Facebook: The Best Way to Meet Your Dream Guy?

Dear Monica, I am single and trying to find new ways to meet men. What are your thoughts on social media outlets for singles? — M.W., Dresher

Facebook is the preferred vehicle for social connectedness. It is a great way to connect with your past, present and future. When used appropriately, this is one of the best ways to rekindle old friendships and make new ones. How else does one quickly reunite with their neighbors from growing up, high school and college friends, co-workers and family from near and far?

But it’s also easy to cross the blurry lines of social media and make some serious faux pas. You should have fun with Facebook, but always keep it safe for work. Here’s some tips for navigating the situation:

• Keep your page private. Only allow your friends to be able to view your wall and other friendships. Not even friends of friends should be able to view your status updates and personal photos. If someone is that interested in you, they will find a friend who is your Facebook buddy and get to your page that way.
• Don’t be shy about searching for old flames and then friending them. If they were hot once, maybe they still are. When possible, try to get to their relationship status before sending any friend requests. If he is married that is a major no-no. Yes, plenty of people are friends with exes but better play it safe than sorry—especially if you are looking for a keeper.
• Do not write a flirty message on his wall. That is public domain and your overtures should not be for everyone’s consumption. Keep all correspondences private through sending an inbox message.
• Only accept friend requests from people with whom you have mutual friends. If it is only one mutual friend and you cannot place where you know this person, do not accept. There are many stalkers out there and once you are friends with someone, all that is on your Facebook page is for their eyes.
• Keep your posts and photos PG -rated. You do not want someone from work passing them along to a supervisor. You could end up with an HR nightmare.
• Once you are dating, no need to post every picture of the new guy in your photo albums. That goes in the category of TMI. If the relationship becomes serious, change your status and tastefully share some photos. No one wants to see your weekend exploits, especially if the guys in the pics keep changing.
• A great way to start a friendly overture with a new guy on your radar is to wish him happy birthday. Facebook has helped all of us remember the birthdays of those we should not forget and them some.
• Join groups on Facebook from your high school and college and those related to your community interests or hobbies. This is a great way to expand your network of people and hopefully one thing will lead to another.

Once you are out of school and in the workforce, it gets harder and harder to meet people. Social media and dating sites have offered the single population a far-reaching outlet. The best news is that you no longer have to rely on the kindness of others for blind dates. You also are not beholden to the bar scene or random happenstance. When Facebook and other social networks are used effectively, they can be one of the most useful and well targeted ways to meet people. Your dream guy could be a mouse click away from entering your world!