At the center of our loneliness is our innate desire to connect. We have evolved to participate in community, to forge lasting bonds with others, to help one another, and to share life experiences.
We are, simply, better together.
Humans are social creatures: in this simple and obvious fact lies both the problem and the solution to the current crisis of loneliness.
Only Friends exists because we need to do something, we need to stop this epidemic of loneliness.
It’s killing our generation and it’s totally F*cked.
Our OF Hosts are the face of OF in your community.
Our hosts the backbone of everything we do.
Hosts have fun and make a difference in the lives of every member who attends their Catch Up group.
It’s very easy and you’re helping to make a difference.
Join the movement and become an Only Friends Host.
#1. It’s good for your health.
No, we aren’t making this up. Studies have found that when you stop thinking about your own problems and focus on someone other than yourself, your stress levels start to decrease. Apart from this, your immune system is also strengthened (umm did someone say COVID) and your overall sense of life satisfaction increases. This is because doing something for someone else interrupts tension-producing patterns and replaces it with a sense of purpose, positive emotions and high confidence levels.
Don’t believe us? Take a look at this article.
#2. You’ll learn and grow.
There’s a lot of talk about ‘soft skills’ these days and how most people are lacking in this area. Being an Only Friends Host helps you to build a range of soft skills, increase your networking ability and build lasting relationships. This all adds up and helps to improve your teamwork, leadership, problem-solving and people skills.
#3. It’s good for your career.
Volunteering helps your personal development (see #2), makes you more innovative, creative and gives you a range of useful people skills that will help you to form good impressions and go further in your work life. Have you ever been asked at an interview or performance review “can you give me and example of when you…” when everyone knows your current role doesn’t require you to develop those skills?
Being an Only Friend host host gives you the chance to develop and demonstrate your skills and use them to your advantage, so next time you can say… “Well yes mr manager, I’m part of this amazing networking community and as a group host I chair a catch up group every other week that exposes me to deeper cultural understanding, adaptability to unpredictable circumstances and presenting my ideas and through process with better clarity.”
#4. You’re making a difference.
If you help just 1 person – you’ve made a difference. Being an Only Friends Host gives you the chance to contribute every day to your community and the world you want to live in. It gives you the opportunity to be part of something bigger than yourself and use your own skills and knowledge to assist in the empowerment of our movement.
#5. You will make real friends in real life.
Ever noticed on every TV show we watch that it’s all about “the journey and making life long friendships”. Being an Only Friends Host lets you meet people from all walks of life. It gives you the chance to form real relationships that can have a lasting impact on your life. You could meet your new best friend, future business partner or have a conversation that sparks a real change in your life.
What are you waiting for?
We don’t take your volunteering lightly, we know you are busy and for you to take time out of your week to make a difference in your community is one of the greatest gifts you can give. You will not be alone, we are standing with you and will help you every step of the way.
The advantages of becoming an Only Friends Host also include:
Only Friends Hosts have their membership cost waived.
We are 100% committed to supporting you as a Host. We have a full time manager, whose sole responsibility is to support our hosts and help them with their own journey.
We work hard to constantly evolve and improve our product and services. As the face of Only Friends in your community, we collaborate with our Hosts and extend invitation to be involved with the Only Friends Leadership Team on future roll outs and enhancements.
We want you to succeed, our community is currently growing but our goals are high and we want to support you through our community too. Like you, we want to hear about your causes and interests and share and support your goals though our network and OF community. That’s what friends do, right?