It used to be pretty uncool and sometimes downright weird to look for love on the Internet, but things are definitely different these days. Thanks to the explosion of Tinder, it’s common to have at least one active profile online, but there’s still a feeling that it has no chance of leading to lasting love. That’s BS — here’s why it’s time to take online dating seriously.
- It’s an intro service. Sure, looking at profiles or swiping while you’re watching The Good Wife isn’t technically dating, but it’s not supposed to be. Online dating is basically an introductory service. It shows you people. That’s it. The rest is up to you, so let’s start seeing it for what it really is.
- Not everyone is flakey. Of course you’ve had people totally ignore the fact that you scheduled a date or just randomly stopped talking to you when you were just getting into a conversational groove. But that doesn’t happen every single time you message someone, so it’s crazy to lump every single person in together.
- It works. You may think it’s pretty pie-in-the-sky to think you could actually find an amazing relationship from Tinder or OkCupid but it does happen. You definitely know a few couples who “met” that way. So why can’t you?
- It’s simple. Everyone loves to make things much more complicated than they really are and online dating is no exception. It’s pretty simple when you think about it: you talk to people and go on dates with them or things fizzle out before the meeting part takes place. No big deal. There are more fish in the online sea.
- It doesn’t have to be time-consuming. Online dating can seem like a lot of effort for no guaranteed reward and yet you don’t have to make it your 24/7 career. You can chat with people and schedule dates whenever you feel like it and if you get burnt out, just take a break.
- It’s popular. Your friends are definitely searching online and your coworkers probably are, too. That’s why you see profiles of people you actually know in real life so often. If something is so popular, why not try it yourself?
- You’re not meeting anyone anyway. Some claim they’re going to stop online dating once and for all because they can meet people in bars/etc. Good for them, but will that really happen? No one seems to meet anyone anywhere they go, so if you really never meet potential love interests, there’s no shame in heading online.
- It’s not all that different. How you get dates doesn’t change how tricky, confusing and messy dating and love can be. You still wonder if someone wants a second date or a third, if it’s an almost or real relationship, if you’re on the same page commitment-wise. The same happens when you’ve met online.
- It makes your intentions clear. Once upon a time, when you met people, you know, in person, it was tricky to let them know that you were crushing on them. You had no idea if they were in a relationship or what. At least when you’re dating online, you assume these people are single and willing to date (with some exceptions, of course). Plus when you ask someone out, they know that you’re asking them out. That’s kind of important.
