by Jo Strausz Rosen

June 27, 2025

Have you ever met someone and immediately felt like you’d known them forever? That kind of connection is rare and meaningful. And especially when you’re navigating a new place or phase in life, it feels like pure magic.

It might’ve happened at a neighborhood meet and greet, or during the first day as the new member of a board, or as a new member of a senior living community!  You didn’t expect anything extraordinary. And yet, something clicked. You started talking to someone you hadn’t met before, and in no time, you laughed, exchanging stories, and suddenly, what felt unfamiliar just a moment ago began to feel like home.

Starting fresh, whether you’re newly divorced, or moving to a new city, joining a new group, or stepping into a new volunteer role, can be both exciting and disorienting. You leave behind the familiar: your local haunts, your regular conversations, your comfort zone. And in those early days, even small things, like not knowing where to get your coffee or who to call when your dishwasher breaks, can amplify the sense of being unmoored.

In those moments, connection becomes more than a nicety, it becomes a lifeline. So, when you meet someone and things just click, it’s not just a good moment, it’s an important and deeply human one. It’s an answer to the quiet, unspoken question: Will I find my people here?

Can you describe the essence? That something extra? That spark? … That moment when laughter flows easily, stories unfold without hesitation, and you find yourself genuinely energized by a stranger’s presence. What’s really happening in those moments? I often find it to be a truly spiritual moment, when you just want to know more about the other.

Here’s what researchers intuitively believe is at play. There’s an unspoken alignment in energy, tone, or emotional availability. “When two people feel rapport, their very physiology attunes,” says Daniel Goleman, a renowned psychologist and author of Social Intelligence, who captures the essence of that unspoken alignment. He emphasizes how rapport isn’t just a mental or emotional state. It extends to our bodies, creating a kind of physiological sync. That natural flow, absence of pretense, and emotional safety in conversation is exactly what research defines as “authentic connection.”

You get each other, even without trying. Both people feel safe enough to show up as who they are… as their authentic selves. No need to posture or impress. Just be. The conversation flows naturally.

You’re in sync, almost like you’ve been part of each other’s story all along. Being open is key. When we enter new spaces with curiosity instead of guardedness, we invite connection. We give ‘magic’ room to happen.

Especially now. We live in a time where many of us crave real connection but often settle for shallow interactions. Social media keeps us in touch, but not necessarily connected. Life gets busy. We move more, switch jobs more, and often leave our communities behind in the process.

So, when we’re in a new environment, be it geographic or social, and we meet someone who just gets us, it’s a grounding moment. It makes us feel like we’re not floating alone in the unfamiliar. It tells us that we’re going to be okay here. Maybe even more than okay. You can’t force connection, but you can create the conditions that allow it to show up more often. I try to live my life at JSL this way, and I learn a lot from the residents and staff.

We can lead with warmth. A smile, an open question, or even just our tone of voice can open the door for real conversation. We can ask questions and be curious. Let small talk turn into stories. We can share a little first. Vulnerability is contagious. When we offer something real about ourselves, like how we’re adjusting to the move, or what has surprised us, it creates space for others to do the same.

And, if something felt good, if someone is a person you want in your circle, don’t let that moment pass. Suggest a walk, a coffee, a next step. Making friends is when the magic happens.

If you’re lucky, you’ve experienced this already, recently or in the past. A moment where you met someone and something inside you softened. You felt seen. Heard. Safe.

And if you haven’t yet, keep your heart open. It can happen at the most unexpected times in the most unexpected places. Sometimes it only takes one or two people to make a new place feel like home. And sometimes, all it takes is a conversation that turns into connection…that turns into belonging.

That’s the real magic. And it’s always worth celebrating.

Do you have a story about when you just clicked with someone? I’d love to hear it. Hit reply or drop me a note. I read every message. 

Shabbat Shalom.