The idea that everyone has a soulmate out there that they’re trying to find is an illusion and fundamentally makes people less happy and more depressed. For thousands of years people married for basic necessity. It wasn’t usually romantic, it was practical. But it worked. People formed families early that supported each other economically.

Since the advent of mass media, there has been an idea finding your perfect partner. This is an unrealistic fantasy that gives people wrong ideas of what relationships should be. It’s not like you just get a perfect person and then your relationship is 100% smooth no issues and you’re happy for life. It also means if you’re not satisfied for any reason then there’s someone else better out there for you and you should leave immediately.

People also make stupid decisions while dating. They look for looks only and miss the larger picture.

Today, rates of loneliness and depression are at all time highs. Single people are often complaining about the increased cost of living yet are increasingly living by themselves instead of relying on partners to help them.

So what’s my point? People should be more open to settling. Especially settling with an agreeable, responsible and fairly successful person, even if that person isn’t super exciting. Also, people need to stop overestimating their own ability to evaluate others. When you’re in the midst of a relationship or pursuing someone, you’re not thinking clearly. People should be more open to be setup by their friends and family. I know that’s not sexy but I’ve seen examples of this happening in real life and it’s always worked well.

Feel free to disagree with this and state your reasons why.