The Difference Between Dating In Your 20’s And Your 30’s

Your 20s and 30s are two very different stages in your life.

While you may have just graduated from college in your 20s and are now entering the workforce, at your 30s you have already been working for several years. You should have a steady income, and working towards getting a promotion or buying your first home, whatever your monetary goal may be.

Dating at these two stages varies quite greatly due to the difference in maturity and financial stability of both life stages. Dating in your 20s is fun, as you experiment with different types of individuals, not committing until you have found the right person. Dating in your 30s is sort of similar, however, dates are most likely to feel more mature because everyone is dating to settle down at that age. If you are wondering what is the best Asian dating site, then we have answers on that as well!

Here are a few ways dating in your 20s and 30s differ:

  • Alcohol qualityAs mentioned previously, dating in your 20s is all about fun and experimentation. It is very common for dates to occur at bars where both individuals indulge in extremely cheap or low-quality alcoholic beverages. It does not even matter if both of you become intoxicated because that only adds to the fun.

    In your 30s, this situation is exactly the opposite. You might find yourself indulging in fine wine over dinner with a handsome gentleman or might even go clubbing and purchase expensive alcoholic drinks. Both of you have learned to pace yourself when drinking by this time in your lives, and the date has become much more sophisticated.

  • Career pathsIn your 20a, you have just gained your degree from college and applied for your first job. Numerous individuals choose to use this time for experimentation to make sure that the career is the right fit for them. This can result in poor choices that go against the financial goals of the individual.

    In your 30s, you quickly learn to distinguish the high-paying jobs from the low-paying ones and as you are thinking of your future at this time, you probably will not have any interest in dating a beginner artist. If you are dating a black person, you want to check out those sites.

  • FoodIn your 20s, food matters less than the date itself. You often find yourself going for dates at the movies or maybe even bowling. Food is not your top priority as long as you both have fun. If you feel hungry, you might opt for purchasing fast food or buying a bag of chips.

    At your 30s, dates are much more sophisticated and somehow, food is always involved, whether it be going out to a 5-star restaurant for dinner or simply attending a wine tasting festival. If the date goes badly, the quality of the food always leaves a fond memory.

  • Two choices of lingerieIn your 20s you are all about making a statement and having a night neither of you will forget. For this purpose, every pair of lingerie that you own is cute. You barely own any pairs that are solely for comfort.

    By your 30s, you may be overthinking a lot of details including the length of the relationship, obvious bloating, amount of skin you can show, and modesty. You have the difficult decision of choosing between ‘sexy’ and ‘supportive’ at this age.

  • FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)In your 20s, you are most likely not thinking about your future and know that one day, you will find the right person. For now, the only thing on your mind is enjoying life while you are young and making the most of it.

    By your 30s, you may be dreading staying single forever because after some time of searching you still have not found the right person. You might feel jealous upon seeing your friends in happy long-term relationships and may begin panicking. It does take some time this late in the game, but finding your soulmate is definitely possible.

  • Having childrenIn your 20s, you are probably not ready for children and will not be for a while. Getting your period the day after a scandalous date may be the best feeling in the world for you.

    By your 30s, this changes drastically as it becomes harder for couples to conceive once the female reaches age 30. You will begin to constantly worry about not having kids as you get older and may even feel pressured by your friends and family.

  • More simplicityIn your 20s, you are all about discovering the secrets that the ‘mysterious stranger’ has to offer. You find unpredictable, secretive, and passionate people very attractive.

    In your 30s, this changes because you already have enough issues in your life that having to uncover someone else’s secrets would only add to your stress. You prefer simplicity in your significant other’s personality rather than mystery.

While your 20s and 30s vary greatly in terms of these factors, one thing that both have in common is the excitement of hoping that he/she is the one.

How Dating Is Changing In 2020

We do not live in normal times to say the least. The COVID-19 pandemic has altered the way that we do practically everything that we do. This extends to the way that we date and pair up with one another. Dating apps have capitalized on the fact that most Americans are being asked to stay at home to prevent the further spread of the virus. These apps have had to come up with new ways to incorporate the world that we live in today.

Online Dating Apps Have Spent A Long Time Convincing Us To Use Them

There is zero question that online dating apps have spent a great deal of time trying to convince us that we should use them. They started by breaking down the stigma that sometimes surrounds online dating. Certain groups of people still believe that using a dating app makes someone less of a romantic or that they don’t have what it takes to meet people out in public and be successful at dating. None of those stereotypes are true, but the online dating apps had to fight against those tides of thought in the past.

Just as the world of online dating became more normalized, the worldwide pandemic took hold. Suddenly, all industries big and small had to rethink how they were doing business. It doesn’t seem at this moment that life is going to change much from the situation we are in now. Even as some areas attempt to restart their economies and loosen restrictions, there are plenty of people who are only tepidly stepping back into public. Dating apps will have to continue to work out ways to serve a homebound population.

A Push To Do Virtual Meetings

One might reasonably think that without the ability to meet in public spaces people might not have the incentive to try to date or use a dating app at all. Certainly a portion of the population has had this same inclination, but they are not the majority. Regardless of the fact that there is a pandemic going on, people still want to form romantic attachments with one another.

Dating apps have encouraged users to meet on virtual dates, and plenty of them have put out video-based features to make these types of connections easier than ever. Some of these apps have released toll-free phone numbers to handle the extra call volume generated by people calling to inquire about the new features that the apps have released. A few apps have even gone so far as to offer tips to their users about how to create that romantic spark with someone over the phone.

All of this extra work that the apps have put into keeping and gaining customers has worked out well. On average, dating apps have seen roughly 10-15% more users since the start of the pandemic lock downs compared to the times prior to the lock down. That is not an insignificant amount of growth. It attests to the fact that people are responding happily to what these apps have done.

Spending More Time Getting To Know A Person Before Meeting Them

A lot of online daters will tell you that they have a certain routine that they practice when getting to know a new person that they are considering dating. They like to check out the person’s profile on the dating app, compare it to other things that the person has posted throughout the Internet, and chat with that person over a period of time until they get the opportunity to actually meet in person. Many relationship experts in the past encouraged online daters to not spend too much time chatting with a person before meeting online so as to make some significant progress towards forming a real relationship with that person. That is starting to change a little now.

Circumstances have forced people to speak with each other online far longer than they might have otherwise before meeting in person, but that may not be such a bad thing. With all of the additional features mentioned before such as video-chat capabilities, it is easy to get an intimate view of the life of the other person that they may be interested in. This both helps build the bond between the two people and also better informs each individual about factors that could influence their decision to decide to proceed or not.

Human Beings Require Interaction

Socializing and interacting with one another is a major need for all human beings. There is a lot of concern that all of the time at home may have a negative impact on the mental health of a huge portion of the population. It may be medically necessary, but that doesn’t make it any easier for all who have to go through it. The ultimate concern is that all of the lack of interaction could create permanent impacts on the population. To avoid this scenario, it is essential that we have alternatives to stay in touch with one another.

Dating has flourished for on other platforms that one might not immediately think of. For example, some people have started to meet virtually through gaming. The Nintendo Switch has become wildly popular for this very thing, and there were even supply issues with the Switch during certain parts of the year. It seemed like everyone wanted to connect with each other through games.

Romantic relationships can begin or at least become stronger through gaming platforms. People are sharing an experience with one another, and it is a fun gaming experience that they wouldn’t necessarily be able to find in any other form or fashion. It can range from very serious gaming to ridiculously funny games. Either format can work to build up the relationship between two people.

Apps Are Not Yet Creating New Revenue Streams

There are not yet a lot of known new revenue streams to tap into for the dating apps. They still rely on their basic subscription model, but they are pleased that so many users have decided to take this journey with them. The fact that people are video-chatting more or using other in-app features that they have created specifically because of COVID-19 may or may not pay off in terms of direct revenue, but they are seeing their traditional revenue streams continue to grow.

All of the dating apps may be more into holding on to their current users and hunkering down for the time being, but the strategy appears to be working. In the end, these changes could alter the way that dating happens, and that could be a very interesting change on human society overall. Sociologists and others have tried to study how this might work. They are curious about what people will do when they are matched up in a significant way without having the ability to meet each other for an extended period of time. How will this alter our behavior once the world gets back to business and we finally can meet in-person once again? Those are the interesting questions that have yet to be answered.

Everyone will continue to watch how these dynamics change and how society will adapt to them. Human beings will always adapt as necessary to remain in touch with one another.

7 Tips For Online Dating Success

Dating has been changing every year, especially with new generations coming in. There are many ways to meet the love of your life, whether at a restaurant, school, work, or online. Dating can be intimidating for some people, which is why they struggle with finding the right person. The benefit of online dating, it can make people feel confident and comfortable as they get to know the person they are interested in before meeting them. Meeting people in person can make the other individual feel uneasy if they are a timid person. We all want to find our true love in life, and social media has played a great role in meeting people online. Please read the following seven tips to help you get through online dating.

 

1. Research Who You Are Talking To

 

First things first, there are many apps out there for online dating such as Tinder, eHarmony, Match, Hinge, and more, but not everyone says who they honestly are. If you have ever watched the TV show Catfish, you would know exactly what I am talking about. Say you match with someone you genuinely believe can be the one, but everything seems too good to be true. This is where you need to look out for yourself and try to find more information on the person without making it visible. For example, if you both have been talking for months on the dating app and nobody has exchanged numbers or social media profiles, something would seem a little off, especially since everyone is on social media these days. If the person does not want to give you anything that reveals who they are, they are most likely hiding something about themselves. Please remember when you are talking to someone, and if they are serious about dating you, they will not hide anything from you, so be mindful of every detail. One way you can be sure of who they are is to ask for their number and see if they would like to video chat one day. This will confirm whether they are who they say they are. Always stay safe and make sure they are genuinely who they are before meeting them in person.

 

2. Meeting in Person

 

Once you confirm the person is real, you can finally meet each other in person. This is a huge step and test to see if you both are compatible outside of the app. Dating online is entirely different than dating in person. When you are making plans to meet up, make sure your first date is in a public place for safety. Great first open dates can include the movies, amusement parks, dinner, or a simple date like grabbing coffee. Always avoid meeting in a secret location that nobody can see you. If you want to feel safer, you can let a close friend or family member know where you will be going and with who. After you are dating for a certain amount of time and feel 100 percent comfortable and safe, you may do whatever you think is right.

 

3. Do Not Share Sensitive/Personal Information Online

 

We all know that information can be passed quickly on the internet and will remain online forever. This is an essential tip to online dating and being on social media in general. As you connect with someone online who you feel could be the one, make sure to take things extra slowly. Never and I mean, never send out your home address, social security number, nudes, and bank information. If the person you are talking to ask you to send any information about your bank, social number, or nude pictures of you, block them immediately. Individuals like this only want to scam you and use your personal information to do whatever they are planning. Your home address is a little tricky to avoid. Say they want to pick you up for your first date and need an address to come locate you. In the past, I have had an experience that did not go to well after our first date, and I felt extremely uncomfortable knowing that they knew where I lived. To avoid situations like this, give them an address down the street to pick you up or even better, meet them at the location you are going for the first date.

 

4. Do Not Be Afraid to Say No

 

This tip applies to both online dating and in any regular relationship. Many people will let this one slide if they do not see anything wrong with it, but if it makes you uncomfortable, it is wrong. When going on dates, some individuals will try to get frisky way too soon. Do not be afraid to say no if you do not want him or her to touch you. Another important tip is to stay sober. Going on first dates can be fun, but if the person insists on you to drink or do any type of drug, say no. You never want to let yourself go when going on the first date just in case they try to do something you do not like. Do not do anything until you are ready to do it, and do not let the other person make you feel bad for not wanting to. There is nothing wrong with you for not wanting to take it to the next step, and any person who wants best for you will notice that.

 

5. Make Dating Profile Stand Out

 

Now that we have talked about everything to stay safe, we need to talk about how to make yourself stand out. When making a dating profile, make sure to include your interest, great photos, and always keep your bio short but a conversation starter. Do not be afraid to be silly while making your bio. Always show your true self and personality, but let your audience know what you take seriously in the dating world. Online dating always starts with the first impression, so when making your profile ask yourself, “Would I swipe right on myself?” If the answer is yes, your profile should be complete and outstanding.

 

6. Put Yourself Out There

 

Having a new match can be exciting but waiting for the person to start the conversation is unnecessary. If you are timid in public, this is your time to take the lead in dating. A lot of people wait until the other person starts a conversation if they ever do, so if you really want to know someone do not be afraid to get the conversation started. When starting the conversation, always keep it respectful and polite. Start off with a simple question like, “Hello, how is your week going?” then, as the conversation progresses, you can add more humor or anything you like.

 

7. Have an Open Mind

 

Yes, everyone wants to find the perfect spouse, but not everything is about looks. You may match with someone you think is the ideal man or woman just by the way they look, but love goes a lot deeper than that. When looking for the perfect one, see how they treat you, and what energy they give out. Dating is not all about looks; you need to find someone you feel the happiest with and treat you like a king or queen. This is the time to be picky, especially when you are dating online but have an open mind to meet someone who may not be your type in looks but is your type in personality. I promise you, character beats how they look on so many levels with dating.

 

Now that you have read all seven tips, you are ready to download a dating app of your choice and make your dating profile. Keep your profile bio short, making people want to get to know you more and make sure you add photos more than just selfies. Let people know a little bit about you through pictures but not too much. Have an open mind but never be gullible when people ask to meet in sketchy places or ask anything about personal information. Dating online can be fun and enjoyable if you do it correctly and stay safe. In any situation where you feel uncomfortable, leave immediately and politely tell them what they did to make you feel uneasy. Dating apps should never make you feel bad about yourself. This is a way to meet the love of your life and have a beautiful future together. Online dating is the most common way to meet people, whether it is dating apps or any social media platform. You do not have to feel embarrassed if you are the only one out of your friends and family dating online. This is your choice and way of meeting people without feeling timid in person, and there is nothing wrong with that at all. Please remember to always stay safe, honest, and enjoy the online dating world.