How’s that for an opening line in a profile? Is that what we really want in a potential new partner – someone so upfront about their willingness to lie!?








I wonder, does there come a time in all relationships that started with the flutter of witty emails, winks and virtual goodnight kisses – when the discussion turns to what type of story should we concoct about how we met, because our story could not possibly be “we met online”.

Come on people, it could be so romantic! When two people find love online, they do so within a sea of millions also looking for someone special... You may have started off your courtship writing poetry to each other, quoting your favourite love songs… or at the very least, clearly articulating your feelings towards one another.

How many people who met in a bar can say that? “How did we meet? Oh, Dave was getting a beer and he turned around and spilt it all over my shirt”. Hmm, not exactly a heart stopper.

Now, I understand when people first contemplate the idea of online dating, questions inevitably arise in our internal dialogue about old taboos surrounding people who using dating sites to find love.

We’ve all heard the clichés about online dating. However I think a ‘tipping point’ is not too far off regarding their acceptance into the everyday social fabric of our lives.

‘Tipping point’ is a term made famous by Malcolm Gladwell which basically means the moment in which something reaches critical mass and when the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.

While bad jokes about online dating are still popular with second-rate comedians, year by year, more and more people are signing up to dating services hoping to click with someone special.

And why wouldn’t we? The web’s most popular sites are those which promote social networking, video sharing, or link users to sophisticated magazine-like lifestyle sites helping them sell their house, keep a track of the weather and latest news and get a daily dose of celebrity gossip and their horoscopes. These sites have turned our downtime into web-time. Sites like Facebook, MySpace, Bebo and Twitter have created hundreds of millions of people whose online persona is now a huge part of their life.

We go online to sell our house, buy groceries, search for the cheapest prices, debate current event or discuss the hottest holiday locations… it makes sense that while we’re all clicking our way round the web that we might cross paths with potential suitors.

While not their primary function, social networking sites have been inadvertently romantically connecting people for years. A lot of my friends have met nice, normal people on sites like MSN, MySpace and from posting on forums discussing issues far removed from love, dating and relationships.

So, yes, I think we are at a tipping point. We do everything else online, so why wouldn’t we look for love while we’re here. It makes sense, after all we’re all working more and playing less, making it harder for us to meet people (other than through work). This may explain why relationship surveys often find that people list the internet as the second best place to meet people after the workplace.

Still wanting to lie about how we met? Online dating is great way to meet new people and to open your eyes to all the possibilities out there. Everyone’s intentions are clearly stated and you can use all the interactive features of the site to really suss the person out (preventing the possibility of going on lots of bad dates).

Sites like dateservice.com.au make it easy for Facebookers and MySpacers and singles in general to easily migrate to a dating site specifically designed to appeal to twenty and thirty-somethings.

So online daters - don’t feel bad about it. We’re all doing it. And however you meet your special someone, you should honour the memory of how you met. It’s your own special story about how the universe prevailed to get you both together. It doesn’t matter how it happened, it just matters that it happened.