I'm 60, never married, so not only do I have a ton of experience dating, I most certainly can't speak to younger generations. I do believe, as trite as it sounds, it is a numbers game. You have to kiss a lot of frogs and all that business. Except you don't have to kiss them unless you want to! But the more people you meet, the more opportunities you'll have for connecting with quality people, and you might find one who is compatible for a long term relationship. But you might not! You have to go in open to the possibilities, but releasing expectation to find Mr. Right. Mr. Right For Me is good, but even expecting that sets us up for disappointment. It's a delicate balance of holding onto hope and having realistic expectations. You can't go wrong if your orientation is "friendship first". All successful long term relationships are based on friendship. And as Coco says, "Lovers come and go, but friends stay."