Are you looking to expand your circle of LGBTQ+ friends? Maybe you’ve just come out and want to connect with others who share your experiences and struggles. Or maybe you’re an ally who wants to show support and solidarity to the LGBTQ+ community. Whatever your reason may be, making any kind of new friends can be challenging, especially if you’re shy. But expanding your social circle and ensuring it’s as diverse as possible can only be a good thing.

We’ve rounded up the top tips for making more LGBTQIA+ friends and building those friendships into meaningful relationships that could potentially last a lifetime. But before we get into where and how you can make LGBTQ+ friends online or IRL, a few ground rules, whatever your sexuality.

1. Be yourself

The most important thing when it comes to making new LGBTQ+ friends is to be authentic and eager to learn from other people’s experiences and world views. The queer community is extremely welcoming, so don’t be afraid to show your true colors and share your unique personality. If you’ve spent a long time suppressing this side of yourself, being reserved or lacking in confidence, it may take you a while to trust new people and open up, so just be honest about this struggle. You’ll no doubt meet people who empathize.

Be open-minded and willing to listen to all the different perspectives that exist within the community. LGBTQIA+ is not a singular homogenized group-far from it, and that’s what makes it so wonderfully diverse. But being queer is not enough of a commonality to forge a friendship-there has to be more to it!-so try not to assume that every LGBTQIA+ person is going to be your BFF based entirely on the fact that their sexuality is the same as yours. Read more