Friends and Dating: A Great Combination or A Recipe For Disaster?

Depending how you combine friends and dating, you can either have a recipe for success or for a disaster! Some might say that combining the two is a mistake, but I think that when combined properly, there can come some good…if you’re careful.

There are a few ways that friends and dating can intertwine; dating a friend or using your friends to help you date. Dating a friend can be tricky because you run the risk of not working out as a couple and possibly ruining your friendship. On the other hand, if it does work out, how wonderful would it be to be romantically involved with someone who you have such a close connection with? It’s likely worth the risk if you can talk about it in advance and go over the what ifs before you jump into a romance. You should also be as honest with yourself as you can be. It’s really easy to say that if things don’t work out for you guys that you will still always love that person as a friend and be able to handle friendship AFTER the demise of a relationship, but will you really be able to handle it when the time comes? Will you want to? Have you managed to stay friendly with exes in the past? Seriously give it thought because the reality is that most of us—even those with good intentions—don’t stay friends with exes and usually don’t want to! Also think about staying friends and whether or not you will be able to be supportive of or even stomach him/her seeing someone else after the two of you having been down that road. It won’t be easy, that’s for sure!

Now, as for friends and dating in terms of them helping you find love; that’s a tad easier to deal with even if things don’t work. Friends are an almost untapped resource as far as dating goes. Your friends have friends who are single who also have friends who are single…and so on and so on and so on. And who better to know what you like in a partner than those who hear you bitch and moan about dating as your friends do?! I’m not saying that by having your friends fix you up that it’s a guarantee at finding love, but I am saying that they can provide you with the opportunity to meet a bunch of new people, have a few fun dates and give you a better shot at finding a decent guy or girl that you’ll have things in common with than you have by hitting the bar or club. And that right there is already a great start isn’t it? Friends are also great at giving you insight into dating that you may not have when you’re in the throws of infatuation that comes with meeting someone new. You can count on your friends to help you open your eyes to someone who you might be quick to dismiss even though they could be great. And, the best part about friends and dating is that if they set you up with a total dud, then they’re usually willing to do your dirty work and let him/her down easy for you!