patient and trudge forward; a little patience certainly goes a long way!
4 What's Your Flavor?
If all of your friends come from different circles, the best way to approach this situation is to introduce them based on their interests. It is usually easier for a person to ease himself/herself into a conversation when they feel that they can relate to what is being said. If you think that your friends have something in common, don't be afraid to play on this!
5 Secrets
Remember that you most likely met all of your friends at various points of your life. This means that you should be careful when mentioning inside jokes or stories. One of the worst things to do is cause a friend to feel isolated when he or she has no indication of what your other friends may be referring to. If you have to rehash on something that happened with only one specific group of friends, try to keep it brief and to the point.
6 Odd One out
Another thing to avoid is inviting a group of people to hang out, only to spend time with a few of them. If you want to build a strong foundation for friendship, try to make sure that everyone is talking to at least one other (new) person. No one deserves to be left behind!
7 Forcing Pieces
If you have to force your friends to get along, then it is quite possible that it simply is not meant to be. While you can meet their hostility with resilience, you should be careful of how far you go because forcing people who clash to interact can turn into a larger and more serious issue. People are not synonymous with puzzles; it is okay if all of the pieces do not fit.
Don't lose sight of the bigger goal at hand! You have to look at things through everyone else's point of view; this is guaranteed to put things in perspective and make it easier for your friends to get along. If you show that you know they are trying, then things will progress from there. Have you ever had any success in mixing your diverse group of friends?
