The new exciting website to reconnect with old friends
BY READERS DIGEST
8th Jul 2019 Technology
For better or worse, many of us never forget those quintessentially British school days – and with a site that now boasts over 32,200 educational establishments as well as a growing number of users, you won’t have to.SchoolMates is a niche networking platform which offers a refreshing alternative to traditional social media in that the focus is on building more meaningful relationships and encouraging interaction between users. While social media sites are customarily designed to form an interactive online community, SchoolMates aims to help people find friends from their past.
“At SchoolMates, our mission is simple. We’ve created a platform dedicated exclusively to helping people reconnect and keep in touch with former classmates,” explains founder and CEO Chris Goodwin who lives in Derby.
“Our site encourages people to rekindle those special relationships from their youth, letting them look back to the ‘good old days’ of summer holidays spent with friends, memorable school trips, as well as less memorable moments like those dreadful school lunches.”
"The site is an extension of social media, but simpler, catering for those who don’t want to get swaddled and overwhelmed, but still want to feel part of the community"
SchoolMates brings together more than 32,000 schools, colleges, academies and universities across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales and is dedicated exclusively to helping users get back in touch with former classmates. Aimed at the 35 plus age group, which represents 50% of the population, the easy-to-use website enables users to reminisce and share conversations, jokes, stories, memories and photographs.
“The site is an extension of social media, but simpler, catering for those who don’t want to get swaddled and overwhelmed, but still want to feel part of the community,” says Chris. “It enables users to move away from feeds clogged with trivial updates and ‘photoshopped lives’ and get straight to reconnecting with friends from the past.”
SchoolMates is a dream come true for Chris, who was diagnosed with a tumour at the age of 18, which left him paralysed and wheelchair bound.
Having had an ambition to conquer the world of the internet and own a successful online business since completing his studies in computer science, he did not let his disability become an excuse to give up on his dreams; he had a successful business career before going on to launch SchoolMates.
“I never wanted my disability to be an excuse for giving up on my dreams,” says Chris. In fact, if anything, it motivated him even more and drove him to achieve his goal of launching SchoolMates.
Five good reasons to reconnect
According to experts, there are several reasons people should reconnect with their roots and reach out to those who once were a fundamental part of their lives. These include:
- Nostalgia: It reminds us of the way things once were and the happiness we experienced growing up.
- Perspective: We often rely only on our own perspectives, paying attention to the way our own stories play out. Reconnecting with past friends allows us to see the world in a new light.
- Health: Our health and happiness will both benefit from reconnecting as building and maintaining healthy social connections promotes positive mental health and lowers the risk for mortality.
- Acceptance: Life seems to become more complicated and more difficult with age. Reconnecting with someone who knew us at 15 or 25 can go a long way to helping us accept life as it is now by allowing us to reflect on paths not taken.
- Forgiveness: We can’t control whether someone forgives us, but we can apologise and hope for the best. Sometimes saying sorry really pays off – even years down the line.
"SchoolMates is the answer for people craving a simpler, less competitive way of keeping in touch with old friends"
“With social connectivity at an all-time high, many users are tracking down and reconnecting with people from their pasts. But social media has been shown to be overwhelming, often negatively affecting people. SchoolMates is the answer for people craving a simpler, less competitive way of keeping in touch with old friends,” concludes Chris.
SchoolMates requires very little information from new subscribers and is free to join – subscribers simply need to enter their name, email and password and then the school name as well as the years attended. Users then receive an email to alert them when other students from their year sign up.
For more information check out https://schoolmates.co.uk/about-us
To register visit: www.schoolmates.co.uk
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