MAKING FRIENDS--------------------------------------------------
If you want to make new friends at your old school:
Did you cultivate new talents, grow a few inches, get a new look, start playing a sport or find a new hobby over the summer break? Are you on the look out for a crowd that shares your new attributes and attitudes? If so, the number one rule is this - do NOT ignore your old friends. An "out with the old, in with the new" mentality will not help you succeed in finding new friends and may cause you to end up totally alone. If you want to make new friends at an old school you need to be prepared to face down a few demons and challenge your old reputation. You will have to swallow your ego and take the initiative. You will also have to be able to move past initial rejections and try to "get in" more than once. Cliques form quickly in schools and can be very hard to infiltrate if you aren't a new student. If you give up too soon, you may lose a great opportunity to make new friends. It is best to start small, work on making friends with one or two established members of a group rather than the whole group. Find a common thread between you and the "new prospects" and use it. Don't be shy and keep on talking even when they don't seem to be answering. Once you have proven your interest and/or expertise in the thing you have in common with these new people, they will open up to you. Don't expect to find new best friends in one day, but do know that familiarity breeds comfort, once the people you want to be friends with know you have something in common with them and get used to seeing you around the friendship part will follow with little effort. Getting your foot in the door and not getting discouraged is the main part of "new crew success". |
