How do I make new friends?!

[Ploddingonby]

How do people make new friends in their 30’s?
I have a couple of friends but I wouldn’t class them as close friends if I’m being honest and I think it’s mostly because of personal change and growth and I’ve just found that I don’t really have friends in my life that “get me”. Not really.
It could be me, it could be them, it could be a mixture of both but basically I just wanted a bit of advice on how to make new friends.
I’m currently out of work which doesn’t help with a bit of an uncertainty as to when I can get a job again but even when at work I am very socially awkward and suffer with huge social anxiety so I don’t always find making new friends the easiest thing in the world.
I have people I’ll say hello to in the playground and maybe even have a little chat with but no one I’ve seen as a friend.
So stuck, what can I do?! I want to branch out a little and stop isolating myself.

I'm in my late 40s and currently out of work but have made a lot of new friends over the past year in my gym. It's a smallish gym (and independent rather than being part of a chain) so it's easy to get chatting to people you see on a regular basis. I think having a shared activity helps as that's always a conversation starter.

How about asking your child if they would like to invite a friend around after school one afternoon and also ask their mum to come too for a coffee while kids play?

I joined a local Bookgroup and go monthly. It's taken time,but there are now a couple of women there who I class as friends and feel I know them well enough to meet up outside of the group.

If a book group isn't fit you,

what about a running group? Or a group that represents your interests?

Clubs, the gym, meetup groups, your new work place , also bumble has a friends bit so you can meet friends through that :).

Possibly think about joining a netball team, as a sport it's grown hugely in recent years and the team aspect must help grow friendships. I'm building up the nerve to join one!

(But I'm older than you and in poor shape! )