New Year, New Boo: Dating Tips for 2025 (and Beyond!)
The new year can come with a lot of pressure and emotion. You might be feeling excited and a sense of fresh starts and new beginnings or you might be feeling the heavy pressure of totally overhauling elements of your life - specifically your love life.
First things first, if now is not the time and you want to savor a solo hibernation season - DO IT! Try to eliminate any exterior noise and listen to what YOU need right now.
But, if you are single and ready to mingle in this new year, here’s some ideas to help you ditch the swiping and embrace “IRL dating:
1. Embrace Our Local Community:
Attend local events: Explore the 518! We really do have it all - farmers' markets, live music, art galleries, and local festivals. These events are perfect for casual encounters and striking up conversations. And of course, I have to plug our own fabulous Singles Events, too!
Join clubs and groups: Whether it's a book club, a hiking group, a sports team, or a volunteer organization, shared interests are a fantastic foundation for meaningful connections. Make this your year to get involved - you never know who you might meet!
Support local businesses: Become a regular at your favorite coffee shop, restaurant, or bar (maybe go easy on the bar scene for your health - but it’s always nice to have a go-to favorite spot to grab a drink!). Get to know the baristas, servers, and other regulars - it may surprise you who might have your perfect match already in their network!
2. Cultivate Your Inner Social Butterfly:
Say "yes" more often: Step outside your comfort zone and try new things. Especially for the introverts among us (I get it - that is me!), socializing can feel like a lot. Don’t completely fill your calendar to the point that you feel crushed - but if a friend invites you to that cool new restaurant, or someone asks if you want to hit a concert together…Go! Sometimes our couch and sweatpants’ call is too strong - but try to say yes to things more often than last year’s you did.
Strike up conversations: Practice your social skills by engaging in friendly conversations with strangers. The cashier at the grocery store, the person waiting in line at the coffee shop, or the fellow dog walker in the park are all easy, low commitment practice opportunities. Asking someone how their day is going can absolutely brighten their day - and even if that is where the conversation ends…you still did something great for both of you!
3. Focus on Personal Growth:
Invest in yourself: Prioritize self-care activities like exercise, healthy eating, and grooming. Beyond the basics of health care, investing some time and money in feeling great about yourself will also have you looking great (because you shine from the inside out!).
Develop or find new passions: Engage in activities that bring you joy and fulfillment. Passion is contagious and can attract people who share similar interests. When you learn a new skill or get really great at something you love - you’re going to get excited about sharing that with others.
Practice self-reflection: Take time for introspection. Reflect on your past relationships, identify your dating patterns, and determine what you're looking for in a partner. Journaling or meditating are great ways to do this on your own - but sometimes therapy can be another great way to talk with someone else to process and work through your feelings!
4. Ditch the Dating App Fatigue:
Take a break from apps: Don’t hesitate to give yourself a digital detox from dating apps. A lot of people go on them in the New Year because you feel like you SHOULD, not because you want to. Focus on real-life interactions with the people you encounter during your day to day life and see how your social life blossoms.
Re-evaluate your dating app profiles: If you do choose to use dating apps, do a dating profile check in on your own profile. Make sure your information is accurate (do not lie about your age to try and beat the algorithm - it’s a bad look), your pictures are recent and that your descriptions and captions reflect who you are now and what you’re looking for.
Be kind to yourself: There is no one magic perfect solution to meeting your match, so don’t force yourself to conform to any advice or tool that you hate. It’s not worth it. Sometimes pushing yourself a little is good - but if a particular dating solution or piece of advice feels terrible, it’s just not for you and that’s OK. Relax, listen to yourself and your needs, focus on fun and enjoy the ride!
(Oh, and come to one of our events, of course! They’re fun - I promise!)