Is 2019 the Year You Find ‘The One’?
We are more than three weeks into 2019, and many of us have already given up on our New Year’s resolutions by now. However there are a few of us still pushing to last through the month and even some for the full year. So whether you are still committed to the gym or eating healthier, many of us are still trying at least.
For some, your resolutions include focusing on one more aspect of your life — love. What does that mean? Maybe you are in a committed relationship, and you decided this would be the year things get more serious and you are planning or ready to take the next step. Or on the opposite perspective, maybe you finally acknowledge your relationship has hit a dead end and you are ready to drop the dead weight and move on. Or if it is neither and you find yourself single this year, maybe your goal is to make this the year you are open to love and putting yourself out there for real.
If that is the case, there are a few questions you should address. To start, is that still the case? Are you open to love, and is this really a goal for this year? Not to necessarily focus anything but the idea of being open to it. If it is, then you are ready for question two: What are you doing to put yourself out there? Being in the right mindset is certainly a great first step, but action is required to make anything happen. You can’t just hope to be successful one day in your career without the work and effort to support it. The same goes for love. It is awesome that you think you are finally ready for a relationship, but what are going to do to get there?
If you are struggling in this department, here are a few things to keep in mind to take that next step in not just accepting love but finding it this year:
Be open minded
Many people are still single because they think a significant other needs to live up to a list or fill a certain type they always go for. Clearly if you are single, something isn’t working for you. This is not to say you need to date your complete opposite, but simply be open minded when dating. You can pick certain core values you would prefer your partner to have, but if you stumble into love and they don’t check every box, that is okay. Unless it is a clear dealbreaker, stay open and see where things go. Sometimes people who are outside our usual type are the ones that surprise us the most.
Be out there
You can’t expect the love of your life to come to you if you are just sitting there. How will you ever find each other? If you are not on dating apps, download them or reactivate them. And on the weekends when you just want to be a homebody, take a night to go out. This doesn’t mean drinks per say, but any activity. Join a soccer or dodgeball club, or go to paint and sip — anywhere where you are forced to socialize with new people. We get so comfortable in our own circles and forget that often times we can meet a significant other through friends. Make some new friends, expand your circle and meet the people who can easily become your friends or more. Someone always has a single friend they are dying to set up, so be social and get yourself out there.
Put in the effort
If you do meet someone, remind yourself it is 2019 and you need to define the relationship. It is not always clear whether or not you are exclusive while dating these days. So if you have met someone you like, make it known that you want to be exclusive if that is the only person you are seeing. That way you avoid any miscommunication from the beginning and cut out any confusion in your relationship. Plus, if you wait too long to define the reltionship, someone else may come swooping in, and you want to avoid that at all costs if real feelings are involved. So make the effort to make it be known that you are interested in sealing the deal so you can cut any loose ends and focus on each other.
Born and raised in Northern Virginia, Christina aspires to be a public relations professional in a big city after graduation from James Madison University. In her free time when she’s not blogging away about dating and relationships, Christina loves to go shopping, watch Netflix and play with every puppy that crosses her path.