The WFH Folks

Yup. I was never really good at striking up conversation in an office either TBH, but at least I could overhear and maybe jump into something in progress. I realize there's some kind of skill I'm missing, but now I just don't talk to coworkers very often.

Honestly I don't have any issues with this. Most of my team is in Europe and I'm in America so even before COVID and WFH became the norm, I was still talking to people via Slack, Teams, etc.

I think the best advice I can give is to reach out to people and have normal conversations when you don't need anything. If you only talk to people when you need something from them, they are going to be less likely to talk about things that they have going on outside of work. Talk about anything that they are interested in. Plus the beauty of messaging apps is that people can respond when they have time and if they are busy they can ignore the messages.

Also if you get some downtime in meetings or join early, ask how things are going, what the weather is like, or if they have any weekend plans. There usually is a bit of time before or after meetings where you can still socialize.

Thats why I like the 2/3 split. No commute on Mon/Fri, but still get the social interaction mid week.

I like the idea of having amazing, company funded offsites on a quarterly basis, and informal events such as company funded happy hours and dinners. I don't really miss the feeling of being next to other people working at a computer while I am working at a computer. Being in a conference room is alright, although I think a lot of us appreciate the ability to multi-task a little bit better while doing remote team meetings.

Treat it like joining a new web forum community back in the earlier days of the internet. Follow and as appropriate participate in the on-topic sections (e.g. project-related slack channels). Lurk a bit in the off-topic sections (e.g. slack #random channel, but also look for others employees may have set up like #cooking) to get the general vibe of the place. Then make an effort to ramp up participation over time to a comfortable and, importantly, consistent level. As much as you're getting to know your coworkers, you want them to get to know and remember you, and all they have to do that is your regular participation.

Make an effort to connect with coworkers in person whenever there's a business or on-site trip. See if the company has any hosted events, holiday parties, or other in-person meetups (and if not, suggest some). If there's any coworkers that live nearby, suggest meeting up for lunch or after-work drinks occasionally.

Beyond that, as others have mentioned, you can seek out local social organizations and clubs, or even just try to interact with your neighbors more.