I’ve reached that stage in life when people’s lives start changing. That age where people are separating, families are changing and friends are suddenly realising that the dating game has changed somewhat since they were last playing it.
I’m not saying that I’m old enough to remember “courting” like my grandparents do, but for many people my age dating involved getting someone’s (landline) phone number on a scrap off paper somewhere and then having to actually phone them and speak to them to organise a date. Nowadays there are text messages, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger to hide behind whilst you try and figure out if someone is worthy of meeting up with or not. Back then there was also the fear of phoning someone up and asking for a date only to be turned down. A text message let down doesn’t really hurt as much as someone saying it out loud to you after you’ve plucked up the courage to call.
The world of online dating is huge, but from the outside there are probably just a couple of brands that people know about. It can seem like a huge pond out that you’re supposed to go fishing in, but in reality there are some very tailored sites to make the whole process easier for people looking to find their soulmate.
The truth is that that it’s not just young people looking for a first relationship that go dating online – many people are out there to look for a future partner after the breakdown of an original long term relationship. After all the world of over 50s dating is quite different to what someone in their early 20s might be looking for. The same goes for single parent dating. If you’re having to juggle trying to plan dates with organising childcare then it helps to be in a place where everyone else is in a similar boat.
In your quest for Mr or Mrs Right though it always helps to remember the need to stay safe online. Don’t immediately go giving out any personal information that you wouldn’t feel comfortable sharing with a stranger in the street. Telling someone you’ve not met exactly where you live isn’t necessarily wise if you’ve also told them that you live alone. I know loads of people that have met their perfect partner online, but as a close friend told me, it’s always worth remembering that sometimes you need to kiss a few frogs before finding your prince or princess!
Dating couple image from Shutterstock.
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