Swipe right: Tinder, Filipino Cupid isbeyond Valentine’s

First things first. What in the world is Tinder? To make it less complicated, it’s a free, location-based mobile dating app that simplifies the process most dating websites require. You simply download the app to your smart phone, link to your Facebook account, choose up to six photos of yourself, and write a brief bio. That’s it!

The game begins. The app shows you photos of singles based on your preferences. You swipe left if you don’t like them and swipe right if you do, then you can continue.

Life happens. Things change. And with the emergence of social media, it has revolutionized everything, including jobhunting and yes, dati ng.

While Filipinos are swiping right, some are proud and some are embarrassed to admit that they found love online.

But now that you finally understood that social media is an asset of this generation and not really a disadvantage like what they say, you’re now more open to new possibilities only to hear crickets— — because all around you is the same old crowd.

But wait. The thing is, we don’t even have an actual dating scene here, (or at least, not yet) with our society being very cliquish and kakilala-oriented, here are some insights to at least balance out everything.

On Tinder

1. Most likely, you will get judged for how you look. And yes why not? While heaps act like as if it’s the work of the devil, science proves that the world is undeniably more attracted to better packaging. The goods we choose in the supermarket, the facade of our favorite stores, the branding and all the good stuff play a part on how we decide.

The first thing you see is a person’s face, so it makes sense that you will be swiped based on your appearance. It’s rare to find people who read profiles.

Yes, looks will never be enough to qualify your being, but be ready, because after all, don’t we get attracted to looks first before personality and brains?

2. You will get to meet a lot of people beyond your expectations. Believe it or not, you’ll find engineers, students, accountants, government officials and what not. Who knows if you’ll meet someone working in the education department who will lament with you about the current state of education here, or someone who’ll teach you about nuclear power.

To quote Mean Girls: on Tinder, there are “the greatest people you will ever meet… and the worst.”

3. There’s the danger (because it has always been there). While the past worlds were content with affectionate notes, penpals, phonepals and text mates, we’ve always been taught to be keen and cautious since the time of the great Sun Tzu.

As dating becomes easier through social media, so do instances of risky behavior. So it’s best to keep it clean at all times and protect yourself at all times! Be alert and never let their guards down.

Stay Active until our next chat!

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Need more tips in life, career and beyond? Invite me to speak in your event or reach me at “Coach Pat de Leon” on Facebook.