When I was in college, I felt left out of the dating scene.
In fact, there were several weekends when all of my friends went on dates and I was left alone because there simply wasn't anyone around that interested me.
When I turned to online dating, I realized there were so many reasons why it was better than standard dating.
First, when I started dating online, I recognized that the options were nearly limitless.
Dating in person was limited to the people I had access to on my college campus and in the surrounding community.
When I started looking for love online, I could reach outside the city, the state, or even the country if I wanted to.
That meant that instead of having a few hundred guys from which to choose, I had thousands.
Second, dating online helps take some of the anxiousness out of the process.
When I see a guy I like out in public, chances are I am not going to walk up to him and ask him out, even if I want to.
Online, however, when you are on a dating website, most of the people on the same website want the same thing you do...
love.
That means when you approach a stranger online, things don't have to be awkward.
You're both there to find love.
You both want to meet someone.
You don't have to worry about rejection.
At least not immediately.
Third, rejection happens, but it simply hurts less.
If someone were to tell me to my face that they didn't want to see me anymore after a few dates, it would hurt, even if I felt the same way.
No one likes to be told they aren't good enough.
When I dated online, there were many times when I would not hear back from a guy or he would simply say he wasn't interested.
It still didn't feel great, but it had a much more remote feeling to it.
Plus, I knew there were so many other options online it didn't really matter.
Fourth, the selection process is priceless.
When you look for dates in person, you really have very little information.
You know what the person looks like at first and you slowly learn other things about him.
Online, however, you can tell the search engine what type of person you want to find.
You can specify a location, an age range, a gender, a body type, and even particular personality characteristics you want.
I kept my search pretty broad by specifying a basic location and age range as well as gender.
If I were to do it again today, I would be a lot more specific, just out of curiosity.
You can always broaden your search later.
I am happily married now to a man I met online.
If I had it all to do over again, I would skip the college dating scene completely and hit the internet to look for love.
Many people find it there, including myself and there are so many reasons why it's better and easier than dating in person.