We don't make new friends like we used to

As you get older, making friends often gets harder. For some of us, it was never exactly easy to begin with.

When you're young, you're still building your social orbit. New people are constantly drifting in and out of your life through school, work, hobbies, and sheer proximity. But over time, most people's orbits shrink and stabilize. They've found their core group. Their social calendars are full, their responsibilities multiply, and while they may happily collect acquaintances, genuinely close new friendships become increasingly rare.

At the same time, loneliness and social isolation have been on the rise. More people work from home now, which means fewer casual opportunities to meet others. Meanwhile, "third places"—the cafés, parks, libraries, community centers, and other informal gathering spaces that exist outside of home and work—have been disappearing. We have more ways to communicate than ever before, yet fewer places to simply bump into one another.

To fill that gap, many peop…