You are single – and looking. Maybe you are looking for marriage, a long term relationship or even just an activity partner. Nonetheless, you are looking. And how are you looking? The avenues are varied from online dating sites to matchmaking sites to having friends set you up. Maybe that works out for you. Maybe you meet interesting, fun people. Or maybe you find that you spend many pointless hours clicking on ad after ad or meeting person after person only to find that after investing your precious time in them that they aren’t what you are looking for after all. Well, speed dating can change all of that.

Speed dating allows you to try out prospective dates before you actually commit to a “real” date. You attend an event where you go through a series of mini dates, or sample dates, if you will. These “dates,” lasting a few minutes each, allow you to evaluate several different people. You can talk, ask questions and get a feel for each other. At the end, you submit to the event coordinator the people you felt you connected with the most. The coordinator typically arranges the “connections” and you can go from there. This form of meeting people has several great benefits.

Speed Dating Cuts Down On False Advertising

While personal ads may help you zero in on traits in a person that attract you, the number of photos and information that is inaccurate is staggering. At a speed date event you get to see the person in the flesh, no photo that are misleading, old or of someone else. No, you get to see the person as they are right then and there.

You Know Up Front If Physical Attraction And Chemistry Is There

When it comes down to it, physical attraction and chemistry are vital to a relationship – of any sort. While personal ads can show you someone who looks good in the two dimensional world of photos and text on a page, speed dating brings that person to life. And it is that living, breathing human sitting across from you that you feel attracted to or feel chemistry with, not a photo on a computer screen.

Speed Dating Saves Time

Instead of investing a lot of time emailing a person and talking on the phone only to meet them in person and find that the chemistry just isn’t there, you can meet people face to face and cut right to the chase. You are either attracted to them or you aren’t and you don’t spend a lot of time figuring it out or chasing a dead end.

Meet More People At Once

Speed dating allows you to meet 6, 8 or even 10 people at one event. You can meet, talk and evaluate, then choose the people who appeal to you the most.

Most Matches Are Pre-Screened

Many event coordinators will “pre-match” groups so that the attendees meet certain criteria such as age or vocation. This allows you to meet more people who are compatible with you and who can better understand your lifestyle.

You Can Get More Up Close And Personal

At a speed dating event, you can get a little more personal than you would if you were talking to someone on the phone for the first time or emailing them in answer to a personal ad. You can ask them what they do for a living, if they have children or want children, if they have been married before, what their hobbies are and what issues are important to them. If they don’t match up with your wants and needs, you simply move on to the next one in line.

Speed dating is a great way to meet new people and zero in on those candidates who best fit what you are looking for. If you are single and interested in meeting someone special, give it a shot. What have you got to lose?