Love is exhausting… and embarrassing.
If you’re on a dating app, chances are you’ve gotten ghosted, catfished, gaslit, breadcrumbed and stood-up all in the last week or so.
Every once in a while, you may come across someone you get along with. You go on a couple of dates, invest immense amounts of time and effort (and money) to then be disappointed by the lack of emotional availability and maturity most people still possess.
Not to sound dramatic but being on a dating app in 2024 is a little bit like being a clown at a circus, you do your best yet the joke’s on you.
Hence, much like in that episode of ‘Sex and the City, where hopeless romantic Charlotte York takes on husband-hunting with the same fervor and dedication as she would a new career, LinkedIn has become the platform where professionals now have the option to approach networking (or should I say…love) with a similarly strategic and passionate mindset.
When 37-year old TikTok creator, Candice, @candi.licious decided to bin Hinge and Bumble after weeks of endless swiping and a series of bad dates, romance came knocking at her door very unexpectedly…through LinkedIn.
Her friend had set her up on a blind date, and instead of sending her his number or Instagram profile, she sent her his LinkedIn. And to her surprise, Miss Candice found him very attractive. This chance discovery encouraged her to start documenting her experience using LinkedIn for dating.
So, why has she decided to use LinkedIn as a dating app? Simply put, ‘the filters’.
First, as a well-to-do professional herself, she loves to filter by education, ‘MBA baby’.
Next, she can filter by industry, ‘I’m looking for doctors, lawyers, and finance bros’.
And most importantly, she can filter by country, ‘very important’. As an expat working in Singapore or Melbourne, she’s attracted to others who love traveling and living overseas.
To her dismay, she can’t filter by height but ‘at least there are some very good-looking photos she (I) can do some height analysis on’.
She’s definitely on to something and users in her comments were amazed by her strategy, with some claiming they had even found their spouses through LinkedIn.
LinkedIn brands as a professional networking platform and not a dating site. As a branding agency, we often disagree..
One user said she ‘checked her (my) then bf’s LinkedIn after they (we) met through Tinder. They (we) are married now’.
Another mentioned that she ‘dated a top executive at a major media company that she (I) met on LinkedIn’ whilst she was building a professional network for her startup.
Despite some success stories, some find this approach shallow and have commented that, ‘not many people want to date for companionship, it’s all about finding the right coworkers, business partners, or provider’.
Do they even have a job?
Yet, with no end in sight to the cost of living crisis, most professionals would like their potential romantic pursuits to at least have a job. Because it costs as much to buy groceries as it does to go on a dinner date now.
Although the method seems reductive, LinkedIn user, Samuela John has stated that she’s not looking for a sugar daddy but rather someone who can take care of themselves.
John believes that by gaining insight into a potential romantic partner’s education, occupation, and professional goals, she can evaluate if these aspects line up with the kind of partner she envisions for herself.
So…what does this say about the way we approach modern dating?
Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge have clearly met their match. According to a recent survey of 505 singles conducted by DatingNews.com, LinkedIn has now become a preferred way for singles between the age of 25 to 40 to set up dates. 52% of the respondents have admitted arranging a date via a networking platform such as LinkedIn.
Modern singles now have the option to pursue romantic ventures beyond just swiping and matching on dating apps. As surveyed, many have started utilizing networking platforms, fitness apps, and even language-learning platforms to connect with new people.
In the age of self-love and growth, apps such as Strava and Duolingo help people recover from the fatigue that’s associated with online dating. These apps encourage individuals to invest time pursuing their interests, interacting with one another, and consequently building a community with like-minded individuals.
And you know what they say, the minute you stop searching for love, that’s exactly when you’ll find it. There’s no scientific explanation behind it but relationship and dating experts have suggested that such a phenomenon occurs because once you stop actively searching for something, you become more relaxed and open to new experiences.
Similarly, on LinkedIn, most people don’t go on it to find love but sometimes you just can’t help it if a mutual connection is based nearby, has a career in your field, and loves going to the same networking dinner parties as you do.
With everything so neatly lined up, checking every box on your mental checklist, you must sometimes wonder if the stars have finally aligned, and your next great adventure is to fall in love. So… maybe you should shoot your shot?
LinkedIn – the hottest new dating site
As much as LinkedIn is becoming the place for people to share increasingly personal information about their lives, a survey conducted on over 1000 U.S. women revealed that about 91% of them have received either romantic advances or inappropriate messages at least once.
What’s more, this has led to nearly 74% of women on LinkedIn reducing their usage of the platform due to the others’ improper conduct.
LinkedIn may mirror certain aspects of popular dating apps such as a profile description, pictures, and the option to privately message, but that doesn’t mean it’s worth the time damaging your professional reputation and relationships with other people.
X user Grace (@kizunannyc) has shared her experience receiving inappropriate messages and unwanted sexual advances on LinkedIn.
Another user @ivyClark_ is not a fan of the platform being used for dating either.
However, this discovery isn’t new. In 2020, LinkedIn issued a warning advising users against using the platform as a dating app, emphasizing that such behavior is inconsistent with its intended purpose.
The internet has certainly blurred the boundaries between one’s professional and personal lives. Many have found their current partners through apps such as TikTok and X. Offline, some have met their spouses through work or professional circles.
The line between what’s considered charming and creepy is very delicate. It’s not okay to immediately start flirting with someone on LinkedIn. It’s not a dating app, so if you are interested, start by networking first.
Jan Yager, a lecturer of sociology at John Jay College and friendship and dating novelist suggests that LinkedIn could be a refreshing and organic way to unite individuals.
But like most things, you must be willing to take the time to grow the professional connection first. If there’s a spark, things will mutually evolve when the time is right.