Tip of the Week – If there is anyone on your block whom you have not met, go and introduce yourself to them.

If you’ve been a part of 52 Weeks of Neighboring for a while, there’s a good chance you’ve met some of your neighbors. You might have even met all of them! This week, take the opportunity to look around for someone on your block you have not met and introduce yourself. If you’ve been out and about testing out our neighboring experiments, there’s a good chance the neighbor(s) you haven’t met yet are the most secluded. They could be new to the neighborhood, unable to easily leave their home, or speak a different language. No matter the reason you haven’t me them yet, they may be in need of a friendly face in the neighborhood. Specifically, if there is a language barrier, look around to see if there are any other neighbors who are bilingual and could help introduce you. 

If you’re new to the neighborhood and there are multiple people on your block you haven’t met yet, introduce yourself to someone new. A good place to start is checking out the 8 houses closest to yours. As we teach others how to neighbor, we usually start with a block map. A block map is a simple diagram of the 8 homes closest to yours with space to fill in neighbors’ names. As you get to know your neighbors better, you can expand the block map to include your neighbors’ gifts and interests to create valuable connections in your neighborhood.

Here’s a look at the block map we use. Now create your own!

Happy neighboring!