Six Creative Ways to Meet Someone New

By Jeff Cohen, freelance writer (cohenwriting@aol.com)

Read more related articles by Jeff Cohen - Big Dates on a Small Budget, Dates Outside the Box

So you want to meet someone new but feel like your current strategies aren’t paying dividends. Here’s six creative ways you could meet a new boyfriend or girlfriend. Try even a few of these and you’ll be on your way to improving your odds of dating success.

1) Sign-up for a specialized dating site
You might already be a member of a popular dating site like True.com or America's Internet Dating. There’s no reason to cancel your membership. However, you can supplement the general membership with a specialized online dating subscription, such as e-Christian Dating. Think about a passion you might have, perhaps related to religion, politics, or fitness. There are dating sites out there that cater to specific dating desires.

2) Join a summer house or ski house
Summer houses and ski houses are known for drawing a singles crowd. If you’ve never done one before, convince a few of your single friends to join with you. Not only will you have fun lounging in the sun or skiing down the slopes, but you just might meet someone new.

3) Open up your mind to a dating setup
If you’ve shied away from blind dates and setups, now is the time to reconsider. Start telling your friends and family that you’re willing to be setup. You’d be surprised how many friends of friends and distant cousins suddenly appear. Before you know it, you’ll be going on more dates than you can imagine.

4) Take an evening class
Just because you’re no longer in high school, it doesn’t mean you can’t further your education. Choose a fun class at your local community school, maybe arts and crafts, a cooking class, or even an athletic pursuit. Not only will you learn a new skill or improve your athletic ability, but you just might sit next to a cute guy or girl.

5) Take a trip to Club Med
Okay, you don’t have to specifically pick Club Med. But you do need to pick a resort that caters to the singles crowd. You can go by yourself or with a few friends. After one week in paradise together, you just might come across someone worth dating when you return to the real world.

6) Give back to the community
We all know it’s important to give back to those less fortunate. There are so many ways to lend a helping hand. You can read to children, play bingo with senior citizens, clean up a rundown city park, or deliver meals to the homeless. As a side benefit, you never know who you’ll meet at these community service events. There’s nothing like giving back to the community and landing a date at the same time.

It’s not always easy to try something new, but if you get out of your comfort zone, you’re likely to meet new and interesting people. The more people you meet the better your chances of finding the right person to date. So get out there and try something new. Your dating success just might depend on it.