Notes.
On meeting people on purpose, the slow death of swipe apps, and why one well-made coffee beats a hundred messages.
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How to Find a Mentor (and How to Actually Ask)
Only one in seven mentorships starts with the big question. Who to ask, what to say instead, and how one specific coffee starts the whole thing.
Networking & careers -
New Mums and the Loneliest Year
Never alone, never lonelier. Why the first year of parenthood shrinks your world, what the research actually says, and the small weekly structures that build it back.
Friendship & meeting people -
The Case for Meeting One Person at a Time
Mixers stall, conversations cap out at four people, and closeness runs on traded disclosure. The research case for the pair over the room.
Friendship & meeting people -
The 50-Hour Rule: How Long It Really Takes to Make a Friend
A University of Kansas researcher counted the hours friendship actually takes: 50 to casual, 90 to real, 200-plus to close. The fine print: not every hour counts, and some count double.
Data & research -
Why Coffee Beats Cocktails for a First Meet
Daylight, a clear head and a cup that ends itself. The honest case for the daytime first meeting, and the data showing singles are already making the switch.
Coffee culture -
What to Talk About in a First Coffee
Small talk, deeper questions, follow-ups and taking turns: what conversation research says about the first hour with a near-stranger, minus the job-interview vibe.
Friendship & meeting people -
The Friendship Recession Is Hitting Men Hardest
Men with six or more close friends halved since 1990, from 55% to 27%. What the data says is driving it, and what the Men’s Shed movement already worked out about fixing it.
Data & research -
Perth Is Booming. So Why Is It Still Hard to Meet People?
Australia’s fastest-growing capital added 58,100 people last year. The data on sprawl, commutes and churn explains why that hasn’t made friendship any easier.
Data & research -
Your Feed Isn’t Company
New Oregon State research finds the online-only share of your network predicts more loneliness, not less. What helps is smaller, slower and closer than a feed.
Data & research -
Volunteering Is the Most Underrated Way to Meet People
Shared purpose beats forced mingling. Harvard data, a randomised trial and Perth’s own volunteering numbers make the case, and it’s free.
Friendship & meeting people -
What a ‘Third Place’ Actually Is — and Why Yours Might Be a Café
Ray Oldenburg named the places between home and work. In Australian suburbs the honest answer is usually a café, and you can claim one on purpose.
Coffee culture -
Nobody’s Swiping Like They Used To
Tinder’s users fell every quarter last year, while singles events, dinners with strangers and run clubs keep filling up. The verified numbers on where the daters went.
Data & research -
The One-Hour Coffee: The Case for Short First Meets
Why a capped hour beats an open-ended hang. What the research says about fast first impressions, endings you actually remember, and the easier yes.
Friendship & meeting people -
FIFO and Friendship: Making Your Week at Home Count
Your mates work Monday to Friday and your week off doesn’t care. What WA’s FIFO research says about the home half of the roster, and why free-at-10am-on-a-Tuesday is the easiest coffee invitation in Perth.
Friendship & meeting people -
The Swipe Era Is Over. What Comes Next Is In Person.
Dating apps are shrinking, run clubs are quadrupling and the coffee chat is back. The numbers behind the turn to real life, and what the in-person era asks of you.
Friendship & meeting people -
The Regulars: What Going to the Same Café Every Week Does for You
Familiarity comes first, and liking follows it in. The mere-exposure research behind the corner table you keep sitting at, and why the barista knowing your order matters.
Coffee culture -
Nearly Half of Young Adults Say They're Lonely
A new eight-country study led by Washington University in St. Louis found close to half of 18-24-year-olds report loneliness, more than any other age group, including the over-55s. The numbers, and why the most connected generation reports the least connection.
Friendship & meeting people -
Career Switchers: Rebuilding Your People From Zero
A career change costs more than a job title. The ABS says 1.1 million Australians changed employer last year, and the research shows friendships decay three times faster than family ties through exactly this kind of transition. How to rebuild a circle on purpose.
Friendship & meeting people -
What Cafés Know About Community That Apps Never Learned
Sociologist Ray Oldenburg named it the “third place” in 1989 and Stanford’s Mark Granovetter proved the loose ties formed there move more than close ones. What the research says about presence beating profiles.
Friendship & meeting people -
Showing Up Is the Whole Game
A third of Americans admit they often agree to plans they don’t want to keep, and 76% have ghosted or been ghosted. Here’s why the research says reliability, not charisma, is what people actually want from a friend.
Friendship & meeting people -
Winter Is Perth's Best Season for Meeting People
Summer's default plan is always the beach. Winter takes it off the table, along with the backyard, the long evening light and every other excuse to put the coffee off. Here's the behavioural case for the cold months.
Friendship & meeting people -
The Kids Moved Out. Now What?
AARP’s 2025 research found loneliness among the over-45s at 40% and rising, and rising fastest for men. What the empty-nest years actually do to a social life, and how to rebuild one on purpose.
Friendship & meeting people -
Talking to Strangers Is a Skill
Nicholas Epley’s research shows we badly underestimate how much strangers enjoy talking to us. Here’s the study that proves it’s a skill you can practise, and the small daily reps that build it.
Friendship & meeting people -
Coffee Got Expensive. It’s Still the Cheapest Way to Meet Someone.
Bean prices are up well over 200% and café margins are down to the bone. Here’s why a flat white is still the best-value hour you can buy with a stranger.
Friendship & meeting people -
Same Time Next Week
Run clubs, sea dips and pickleball are booming in Perth because they repeat. What the research says about turning acquaintances into friends, and why a weekly coffee is the easiest version of the trick.
Friendship & meeting people -
Coffee First, Padel Second
Australia’s padel courts are booked solid. The hard part was never fitness. It’s finding someone to show up with. Here’s what the research says, and why coffee comes first.
Friendship & meeting people -
The Etiquette of the One-Hour Meet
Arriving, ending on time, the who-pays question, the follow-up: the unwritten rules of the low-stakes catch-up, written down.
Friendship & meeting people -
Remote Work Didn’t Just Change Where We Work. It Changed Who We Know.
The friendships that used to happen by accident at the office didn’t move online with everything else. Here’s what the research says we lost.
Friendship & meeting people -
Lonely in Australia: What the Numbers Say
We pulled the real figures on loneliness in Australia. The most surprising one is who feels it most.
Friendship & meeting people -
Just Moved to a New City?
The loneliness no one warns you about arrives once the boxes are gone. A simple first-month plan for meeting people.
Friendship & meeting people -
How to Make Friends as an Adult
It got harder for a reason. Five low-pressure ways to meet people again, without it feeling forced.
Friendship & meeting people -
Alternatives to Meetup.com
Five other ways to meet new people in Australia. None of them involve signing up to a hike.
Friendship & meeting people