How Young Professionals Date Smart

Life is hectic when you’re working your way to the top as a single in Omaha. Trying to find time to date while getting your career in order can be a whole other ballgame, that you just don’t have the time to waste on just anyone. “Dating smart” is an essential tool any successful single in Omaha needs to utilize to ensure you’re meeting the right match for your busy lifestyle, and someone who understands that drive to get to the top. 

Being a busy professional likely means outsourcing areas of your life to other professionals - whether that includes hiring landscapers for your lawn, maids for your home, nannies for your children, or…. a matchmaker for your love life. But there are other ways to ensure that you’re getting maximum value from your minimal free time. 

An online article, https://notablelife.com/6-ways-to-date-smart-as-a-busy-young-professional/, outlines the ways busy career-climbers can “date smart” while still maintaining a healthy work/love/life balance without having to give up one for the other. Yes, even with working 60+ weeks, you can still find your Happily Ever After. Here’s how:

1. Hire a Local Matchmaking Service

Dating apps and online dating require even more of a workload than you already have. This is essentially a part-time job: weeding through profiles, chatting aimlessly with people that likely end up going nowhere, being ghosted, feeling like just another number on a screen, and wasting time meeting the wrong people who were sent to you via a computerized algorithm. Hiring a local matchmaking company will ensure that you receive the quality you’re looking for; not simply random dates with little potential for a romantic future. When you hire a local matchmaker, you are investing in a quality process, instead of wasting time on a numbers game you’re as likely to win as slots at a Vegas casino. Matchmakers in your area will actually spend a couple of hours getting to know you, and working with you over a one-year period to ensure they get a good handle on your type, your preferences, and what you may need to work on to improve your success.

2. Use the Date-Night-In to Your Advantage

If you work long hours, it’s fair to say you might be too tired to take your date out sometimes. Of course, this depends on the night and it depends on how you’re feeling. You may be in the mood to simply put your feet up at home rather than go out. A date-night-in is fine as long as you still put some effort in to show that you care enough not to become one of those lazy daters.  If you do go this route, make sure you put some thought into setting the ambiance at least: have a yummy scented candle lit, arrange your take out on nice dish ware, make sure your home (especially your bathroom) is cleaned, and have a bucket of popcorn and a movie ready. Set up your date night in with thought and attention to detail, and your date won’t even think twice that it is happening in your home. 

3. Use Your Lunch Break to Go on Dates

At least once per week, forgo sushi with Alex from accounting and instead go on a lunch date. This works especially well if you meet someone who works the same core hours as you do, and works close to your office. You have to eat lunch anyway, so you may as well make a date out of it. It’s also a great way to (hopefully) brighten your day before it’s even half over. And, consistency is key to early bonding. Waiting too long before seeing your date again can stall any chemistry or connection that is occurring. So, keep at the regular dates, even if they’re brief. I can assure you that your local match would much prefer seeing you for an hour rather than nothing at all. So nourish that budding relationship like you’re planning on nourishing your body over lunch. 

4. Choose a Partner who has a Similar Lifestyle

You must choose your partners wisely. If you tend to work 12 hour days, you probably don’t want to date the freelance writer who only works 6 hours a day. Chances are, if there’s a huge contrast between the amounts of free time you both have, problems could arise. That’s not to say you can’t still give a relationship a try – but if he or she starts getting demanding of your time, that’s a red flag. Odds are, a relationship will work better with someone who is just as busy as you are. If you both get off work late, you’ll both be fine with going out for a late dinner or relaxing at home with late-night takeout. Similarly, if you both are working on side projects, you can order takeout and work on your respective projects while still spending time together. More than anything though, just ensuring that you two are in communication about your wants, needs and boundaries, will help to avoid any issues down the road. Honesty and communication really is the key to a successful relationship.

5. Incorporate Your Partner into Your Work Life

Bring your single partner to work events, or ask him or her to come along when you have to go away for a weekend for a conference. Other ways of incorporating your partner into your work life include running ideas past them, getting work-related advice from them, and sharing career milestones with each other. If you’re busy, they can be busy with you too. Moreover, our local matchmakers advise that relationships are about sharing the ups and downs, and starting that early on once you two are more established. This will display to them that you are truly ready to bring a partner into your life and that you do have goals in your love life as well, and hopefully those goals include them.