Whether you’re juggling kids and work, investing all your time in your career, or studying hard for the future, sometimes looking for love falls by the wayside as we focus on our daily commitments.
While there’s no doubt these aspects of life are important, it’s also vital that you take the time out to tend to your love life… or you might find your relationship withering before it’s had the chance to grow roots.
So how can you find time in a busy life to plant the seeds of love and let them flourish?
1. Take some “me time”
This might sound bonkers if you’re incredibly busy – how can spending time on yourself help you in your relationships? Basically it gives you time to breathe. If you’re bouncing from work to your kids, or from night shift to day shift, you probably don’t have the time to think, let alone date and this will make the time you spend with that special someone seem fraught and rushed. You’ll probably feel tired and not at your best. By taking some time out, even if it’s just half an hour a day with your favourite magazine, you give yourself a chance to relax and regain some of yourself before facing the world.
2. Turn off your mobile
If your work is your life, chances are you’re tied to it 24/7 by your smartphone. By continuously checking emails and texts throughout a supposedly romantic evening, your full attention is not on your date and they will notice. So when you leave the office to meet your partner, turn off your mobile and start focusing on building your personal relationships as opposed to your professional ones.
3. Lunch/breakfast dates
Daytime dating is often overlooked in favour of evening activities, but if you’re a shift-worker or have kids to look after this is simply not a practical arrangement so start connecting at other hours. Take Toby and Jane, for example. Thanks to a specialised dating agency, they were able to tailor their time tables around the two weeks of every month in which Jane worked the night shift at the Police Station, and Toby’s twelve-hour day at the hospital. They met for breakfast at 7am every day of the fortnight – before he went to work and after she had finished hers – allowing them to spend quality time together to help their relationship flourish.
If you’re a single parent with similar scheduling issues, consider meeting for lunch when the kids are in school. It’s also a little easier to get to know each other without the distraction of children.
4. Speed dating
If you’re yet to find that special someone and every second counts in your busy life, take the fast approach to meeting people. Speed dating may seem absurd to some people, but it’s an efficient way of finding someone that you’re at least a little compatible with. The speed date itself isn’t what matters; it’s what you do with it afterwards. If you find someone who was equally as embarrassed or amused as you when they arrived at the table for their arranged minute, find them later and offer them a drink. You can break the ice by joking about the date.
Finding the time for a relationship can be difficult with the incredibly busy lives many of us lead – but what is most important to remember is that finding the right person takes time, and that time is worth investing.
Have you got any tips on how to make time for your other half? Let us know in the comments section below.