It's not easy and, I find, it gets more difficult as you get older. Joining online groups for something you're really interested in (motivational, investing, hobbies, etc.) and then going to local meet-ups is a good way to do it. If you can meet people who share some of the same interests you have more common ground to build a solid friendship on. This is how I found Steemit/Hive actually. I had joined a motivational group on Facebook and one of the members told me about Steemit.