A friend recently set me up on a blind date, and let’s just say it didn’t go that well. It made me realize that no matter how much my single friends and I love to complain about Tinder, the popular dating app isn’t the worst thing in the world. Actually, it’s kind of awesome, and it beats meeting the old school way any time.
- Tinder dates are basically blind dates, anyway. OK, so you know what the guy looks like, but besides a handful of facts (if they’ve even filled out their bio section), you’re going in blind. It allows you to get to know someone naturally over the course of an evening, but unlike actual blind dates, you can at least do a little pre-screening first.
- It’s quick and simple. Online dating can be a total time-suck — filling out your profile, trying to weed through what feels like millions of people, sending and answering (or ignoring) messages… Tinder is the complete opposite. You can spend an hour a day, match with a bunch of people, chat with someone and set up a date. You’re busy enough already, right?
- Set-ups rarely work. How many happy couples do you know that were set up? Probably not a lot. Often when you’re set up, your friend figures hey, you’re both single, so you should meet. It’s not really the greatest foundation for a good first date.
- You only have your mutual friend in common. After you chat about the person that you both know, what is there to talk about? Not much. That means things get super awkward, and fast.
- There are zero expectations. Tinder is kind of disposable, so if you have a terrible date, it’s understood that you don’t have to deal with the guy anymore. Most of the people using the app are used to going on dates, and they get that sometimes you just don’t get along. If you get set up, you feel super guilty if you don’t like him because you feel you owe it to your friend. Screw that.
- You need that initial attraction. Tinder gets a bad rap for focusing on appearance, but really, what’s wrong with that? With a blind date, you don’t have a clue if you find the person physically attractive before. At least on a Tinder date, you know he’s cute and you at least have that going for you.
- Dating shouldn’t take over your life. You can use the app whenever you want, you can choose who you want to date or who you’ll never talk to again, and it just works.
- You want to go on dates. If you’re serious about meeting someone, Tinder is your best bet for being exposed to tons of people in your city or town. You might be set up by a friend every once in a while, but you probably not every week, and then you’ll just be sitting around lamenting the fact that you’re still single.
- You can move on easily after a bad night. A crappy blind date is enough to make you want to stop your search for love. A crappy Tinder date is just part of life. You can always log in again and talk to someone else and hope that it goes better next time.
