“You get 50 year old guys who want 20 years younger, 60 year old guys who want 30 years younger.”
Intro’s Feargal Harrington discusses dating and age requirements in the Irish matchmaking context, with RSVP.ie
Article by Aoife Walsh. For the full, original article, go to: RSVP.ie
Irish men and women are struggling to find love because of unrealistic expectations, an unwillingness to travel any great distance to meet their potential special someone, and a desire for a partner much younger than them, says Irish matchmaking professional Feargal Harrington.
Harrington launched professional matching making service Intro in 2011. Using data derived from CSO (Central Statistic Office) stats and census figures, a team of six Intro staff members manage to arrange up to 100 dates per week.
Although the professional matchmakers pride themselves on taking the stress out of dating for their clients, Harrington says they commonly come across the same three barriers with clients that are preventing them from finding their special someone: Unrealistic expectations, unwillingness to travel, and a want for what they simply can not have.
Unrealistic Expectations
Firstly, Feargal explains that Irish people are failing to find meaningful relationships through dating apps such as Tinder. His service has found that people are becoming tired of ‘matching’ with others who misrepresent themselves online through old images that are not a true representation of what they currently look like.
Really, they’re avoiding the inevitable which is: ‘well, when I meet this person and they see me and I see them, what’s going to happen then?’
Go the Distance
The second issue, Feargal says, is the clients unwillingness to go the distance to find the perfect significant other. By restricting themselves to their own locality, people are cutting themselves off from a larger pool of singletons who could be more suited to them.
People would say they were unwilling to travel. We’re nationwide, we cater for all 32 counties but you get people calling saying ‘I live in Donegal, do you have people in Donegal?’ And we say yes, but obviously it doesn’t mean that you are only suited to people that we have in Donegal, and you’re not buying a house here.
Dating and Age
Another huge obstacle preventing Irish men and women finding the love of their life is a desire for someone younger than them. Feargal advises that those looking for love should find someone more suited to their wants and needs, saying:
When men turn 40, they will start getting difficult on age. They’ll ring up and they’ll say I want a 27 year old, so we’ll say ‘well, a 27 year old is not going to agree to meet you so that’s a waste of your time.
Be matched with someone who is on the same wavelength, on the same page as you and looking for the same future goals as you are.
Article by Aoife Walsh. For the full, original article, go to: RSVP.ie