Ready to find your people here?
The easiest way to move past the "acquaintance wall" and find new girlfriends in Birmingham
Apply by June 24 for priority consideration in Summer Circles.
The friendship experience trusted by women from...
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Not another friendship app.
Circles isn't about casual meetups, mindless swiping on an app, or surface-level networking. We're focused on one thing: helping you make meaningful connections with amazing women who can become your people in this stage of life.If you are ready to go beyond surface-level acquaintances and find deeper friendship, join us.
Skip the guessing game
It's time-consuming to put yourself out there at meet-ups, book clubs, or the gym - only to feel like everyone you meet already has their people. At Community Circles, we vet and bring together women ages 25-45 who value close friendships and are open to building new ones. No more wondering, "Is this person open to making a new friend?" - each participant is ready to invest.
Find compatibility fast
Nothing beats that "OMG ME TOO" feeling when getting to know a new group of girlfriends. With Circles, you get to skip the endless searching and get straight to meeting a group of women your age who share your values and interests, based on our in-depth friendship questionairre. If you are looking for even deeper alignment, we can match you 1:1 with women who are similar in age and values, plus share your exact life stage when it comes to kids and partnership.
Go beyond the same old small talk
Tired of "so what do you for a living?"? At Circles, we focus on real, meaningful conversation - so you get to know your group on a deeper level. Each week, your Circle will receive magical questions and connection activities, customized to your group and intentionally sequenced based on the science of how bond. Ranging from playful ("Karaoke - love it or hate it?") to soulful ("What's something your 10-year old self would be proud of?") , our prompts will help you learn more about each other - and yourself - in a heartwarming way.
Build momentum without back-and-forth scheduling
Meeting cool women is hard enough - getting those same cool women together more than once is a modern miracle! With Circles, all hangouts are prescheduled - so everyone in your group has already cleared their calendar and is ready to show up at the same day / time. No more endless group texts trying to find a time that works for 5 adults!
1. Take Our Friendship Questionnaire
To get started, take our free 10-minute questionnaire where we learn all about you - your values, interests, your friendship goals and preferences, and more. We'll get to work on matching you to an upcoming Circle based on your age, values, availability, and friendship goals.We are currently matching for Summer Circles. Take our questionnaire by Tuesday, June 24 for priority consideration.
2. Get matched to a Circle
Once you confirm your participation in Summer Circles, we'll match you into a small group of women your age who have similar values and complimentary friendship styles. You'll get calendar invites for the upcoming hangouts, including an invitation to the kick-off social, where you'll meet your Circle for the first time.
3. Attend our kick-off at TYB
Now the fun part! Start your Circle experience with an in-person social, facilitated by our team, at Thank You Books - you'll have a structured, joyful social experience to help you get to know your Circle and other women in the cohort in an intentional way.
4. Meet weekly with your Circle
Ever notice how the best friendships develop naturally, layer by layer? It's not just you - it's science! Over the next three weeks, you'll go on a guided journey with your Circle based on the science of how we form friendships. Each week you'll receive instructions and prompts to help you organically go beyond the typical surface-level chit chat to the stuff that matters.
5. Making friends handled!
At the end of the four-week experience, you'll have jumpstarted your social life with several new meaningful connections you can call real friends. Get ready for more party invites, dinner plans, career opportunities, brunches, hikes, heart to hearts, and all the other good stuff that happens when you make real connections with other women.
We are currently matching for Summer Circles. Take our questionnaire by Tuesday, June 24 for priority consideration.
Summer Circles
$149
(Only pay when you are accepted into Circles)
Includes:
Matching into your Circle of 4-5 women
Kick-Off Social (light food/drinks provided)
3 weekly guided hangouts with your Circle
Invites to social events for Circle community
Best for: Women who want to meet a group of potential girlfriends and broaden their social circle here (ex: people who are new to Birmingham, work remotely/freelance, looking for a refresh)
Summer Circles + 1:1s
$189
(Only pay when you are accepted into Circles)
Includes:
Matching into your Circle of 4-5 women
Kick-Off Social (light food/drinks provided)
3 weekly guided hangouts with your Circle
Invites to social events for Circle community
Two 1:1 introductions to women in our pool who are: within 5 years of your age, seeking the same level of friendship commitment, share your core values, and are in the exact same life stage
Best for: Women who are looking for finding 1-2 close friends in their exact life stage (ex: single, no kids, young kids, married, expecting, etc.)
Ready to cross making new friends off the list by summer?
"Being part of this pod of women has been such a rewarding and unexpected blessing. This isn’t just a seasonal connection ... I fully believe that we will continue to spend time together, encourage each other, and strengthen our friendships outside of these sessions. I am so thankful for this experience and for the women who have become an unexpected yet cherished part of my life. "
- Carmen
"That experience of sitting at dinner, talking for hours over wine with a group of girlfriends who share my values and have similar goals and dreams is exactly what I was looking for...and is what I got through this experience."
-Madison
100% meaningful connection guarantee.
We guarantee you'll make at least one meaningful connection, or we'll personally help you find her.
If after completing your Summer Circle experience, you haven't formed at least one genuine friendship where you're texting regularly and making plans outside our program, we'll work with you one-on-one to either match you into our next Circle at no charge or give you two additional 1:1 introductions from our broader community.
Summer Circles 2025
Hosted By:
Raven Johnson
Janet King
You must be able to make at least three of these dates to participate.
Tuesday, 7/22 at 6:30 pm: Circle Kick-Off
Tuesday, 7/29 at 6:30 pm: Circle Hangout #1
Tuesday, 8/5 at 6:30 pm: Circle Hangout #2
Tuesday, 8/12 at 6:30 pm: Circle Hangout #3
Can't make the dates for Summer Circles? Don't worry - you can still apply now, and you'll get first priority for our next Circle if you qualify.
Want to learn more about how you can find deeper connections faster?
Join our free interactive workshop, How to Move Past the "Acquaintance Wall" and Find Deeper Friendships, on Monday, 6/23 at 7 pm, led by our founder, Janet King. You'll walk away with a clearer, science-backed understanding of what it takes to build meaningful friendships, the current challenges getting in the way, and actionable reflections you can use to start building intentional relationships now for this stage of life.
Can you relate?
Research shows our circle of friends changes every 7 years - life circumstances, changes in interests, and diverging paths can all contribute to friendships fading over time. But as busy adults, where do you go when you are seeking new, meaningful friendships?That's why we built Community Circles. If you feel like your inner circle has changed and you are craving the deep connections you had before, you aren't alone. Summer Circles is for you if:
You have amazing girlfriends - who all live out of state
You recently moved to Birmingham and are looking to find your people quickly so you can feel at home here
You work remotely and want to build friendships in your own community but aren't sure where to start.
You've joined junior boards, local groups, churches etc. hoping to meet someone cool your age who could become a friend - but it feels like everyone already has their people.
You didn't grow up or go to school here and are looking for a way to break into the social scene
You love your friends, but now y'all are in different life stages, impacting your ability to hang out and connect like before. You want to find the people who align to where you are now.
You value deeper friendships, heart to hearts, and showing up for your people - but everything you try feels superficial or transactional
You're an introvert and the thought of making small talk or attending large social events to make friends is terrifying - you want intentional, meaningful conversation in small groups.
Hi, I'm Janet.
I've always been passionate about helping people feel seen and included—and as a Scorpio and avid fan of Super Soul Sunday, heart to hearts have always been my love language!I dedicated several years of my career to building trust and community across diverse stakeholders in cities across the country - in this work, I witnessed both the deep, growing disconnection and the transformative power of trust within communities.Meanwhile, I was struggling to find meaningful community in my own city. Working from home with an inconsistent travel schedule made it hard to join groups consistently. Then the pandemic hit, I became a mom, and left my job of 9 years—all of which left me needing connection more than ever.I was tired of endless coffee dates that went nowhere and transactional networking events. I wanted authentic, values-based connections with other badass women and knew there had to be a better way for us to find each other.That quest led me to launch The Gathering Lab. Now I'm on a mission to build a more meaningfully connected world through experiences like Community Circles—where we use science of connection and intentional matching to help you find your people.
Janet King
Founder
More about The Gathering Lab
The science-backed method trusted among communities, churches, and companies to build meaningful connections. Visit our website to learn more about us.
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