Hunting for Love Later in Life

By KB in NYC

We all know that dating is a minefield, right?  But here’s the thing; getting older doesn’t help.  A lot of 40-year-old men only want to date 25-year-olds.  And here’s why: a woman in her 30’s or 40’s knows what she wants.  She’s been around the block a few times, and she’s less willing to compromise.  She’s less easily impressed and she is, in a word, more discerning.

Now that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does make dating harder.  Also, when man hunting at an older age, you tend to want different things.  At 24, a cocktail and a great make out session will suffice; at 40, not so much.

Hollywood is filled with fabulous women, all of whom have achieved enormous success and are finding themselves single in their mid-30’s and 40’s — think Jennifer Aniston, Charlize Theron, Sandra Bullock and Sheryl Crow.

The thing is, these celebrities are pretty much set: they have millions of dollars in the bank, they look fantastic and if motherhood tickles their fancy, there’s always adoption.  And yet, they can’t get the man thing right.  Famous or not, who doesn’t want to get the man thing right?

Whether you’re single by choice or on a serious manhunt, the parameters are kind of the same.  Be honest with yourself and the men you’re dating about what you want.  If it’s marriage and kids, then own that.

You may not be in your 20’s anymore, but that’s no reason to act desperate.  Like Jen taking back John Mayer after he had publicly humiliated her?  That had a whiff of desperation to it.  Know what you have to offer, and never accept anything less than you deserve, no matter how desperate you may be to “put a ring on it.”

Take a page out of Jen, Cheryl or Sandra’s books and surround yourself with great people.  Friends make the world go ’round, and being happily single is about having your emotional needs met.

It’s such a cliche, but oh-so true: be comfortable in your skin, even if it requires Artefill to keep it looking as good as it once did.

We are a society obsessed with aging, and yet many celebrities are just getting better the older they get.  From Halle Berry to Kate Winslet, Jenny McCarthy and Susan Sarandon, age certainly hasn’t gotten in the way of dating fabulous men.  Which leads one to contend that if age is just a number, attitude must be everything.

PR maven KB is a self-proclaimed ‘lover, dater, blogger, believer.’ She is the author of KB IN NYC, a no-holds barred account of her dating hits and misses, and her search for love in New York. With a penchant for red nails, five star hotels and a sultry wit to match, she explores what it means to be in your woman perfect early-thirties navigating this brave new world that we find ourselves in.