Ep 9: Danielle Frouws on Friendship, intentionality, and putting yourself out there

In today’s episode of the Connectedness podcast, I’m sitting down with my dear friend and therapist Danielle Frouws to talk about friendship, intentionality, and putting yourself out there—especially when you’ve moved to a new city or feel like you’re starting over. We share the story of how we met at salsa and a Spanish meetup, how one brave ask (“I’m new here and I’m trying to make local girlfriends”) turned into a real friendship, and why vulnerability is a non-negotiable if you want deeper connections.Danielle and I get honest about what it actually looks like to make adult friendships: using tools like Meetup, seeing loneliness as a signal (not a flaw), and showing up consistently even when it feels awkward. We talk about the difference between group events and one-on-one time, why so many people feel stuck in surface-level interactions, and how to move from “we met once” to “you’re part of my chosen family.” We also talk about maintaining long-distance friendships through intentional “friend dates,” and why friendships deserve as much priority as work, romance, and family.If you’ve ever felt like you’re the only one struggling to make friends, this conversation is for you. I hope it encourages you to send that text, say “hey, want to grab coffee?” and keep showing up for the people who feel like home.You can connect with Danielle at https://daniellefrouws.com/ Thanks for watching!🎙️ 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 episode, 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐭.🎙️ 𝐃𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐛e!Website: https://www.filledcups.com/Danielle's website: https://daniellefrouws.com/