By Reach out of Your Comfort Zone
At the Hospital: You can’t sit in your little bubble and expect people to approach you. You are going to have to handle some awkward social situations before you can find your hospital BFF. Take every invite to go out to lunch, even if you’ve brought your own. Attend every work happy hour. If your coworkers want to sing “Love Is a Battlefield” at karaoke, get up on stage with them. You need to show you’re a team player if you want to be included in their reindeer games.
Out of the Hospital: If you continue to go to the same bars or same places to eat, you are going to keep running into the same people. Branch out. Take a class. Start shopping at a different market. Go to a movie or dinner alone, or grab a drink by yourself. Strike up a conversation with the bartender. If you have social anxiety and strangers scare you, try starting small, like chatting with the Starbucks barista you see every morning.
