Making friends as an adult can be a challenge.

Thankfully, there are creative ways to make new friends.

Getting creative and intentional about making new friends can lead to better health.

Ah, the good ole days! When we were in school, making friends was much easier. You got plenty of time to interact and socialize in the lunchroom and on the playground. There seemed to be an endless supply of new kids to talk to and become friends with; every semester and every year, some kids would leave, and new kids would fill their spots. Neighborhood kids about your same age would also become your friends; convenient ways to socialize and make friends abounded when we were younger.

Yet today we are largely lonely[1] and friendless[2], and that affects our well-being.[3] We are hyper-connected, yet still so lonely.[4] According to the American Perspectives Survey,[5] the percentage of U.S. adults who have no close friends, as in zero close friends, has quadrupled to 12 percent since 1990, and those reporting 10 or more close friends? That has fallen by nearly three times. So what is going on here? And how do we make friends in adulthood?

It turns out that we need to get creative. Here are three ways to get more creative to make friends as adults.

1. Be Less Judgmental

As adults, we can sometimes be too judgmental. As kids, we played with whomever. We didn’t care what they looked like, where they came from, or even what they wore or what house they lived in. If we had fun together, that was it. We were........

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