Making connections in a new place
© Ruth E. Thaler-Carter, Networking Expert, NAIWE Board

I’m in the process of embarking on another — maybe a last — big adventure. I’m surrounded by packed boxes (42 of books alone so far) and piles of more belongings still to be packed. It’s a lot of work, even with the help of friends, but it’s exciting. A new state, a new town, a new lifestyle …
Foremost in my thoughts about moving to this new place is how to connect with colleagues — to continue my enjoyable history as a joiner, a doer, a connector in my professional life. I’m not just a writer, editor, proofreader and speaker; I’m known for bringing people together through memberships in groups like NAIWE by hosting meetings, participating in online discussion groups, speaking at events, even creating a conference for other freelancers. Connecting seems to be in my DNA.
I’m not worried about personal-level connections: My brother and his wife, their daughter, son and grandkids; a cousin and her family; even a high school classmate are all in the immediate area; another niece is an hour or so away; and another close friend from high school days is about three hours away. My new community has an active social committee, among other amenities that bring people together. And my connecting efforts extend to childhood friends, high school and college classmates, neighbors, even family.
Clearly, personal connections should be in good shape. In the current climate, making new professional connections might be more challenging. Professional associations remain invaluable sources of industry knowledge, training, skill-building, networking — but many are struggling to remain relevant, attract new and younger members, be financially stable. Employers no longer support multiple memberships; some not even one. Freelancers have more challenges to making a living, so joining and being active in more than can take a back seat to finding well-paying client.
A move provides a great opportunity to declutter, deaccession, reorganize, rethink; what to keep, what to leave behind, what to plan to rearrange. For me, it also provides an opportunity to find new organizations to join and contribute to, or chapters of ones I already belong to; new colleagues to meet and work with.
As I’ve written about before, belonging to an association creates instant connections. It gives you a professional “home” no matter where you go. When I came back to St. Louis in 2018, one of the first things I did was find local writers’ and publishers’ organizations that were new to me. Being involved in several national associations meant I could join their local chapters, so I had two levels of connection to enjoy. As I get ready to go to new pastures in New Mexico, I look forward to joining local chapters of some of those national groups and finding new local ones to be part of. I already know that one of my journalism groups has New Mexico chapters — and one of my dearest friends from high school days belongs, so the personal and professional will be hand in hand.
Why create and maintain such connections? Partly thanks to personality: I’m the poster child for extroverts. I love meeting people and working on projects together to benefit each other and our communities; I also feel strongly about finding ways to plug into a new community, through both professional connections and cultural entities — libraries, museums and galleries, charitable organizations, hobby groups. It might not be as much of a “thing” these days as it was when I began my career, but joining and contributing to organizations has been important to that career, and giving back so others can benefit just seems like the right thing to do. Connecting with family, friends, colleagues and neighbors is a great way to make a new place feel like home.
And by the way, you don’t have to make a big life change or move to a new city or state to make new connections. There are several great professional associations for writers and editors; look for them, and consider joining one you’ve never been involved with before. Or find a new group at LinkedIn, Bluesky or Facebook. Or create one of your own!
Here’s to maintaining existing connections and making new ones.