Speed Dating

by Valerie Nelson | More from this Blogger

21 Jul 2006 06:05 AM

If the thought of being set up on a blind date makes you feel nauseous don't despair. Perhaps you are brave enough to have tried online dating with positive results. Maybe some dark part of you wishes for the days of old when parents would arrange a marriage and the entire family would join you on your dates.

Even if you do not fall into one of those categories, you might have found dating or even the thought of dating about as much fun as getting a bikini wax. After going through a divorce, beginning to date again can be very scary. If you are in your late 30's or older, you may find the pool of available singles murky at best. To help make the dating process less likely to send you to a good therapist, some brilliant people have come up with a concept called speed dating.

Speed dating is essentially a group dating activity-Now don't freak out-this is a family oriented column, and I will keep it clean. What I mean by group dating is that a dating event is set up by a company or organization that specializes in this interesting new dating concept. These events can take place at a restaurant, meeting or social hall, and typically involve between 20-100 people-although that varies widely depending on the event sponsor and venue.

During the event you either sit at a table for two or a table of up to 12 and have a time limited conversation with one other person. Usually the time limit is somewhere between 5-8 minutes. During this time both participants quickly give basic information about their interests and basic philosophy of life. No contact information is exchanged. If you decide that you would like to get to know more about the person then you write that person's name or other identifier, like a number, down on your card to pursue later. After the time is up, you move on to the next eligible single and start over again. At the end of the evening you turn in your "interest" card to the event organizer and they will forward the contact information of the other person to you at a later date. In some cases both individuals have to put the other person down on their "interest" card in order for further contact to be made.

I think this new method of dating is interesting and certainly reflects our cultures desire to obtain things quickly-even a date! I do not know if this is a good way to look for a serious relationship, but it certainly could be a time saver and feel less dangerous to the self-esteem than more traditional dating methods. What do you think of speed dating? Have you ever tried it? If so, how did you like it?

Learn more about Valerie Nelson

Valerie is a Families.com blogger, freelance writer and small business owner. Valerie helps non-profit organizations with fundraising through grant development for their programs and projects.

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