Online Dating Web Sites-Better than the Bar?

Oct 30

Mark SingleyHealth and School, Online Dating, Relationships, Student Dating 4 Comments

I went to my eharmony login recently, and had to stop to think. With the successes I’ve had with online dating, from the original Love.com that AOL offered for Free (!) those were the days, to now Match, Eharmony, and the slew of others.

Eharmony promises to match you, for better or worse (pardon the pun) and getting the eharmony login is easy, as it is with Chemistry, etc. But it is irritating that they allow you to search at a free level, and tantilize you with the prospects to get you to join at the higher level.

But, as I am in my 40’s, it seems to make systematic sense to date with a fee. You get what you pay for.

I like to think that online dating is exactly the opposite of the bar scene.
Why? In the bar you see the person, go hopefully start to chat them up, and then find out over time if you are compatible.

Online you email, speak, maybe meet, but you get to kind of pre vet the person prior to committing face time.

I have rules. First, you must see a picture. Sorry, but I stick to that one. AND, you must put one on your profile. No ifs ands or buts. Into the eharmony profile, login, and upload.

If the initial email works, then do phone. But the entire thing or exchange you have had can change when you hear the persons voice. If the phone is good, then do COFFEE. Not dinner.

Coffee gives you a way to bail on the date if it goes badly. Look, we all have dates that go badly. It’s just the way of things. If you do something as small as coffee it is easy to leave with grace and a small excuse.

So, online and off I have had some dating disasters. But with eharmony you can login and see that the pool of people taking the same risk you are is pretty large. And when I used to login (I’ve been fortunate enough to have found someone so my eharmony login is dormant) I would often see an email from an intriguing person I might NOT have approached in a bar.

That, in itself is the beauty of sites like eharmony. We’re all in it together, so let’s do it maximally and safely.