How to Meet People in Real Life

By the OMGHey team · Published September 4, 2026

Meeting people in real life comes down to spending regular time in places where the same people return, and being the person who speaks first. That's it. Apps are useful as a bridge — OMGHey, for instance, is designed around discovering and connecting with people around you, so the person you talk to is someone you could actually meet — but the offline part still requires showing up somewhere repeatedly.

Find your third places

A third place is somewhere that isn't home or work: a gym, a coffee shop, a bar, a climbing wall, a park, a library, a church, a community garden. The requirement is regulars. A place with regulars will eventually make you one of them; a place with only tourists never will.

Choose activities with built-in conversation

• Good: team sports, improv, group classes, run clubs, volunteering, trivia nights, board game nights. Talking is part of the activity.
• Harder: movies, concerts, lectures, gyms with headphones. You're co-located but not interacting.

Say the first sentence

Almost every real-life meeting requires someone to speak first, and most people are waiting for the other person. A specific, situational opener works better than a compliment: ask about the equipment, the class, the drink, the dog, the route. Then ask a follow-up question and give them something to respond to.

Use apps as a bridge, not a substitute

The productive way to use an app is to shorten the distance to an in-person meeting. On OMGHey the conversation is live and the person is nearby, so 'want to get coffee this week?' is a natural next line rather than a leap. Apps become a problem only when the conversation is the whole relationship.

Common questions