Met my current very lovely girlfriend online (and many other perfectly lovely people, some of whom are still friends).<p>I think the number 1 mistake people make online, which leads to disillusion, is thinking that online dating is a replacement for meeting. I hear all the time complaints of not being atracted to any of their matches, or that they seem boring, etc. etc.<p>&quot;Well, did you meet?&quot; &quot;No, he&#x27;s so not my type.&quot;<p>How can you possibly know? Instead, understand the purpose of the online phase, and adopt the following strategy:<p>1. Match with someone who does not seem completely unappealing (some people look a lot worse online than in person... and vice versa. To a striking degree! -- Being charming in a chat room and sexy in a picture does not always carry to the real world).<p>2. Make sure they are not a completely insane person.<p>3. Skip the Q&amp;A. Ask to meet up for a quick lunch.<p>Your goal is to meet as many people as possible. Forget it&#x27;s even a date. Seriously, every day go have lunch with someone new. Worst case scenario, you had a boring meal. Best case scenario, <i>you had 30-60 minutes to talk one-on-one with someone interesting</i>: now ask them out for a proper date!<p>To me this is far superior to trying to subtly-or-not-so-subtly hit on people at random events, or, God forbid: a bar.