ORLANDO, Fla. — Few people like being alone. Sure, there are some men and women who truly like their single status, but most of us prefer having someone special in our respective lives. For individuals who are single – whether they are widowed, divorced or just painfully unattached – the holidays can be a trying time. If you are single by choice, then you are not in need of advice, but if you are unattached and are open to suggestions to make it through the holiday season, dating expert Rochelle Peachey offers a plethora of advice.
In matters of the heart – especially a lonely heart – Peachey is an expert. During the 1990s, under the pen name Rochelle Morton, the London native who now lives in Orlando authored “Eat Your Lonely Heart Out,” a book based on 700 dates with men in England via the personal ads. The title was so successful that Crown, a Random House imprint, approached her to write “My 1,000 Americans: A Year-Long Odyssey Through the Personals.” Peachey’s experiences from those books led her to launch her newest venture, an international online dating Web site called I Love Your Accent (www.iloveyouraccent.com), which will debut in February.
“The bottom line is that you gotta get out there. You can’t come home from work, watch TV and wait for the man or woman of your dreams to knock on the door,” Peachey said. “It’s like the lottery. You can’t win if you don’t buy a ticket.”
“If you want to meet someone special, you’re not going to accomplish anything by being a hermit, sitting on your couch eating ice cream and watching Sex in the City reruns,” Peachey added. “Look at it like a business. Present yourself in the best way possible, and network with confidence.”
If you’re single for the holidays and want to meet someone, Peachey offers these tips:
1. Instead of foregoing holiday parties and events because you don’t have a date, give going by yourself a chance. After all, you might meet someone special when you least expect it. If you can’t bear to go by yourself, consider hiring a companion – a legal companion. There are legitimate escort services out there.
2. Instead of waiting for invitations to other parties, throw one of your own. Dress to the nines, invite other singles and ask your friends who are married or dating to bring single people they know.
3. If you are proactive and think outside the box, there is a better chance you will be with someone next holiday season. Online dating is ideal because you can learn more about the person before meeting them. I Love Your Accent encourages people to be unconventional. It’s alright if you meet someone in your area, but you are limiting your options if you only look for someone within a 25-mile radius. Why not consider someone in another state or another country? You can open yourself up to a world you never knew existed.
4. Try a different approach. Don’t be so picky. Step outside your comfort zone and don’t be so rigid about hair color or style preference, and also loosen up on the “I only date doctors” thing. If you’re still single and saying that, then maybe it’s time to move on from potential love interests in the medical field!
5. Women tend to go to parties and clubs with their friends and it’s tough for a man to approach if he’s alone. This is why it’s a good idea for a guy to have a few wing men. It’s even better if there are three of them and three of you.
6. If you’re single for the holidays, don’t let it get you down. Your life is full of possibilities and every day can be an adventure. Don’t give up hope, but expand your options.
Peachey’s site, I Love Your Accent, is a first-of-its-kind online venue for people of all ages, sizes and levels of attractiveness. No site has ever focused on the U.K. – U.S.A. connection. Members on www.ILoveYourAccent.com can choose to meet someone in their respective city, but the site opens the possibility for singles in the U.K. and the U.S. to find love across the Atlantic.
I Love Your Accent will allow users to post photos, video files and audio files (so prospective love interests can actually hear a person’s accent). Men and women interested in the site can sign up now for a free membership.
The “I Love Your Accent” name derives from the comments Peachey frequently receives when talking to someone here in America. “Almost every day, someone tells me that they love my accent,” she said with a laugh.
More information: www.iloveyouraccent.com.
