Speed dating and the art of the pre-date
Matchmakers around the world will mostly agree that a first date should only be a brief encounter; what I call the pre-date, to establish if you are interested in going on an actual date. I suggest no more than 45 minutes for a pre-date.
It’s like the three stages leading up to the purchase of a new pair of shoes: First, we look in the window and admire; then we try them on and admire the look (like a first date); if we are smitten, the next step is walking around (trying out subsequent dates) to see if the “shoe fits.” And then we head to the cash register, if we’re sold on the relationship.
For most, we have to go on a lot of those first pre-dates, searching for what I lovingly call the “hmm moments” of intrigue, before we meet someone who we are interested enough to want to go out with. By the time we get dressed for the occasion, drive to the location, and have our “45-minute” pre-date, we have invested at least an hour and a half, only to decide, more often than not, that there was absolutely no chemistry.
What if, for the same amount of effort as heading out on a pre-date, you were guaranteed the possibility of meeting ten times as many people in that same 45 minutes? Welcome to the world of speed dating!
It’s a simple concept: An equal number of male and female participants, paired up, and every five-to-sevent minutes you change partners.
The objective is, by the end of the session, to meet someone that you would like to go out with on a date-date; in this scenario, the speed date is considered your pre-date, so if it goes well, then book an evening with the object of your affection!
Tomorrow night, I will be having a bit of fun as I welcome Elite Speed Dating‘s Fritz-Gerald Morisseau as my guest on Solo in the City Radio. I also decided to put a secret guest to the test and have him try his hand at the art of speed dating with a quick, time-limited pre-date with this week’s Bachelorette from our dating site! Listen tomorrow night at 10pm on CJAD 800 Montreal to see who the lucky guy trying to master the art of the speed date will be!
– Cheryl xo
photo: Elite Speed Dating
