1 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:10,720 Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. What are you hoping 2 00:00:10,760 --> 00:00:11,600 Speaker 1: to get out of tonight? 3 00:00:11,800 --> 00:00:15,200 Speaker 2: Just like bursting my own bubble of like just being 4 00:00:15,240 --> 00:00:17,200 Speaker 2: on my phone and like trying to meet people through 5 00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:18,360 Speaker 2: an online setting. 6 00:00:18,560 --> 00:00:21,560 Speaker 3: I tried dating apps first. It was not the smartest 7 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:23,120 Speaker 3: decision I ever made. 8 00:00:23,480 --> 00:00:26,000 Speaker 1: If you talk to single people in their late twenties 9 00:00:26,079 --> 00:00:29,640 Speaker 1: or thirties right now, you might hear variations on this theme. 10 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 1: It's rough out there. 11 00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:34,159 Speaker 4: I think the moment I downloaded the apps, I was 12 00:00:34,320 --> 00:00:35,159 Speaker 4: tired of the apps. 13 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 2: I think the whole swiping community is a little stale 14 00:00:38,720 --> 00:00:39,320 Speaker 2: at this point. 15 00:00:39,400 --> 00:00:41,640 Speaker 1: But on a recent Wednesday night in New York City, 16 00:00:41,880 --> 00:00:44,879 Speaker 1: these young singles decided to get off their phones and 17 00:00:44,920 --> 00:00:46,720 Speaker 1: try meeting people a different way. 18 00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:50,199 Speaker 4: Oh gosh, just want everyone's attention, everyone's attention. 19 00:00:50,840 --> 00:00:53,760 Speaker 1: They went speed dating. Every time I ring this bill, 20 00:00:53,840 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: you guys are just going to go over to the 21 00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:58,800 Speaker 1: table to your righte sniff one up. Speed Dating is 22 00:00:58,840 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: an old idea, but according to Amber Soletti, the founder 23 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:05,040 Speaker 1: of Single and the City, a group that organized the 24 00:01:05,080 --> 00:01:08,640 Speaker 1: meetup events that bring people together to meet and mingle 25 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,600 Speaker 1: the old fashioned way, are enjoying a new search in popularity. 26 00:01:12,920 --> 00:01:15,360 Speaker 4: We finished the year one hundred and fifty percent over 27 00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:16,160 Speaker 4: a year ago. 28 00:01:16,200 --> 00:01:18,600 Speaker 2: As far as attendance goes for our events, so it 29 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:20,160 Speaker 2: really skyrocketed. 30 00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 3: It's easier just to have a genuine conversation and see 31 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:25,399 Speaker 3: if you're connecting with someone. 32 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:27,959 Speaker 5: I definitely have a more open mind if I'm in 33 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:29,520 Speaker 5: person than on a dating app. 34 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 2: I think I'm trying to approach it like just as 35 00:01:32,080 --> 00:01:34,520 Speaker 2: a reminder that there are other ways to meet people. 36 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:36,600 Speaker 3: At least you have some good laughs in person, that's 37 00:01:36,640 --> 00:01:37,080 Speaker 3: all you need. 38 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:41,120 Speaker 1: These events are responding to a new reality. Millions of 39 00:01:41,160 --> 00:01:45,480 Speaker 1: people stop dating during the COVID pandemic, and even years 40 00:01:45,520 --> 00:01:50,440 Speaker 1: after lockdown's lifted, americans romantic lives haven't fully recovered. 41 00:01:50,680 --> 00:01:54,000 Speaker 4: COVID hit At a time, I guess I was twenty six, 42 00:01:54,440 --> 00:01:58,080 Speaker 4: twenty seven, and so it was like prime time to 43 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:01,960 Speaker 4: like date and I was just alone and I. 44 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:02,840 Speaker 1: Was like, well, this sucks. 45 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:07,040 Speaker 4: And then coming back, everyone's so comfy being home, and 46 00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:08,920 Speaker 4: there's data to prove it. 47 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:13,440 Speaker 3: Stanford did a survey and tried to capture what actually 48 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 3: happened to dating during the pandemic. 49 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:19,640 Speaker 1: Bloomberg reporter Ben Steverman has been tracking these trends in 50 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:20,200 Speaker 1: the US. 51 00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 3: Of course, people were dating less in twenty twenty, but 52 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:25,880 Speaker 3: then when they looked again in twenty twenty two, even 53 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:27,919 Speaker 3: less people were dating. More people are single. 54 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:32,799 Speaker 1: Ben says America's quote unquote dating recession has implications not 55 00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:36,160 Speaker 1: only for the single and looking. It's having an impact 56 00:02:36,280 --> 00:02:44,480 Speaker 1: on the entire economy. Today on the show, why Americans 57 00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:47,200 Speaker 1: aren't dating at the rate they used to and what 58 00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:51,440 Speaker 1: it means for everything from restaurants to homebuilders to people 59 00:02:51,639 --> 00:02:54,639 Speaker 1: trying to meet their match. This is the big take 60 00:02:54,680 --> 00:02:56,880 Speaker 1: from Bloomberg News. I'm Sarah Holder. 61 00:02:57,160 --> 00:02:58,280 Speaker 2: I'm going to be just started. 62 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:00,519 Speaker 5: Okay, you get. 63 00:03:03,120 --> 00:03:06,400 Speaker 3: Image. Ben. 64 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:08,280 Speaker 1: I want to ask you a question that might be 65 00:03:08,440 --> 00:03:12,680 Speaker 1: a little sensitive to some people. What do Americans dating 66 00:03:12,720 --> 00:03:14,400 Speaker 1: lives look like right now? 67 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:19,360 Speaker 3: They're pretty bleak. Millions more people single than would have 68 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:23,200 Speaker 3: been single before the pandemic. Millions of relationships that were 69 00:03:23,240 --> 00:03:26,880 Speaker 3: never formed or that are at earlier stages than they 70 00:03:26,919 --> 00:03:31,680 Speaker 3: would have been, with huge effects on Americans financial lives, 71 00:03:31,760 --> 00:03:35,560 Speaker 3: economic lives, and especially their sense of well being and happiness. 72 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:40,160 Speaker 1: Millions. What does the data say about how many people 73 00:03:40,560 --> 00:03:41,839 Speaker 1: dropped out of the dating game. 74 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:45,160 Speaker 3: The Stanford professor is estimated that about thirteen million more 75 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:48,720 Speaker 3: people were single in twenty twenty two than before the pandemic. 76 00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 3: It's like one in twenty adults. That's a lot of. 77 00:03:51,360 --> 00:03:55,240 Speaker 1: People, even though the number of married and cohabitating couples 78 00:03:55,280 --> 00:04:00,000 Speaker 1: stayed largely unchanged. The Stanford study found that informal relationship 79 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:04,560 Speaker 1: chips dropped off. People were doing less casual dating, and 80 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:07,680 Speaker 1: Ben says that's an important milestone to measure. 81 00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:10,640 Speaker 3: That kind of gray area at the beginning of a relationship. 82 00:04:11,160 --> 00:04:15,520 Speaker 3: That's what ends up leading to moving in together, having kids, 83 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:19,279 Speaker 3: getting married, at buying home, all the sort of the 84 00:04:19,320 --> 00:04:23,960 Speaker 3: sequence of things that happen, all that starts with those 85 00:04:24,040 --> 00:04:27,400 Speaker 3: casual relationships. And it's really kind of interesting and a 86 00:04:27,440 --> 00:04:30,279 Speaker 3: little disturbing that so many of those that kind of 87 00:04:30,320 --> 00:04:33,320 Speaker 3: casual behavior just stopped and doesn't seem to have started 88 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:34,679 Speaker 3: again in the way that you would have hoped. 89 00:04:35,240 --> 00:04:38,520 Speaker 1: What's causing this? Who or what can we really blame 90 00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:41,680 Speaker 1: for why dating is so hard right now or why 91 00:04:41,720 --> 00:04:44,719 Speaker 1: we haven't recovered those casual relationships. 92 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:48,960 Speaker 3: It's become a cliche to say that the pandemic accelerated 93 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:51,800 Speaker 3: trends that were already underway, and it's happened in so 94 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:54,960 Speaker 3: many areas, but this is definitely the case here. You 95 00:04:55,040 --> 00:04:58,520 Speaker 3: look at any kind of objective measures of how much 96 00:04:58,560 --> 00:05:01,360 Speaker 3: time people are spending with each other or leaving the house, 97 00:05:01,880 --> 00:05:05,000 Speaker 3: you go back to two thousand and three, and that's 98 00:05:05,080 --> 00:05:07,919 Speaker 3: where the decline begins. Even before that's as far as 99 00:05:08,000 --> 00:05:08,679 Speaker 3: the data goes. 100 00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:11,320 Speaker 1: It was certainly being talked about back in the nineteen 101 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:15,280 Speaker 1: nineties when a political scientist named Robert Putnam first published 102 00:05:15,279 --> 00:05:18,599 Speaker 1: the research that would become his best selling book, Bowling Alone. 103 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:22,320 Speaker 1: The idea was that Americans weren't joining bowling leagues like 104 00:05:22,320 --> 00:05:24,800 Speaker 1: they used to, even though they were going bowling at 105 00:05:24,839 --> 00:05:27,760 Speaker 1: similar rates, they just weren't doing it socially. 106 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:31,080 Speaker 3: He was talking about a decline in community and connection 107 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:33,400 Speaker 3: that really began in the middle of the twentieth century. 108 00:05:33,600 --> 00:05:36,400 Speaker 3: So we're talking about a really long term trend here 109 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:39,320 Speaker 3: of people just not connecting in the same way they 110 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:43,919 Speaker 3: did before, and the pandemic definitely accelerated that. But really, 111 00:05:43,960 --> 00:05:46,039 Speaker 3: if you look at it all on a chart, it's 112 00:05:46,080 --> 00:05:49,000 Speaker 3: just a slow slope going down and then there's a 113 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:50,840 Speaker 3: big dip in the pandemic, and then it maybe comes 114 00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:52,880 Speaker 3: up just a little bit in some ways, but otherwise 115 00:05:52,880 --> 00:05:56,599 Speaker 3: it's just it's been twenty plus years of decline. 116 00:05:57,000 --> 00:05:58,640 Speaker 1: In terms of why this is happening, I feel like 117 00:05:58,640 --> 00:06:01,560 Speaker 1: a lot of people love to blame technology. Are phones 118 00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:04,960 Speaker 1: driving the social isolation? How big of a factor has 119 00:06:05,040 --> 00:06:08,240 Speaker 1: technology played in these trends you're talking about. 120 00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:11,960 Speaker 3: This is a big controversy in sociology, actually, because the 121 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:16,400 Speaker 3: US Surgeon General in twenty twenty three declared a loneliness epidemic, 122 00:06:16,880 --> 00:06:18,719 Speaker 3: and so this is a topic we've been talking about 123 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:22,159 Speaker 3: a while lately. And there is some evidence, especially with kids, 124 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:25,479 Speaker 3: that the phones have had a major effect on how 125 00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:29,320 Speaker 3: they socialize. But again, a lot of these trends predate 126 00:06:29,680 --> 00:06:33,160 Speaker 3: the smartphone. The other thing is that, Okay, you're spending 127 00:06:33,160 --> 00:06:35,440 Speaker 3: a lot more time on a group chat, you're spending 128 00:06:35,440 --> 00:06:38,039 Speaker 3: a lot more time on Facebook. That is still socializing. 129 00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:41,599 Speaker 3: You might say it's not good socializing, but it's still socializing. 130 00:06:41,680 --> 00:06:44,560 Speaker 3: And so sociologists are struggling with how to categorize that 131 00:06:44,640 --> 00:06:48,159 Speaker 3: kind of social activity. One thing's for sure. It's not dating, 132 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:52,320 Speaker 3: it's not connecting in person. It's not the really strong 133 00:06:52,520 --> 00:06:57,240 Speaker 3: ties that people really rely on. Potentially when there's emergencies, 134 00:06:57,360 --> 00:06:59,080 Speaker 3: or you have a crisis, or you just want someone 135 00:06:59,080 --> 00:06:59,479 Speaker 3: to talk to. 136 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: Are there groups who are disproportionately feeling this? 137 00:07:03,520 --> 00:07:06,440 Speaker 3: Young people, people under forty, people under thirty really bore 138 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:10,800 Speaker 3: the brunt of this. There's a sense among some researchers 139 00:07:10,840 --> 00:07:14,520 Speaker 3: that especially teenagers and young adults who went through the pandemic, 140 00:07:14,880 --> 00:07:17,720 Speaker 3: they miss some very crucial years where you kind of 141 00:07:17,920 --> 00:07:21,760 Speaker 3: learn how to relate to people in person, and they 142 00:07:21,840 --> 00:07:24,680 Speaker 3: really dove into their phones, and they're probably way better 143 00:07:24,720 --> 00:07:28,880 Speaker 3: than you or I are at like communicating and managing 144 00:07:28,960 --> 00:07:31,440 Speaker 3: their digital social lives. But put them on a dance 145 00:07:31,480 --> 00:07:34,520 Speaker 3: floor or put them in like a more chaotic situation, 146 00:07:34,760 --> 00:07:37,360 Speaker 3: and they can be a little lost. And so I 147 00:07:37,360 --> 00:07:39,680 Speaker 3: think that one of the things that's happening is young 148 00:07:39,680 --> 00:07:42,720 Speaker 3: people are having to learn how to get those social muscles, 149 00:07:42,800 --> 00:07:47,480 Speaker 3: develop those skills of being in uncertain and anxious making situations. 150 00:07:47,720 --> 00:07:49,800 Speaker 3: And the other thing that we see in the data 151 00:07:50,000 --> 00:07:54,679 Speaker 3: is that people are delaying milestones of adulthood further and further. 152 00:07:54,800 --> 00:07:58,680 Speaker 3: Like the percentage of millennials who are getting married and 153 00:07:58,760 --> 00:08:01,520 Speaker 3: buying a home and having kid by thirty is so 154 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:05,520 Speaker 3: much less than Gen X and so much less than 155 00:08:05,520 --> 00:08:08,920 Speaker 3: Baby boomers in turn, and people who are single, what 156 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:11,440 Speaker 3: can be very happy, and there's lots of reasons to 157 00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:13,320 Speaker 3: delay having kids. 158 00:08:13,080 --> 00:08:14,880 Speaker 1: And maybe some people don't want those things ever. 159 00:08:14,920 --> 00:08:18,760 Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly, but it is definitely this is a trend 160 00:08:18,800 --> 00:08:21,880 Speaker 3: and it's continuing. So where does that leave us in 161 00:08:22,040 --> 00:08:24,680 Speaker 3: ten years or for twenty years. It's really changing society 162 00:08:24,720 --> 00:08:27,320 Speaker 3: in ways that are really profound. 163 00:08:30,400 --> 00:08:35,320 Speaker 1: After the break, how that societal change is having economic consequences, 164 00:08:35,760 --> 00:08:45,439 Speaker 1: and how people are trying to turn this dating recession around. 165 00:08:48,360 --> 00:08:52,080 Speaker 1: Call it a loneliness crisis, an isolation epidemic, or a 166 00:08:52,160 --> 00:08:56,400 Speaker 1: dating recession. Fewer people meeting and forming relationships can be 167 00:08:56,480 --> 00:09:00,679 Speaker 1: tough on everyone, but Bloomberg's Ben Steverman says there are 168 00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:03,880 Speaker 1: also these wider economic ripple effects. 169 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:06,440 Speaker 3: The one that I think is really interesting is the 170 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:10,080 Speaker 3: restaurant industry and nightlife industry. If you're a restaurant, there's 171 00:09:10,080 --> 00:09:12,400 Speaker 3: a good chance your takeout business is doing really well 172 00:09:12,480 --> 00:09:16,480 Speaker 3: right now. People are ordering and bringing stuff home, but 173 00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:20,760 Speaker 3: your dine in business is just not back to twenty 174 00:09:20,840 --> 00:09:23,920 Speaker 3: nineteen levels. And if you look at fast casual and 175 00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:26,760 Speaker 3: fast food, those are doing pretty well too. It's really 176 00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:29,360 Speaker 3: the sit down restaurants where you go with a friend 177 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:32,560 Speaker 3: or a date or your partner and you have a 178 00:09:32,640 --> 00:09:34,960 Speaker 3: nice meal and you take your time and you chat. 179 00:09:35,400 --> 00:09:38,000 Speaker 3: Those are the ones that are struggling most. You see 180 00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:42,080 Speaker 3: it in a shift toward drive through coffee shops. That's 181 00:09:42,120 --> 00:09:44,480 Speaker 3: a big trend in the coffee space. There's not even 182 00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:46,720 Speaker 3: a place to sit down. You just run in, grab 183 00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 3: your coffee and go. You see it in home building. 184 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:53,880 Speaker 3: Builders are building smaller homes, They're building smaller apartments. Because 185 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:56,440 Speaker 3: households are smaller, there's fewer people, there's more demand for 186 00:09:56,559 --> 00:09:58,520 Speaker 3: single person studios. 187 00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:02,640 Speaker 1: Economic factors could also be driving some of this social decline, 188 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:06,720 Speaker 1: though there's inflation to consider and rising costs of living 189 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:11,040 Speaker 1: that's introduced some chicken or egg questions. Are people not 190 00:10:11,120 --> 00:10:14,320 Speaker 1: buying houses because they have smaller families, or because they 191 00:10:14,360 --> 00:10:17,440 Speaker 1: can't afford to Are people eating in because they don't 192 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:19,720 Speaker 1: have a reason to go out, or because it's just 193 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:21,640 Speaker 1: so expensive to leave the house. 194 00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:24,719 Speaker 3: There are towns where they just don't have that kind 195 00:10:24,760 --> 00:10:28,640 Speaker 3: of ecosystem of nightlife and restaurants and businesses that they 196 00:10:28,640 --> 00:10:31,520 Speaker 3: did in twenty nineteen, and that just takes a long 197 00:10:31,559 --> 00:10:34,400 Speaker 3: time to build that kind of culture. Just to use 198 00:10:34,440 --> 00:10:37,800 Speaker 3: alcoholic beverages as an example, the retail cost of buying 199 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:42,240 Speaker 3: booze at a store has basically fallen pretty significantly compared 200 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:45,040 Speaker 3: to inflation. The cost of drinking out has gone up, 201 00:10:45,559 --> 00:10:48,440 Speaker 3: So that's kind of subsidizing just drinking on your couch 202 00:10:48,480 --> 00:10:51,199 Speaker 3: in front of Netflix rather than getting out and partying 203 00:10:51,200 --> 00:10:51,840 Speaker 3: with some friends. 204 00:10:52,120 --> 00:10:54,680 Speaker 1: I wondered if these trends could be creating a sort 205 00:10:54,679 --> 00:10:58,960 Speaker 1: of vicious cycle where the social infrastructure of cities erodes 206 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:01,760 Speaker 1: alongside the appetite to socialize. 207 00:11:02,000 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 3: I wonder about this too. How much is it that 208 00:11:05,280 --> 00:11:07,960 Speaker 3: we don't have a reason to leave our house? Is 209 00:11:07,960 --> 00:11:10,840 Speaker 3: it that prestige TV and Netflix and stuff is so 210 00:11:10,880 --> 00:11:12,840 Speaker 3: captivating that we just want to stay home and our 211 00:11:12,880 --> 00:11:14,920 Speaker 3: phone is so interesting that we want to stare at it. 212 00:11:15,080 --> 00:11:18,240 Speaker 3: Or is it not like a countervailing force in society 213 00:11:18,280 --> 00:11:20,280 Speaker 3: pushing people to get out because you have a live 214 00:11:20,400 --> 00:11:23,440 Speaker 3: music show in your town, or you have a cool 215 00:11:23,480 --> 00:11:25,800 Speaker 3: bar that you go to that has drag night, or 216 00:11:26,200 --> 00:11:28,800 Speaker 3: you go dancing, or there's just an amazing restaurant that 217 00:11:28,840 --> 00:11:32,080 Speaker 3: you want to experience in person. All that's an economic question. 218 00:11:32,160 --> 00:11:32,320 Speaker 5: You know. 219 00:11:32,440 --> 00:11:34,840 Speaker 1: Well, we've been talking about a lot of the negatives here, 220 00:11:35,120 --> 00:11:37,800 Speaker 1: but what about the positives? Is there any silver lining 221 00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:40,560 Speaker 1: here about how people are responding to the moment and 222 00:11:40,640 --> 00:11:43,240 Speaker 1: emerging from the years of COVID, I. 223 00:11:43,200 --> 00:11:45,800 Speaker 3: See a glimmer of hope in some of the data 224 00:11:46,760 --> 00:11:50,440 Speaker 3: that people are at least trying to get out there again. 225 00:11:51,600 --> 00:11:54,480 Speaker 3: The Bureau of Labor Statistics ask people about how much 226 00:11:54,520 --> 00:11:58,560 Speaker 3: time they spend on various activities, and attending and hosting 227 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:02,120 Speaker 3: social events is a category, and there actually was like 228 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:04,599 Speaker 3: a pretty big increase in the number of people or 229 00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:07,280 Speaker 3: the amount of time people spend doing that from twenty 230 00:12:07,320 --> 00:12:09,160 Speaker 3: twenty two to twenty twenty three, which is the latest 231 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:12,160 Speaker 3: data we have. So it seems like people are intentionally 232 00:12:12,800 --> 00:12:16,920 Speaker 3: getting out there at least trying to connect in person, 233 00:12:17,480 --> 00:12:21,960 Speaker 3: even if the data also shows overall they're spending just 234 00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:24,880 Speaker 3: as much time alone as they were before. That kind 235 00:12:24,880 --> 00:12:26,880 Speaker 3: of intentional socializing is happening. 236 00:12:26,880 --> 00:12:31,880 Speaker 1: More intentional socializing like that speed dating event we attended 237 00:12:31,920 --> 00:12:37,319 Speaker 1: in Manhattan. What brought you out here tonight? My therapist, 238 00:12:38,520 --> 00:12:41,480 Speaker 1: that's Haley, a thirty one year old. She brought her 239 00:12:41,559 --> 00:12:43,400 Speaker 1: single friend Sam along with her. 240 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:46,000 Speaker 5: So we signed up within fifteen minutes of her being like, oh, like, 241 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:47,560 Speaker 5: maybe we actually should do it. 242 00:12:48,120 --> 00:12:51,240 Speaker 1: We all debriefed after the speed dates were done, and 243 00:12:51,280 --> 00:12:54,199 Speaker 1: even though both Haley and Sam said they would never 244 00:12:54,360 --> 00:12:57,520 Speaker 1: have done something like this before the pandemic, they were 245 00:12:57,520 --> 00:12:59,560 Speaker 1: pleasantly surprised about how it went. 246 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:01,440 Speaker 5: I don't know a better way of saying this other 247 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:05,320 Speaker 5: than I really do just like talking same so right, 248 00:13:05,520 --> 00:13:07,520 Speaker 5: so it's like, oh, you have to sit right here 249 00:13:07,520 --> 00:13:10,120 Speaker 5: and listen to me for five minutes, Like okay. 250 00:13:10,320 --> 00:13:13,080 Speaker 4: My first thing, I'm like, I look like such a 251 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:15,760 Speaker 4: loser coming to an event to like purposely go on 252 00:13:15,800 --> 00:13:18,000 Speaker 4: a date. And then it's like, no, like a lot 253 00:13:18,080 --> 00:13:20,800 Speaker 4: of people do this. This is actually very normal and 254 00:13:20,440 --> 00:13:23,199 Speaker 4: it makes sure you like step out of your comfort zone. 255 00:13:23,800 --> 00:13:27,840 Speaker 1: Ben says, that's what's nice about these structured gatherings. 256 00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:32,920 Speaker 3: Those kinds of experiences, as well as sports teams, volunteering, 257 00:13:33,080 --> 00:13:35,199 Speaker 3: they're all part of the solution. They're sort of an 258 00:13:35,200 --> 00:13:39,959 Speaker 3: individual solution, like if you want to revive your social life, 259 00:13:40,080 --> 00:13:42,920 Speaker 3: there are tools that are available to you. What we 260 00:13:43,040 --> 00:13:45,840 Speaker 3: don't have is a society wide solution where we don't 261 00:13:45,840 --> 00:13:47,680 Speaker 3: seem to have a strategy for how we're going to 262 00:13:47,720 --> 00:13:51,000 Speaker 3: actually make a change. More broadly, especially for the people 263 00:13:51,000 --> 00:13:53,960 Speaker 3: who are most lonely and most disconnected. How do we 264 00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:56,600 Speaker 3: bring them back into the fold and make them feel 265 00:13:56,600 --> 00:13:59,760 Speaker 3: like they belong and help them get connected? That's really hard? 266 00:14:00,240 --> 00:14:04,160 Speaker 1: Is a national speed dating initiative? The answer probably not. 267 00:14:04,800 --> 00:14:08,560 Speaker 1: But it's clear that this Valentine season, many motivated singles 268 00:14:08,559 --> 00:14:12,040 Speaker 1: are taking matters into their own hands, and they're finding 269 00:14:12,200 --> 00:14:14,400 Speaker 1: it's not as painful as they expected. 270 00:14:15,559 --> 00:14:18,760 Speaker 5: So Hayley, can I ask you, oh God, what will 271 00:14:18,760 --> 00:14:19,880 Speaker 5: you go to another one with me? 272 00:14:20,160 --> 00:14:22,560 Speaker 4: I think I would do another one. Do I think 273 00:14:22,600 --> 00:14:24,520 Speaker 4: I found any kind of love connection here? 274 00:14:24,720 --> 00:14:25,240 Speaker 5: Not at all? 275 00:14:26,200 --> 00:14:28,560 Speaker 4: But what I do it again? Probably? 276 00:14:29,000 --> 00:14:29,160 Speaker 5: It was? 277 00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:30,760 Speaker 4: It was fine, It was fine. 278 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:39,720 Speaker 1: Yeah, this is the big take from Bloomberg News. I'm 279 00:14:39,800 --> 00:14:43,560 Speaker 1: Sarah Holder. This episode was produced by Julia Press and 280 00:14:43,680 --> 00:14:47,040 Speaker 1: Jessica Beck. It was edited by Aaron Edwards and Christina 281 00:14:47,080 --> 00:14:50,400 Speaker 1: Linn Blatt. It was mixed by Amar Sultan, sound designed 282 00:14:50,440 --> 00:14:54,240 Speaker 1: by Jessica and fact checked by Adrianna Tapia. Our senior 283 00:14:54,280 --> 00:14:57,960 Speaker 1: producer is Naomi Shavin. Our senior editor is Elizabeth Ponso. 284 00:14:58,480 --> 00:15:02,160 Speaker 1: Our executive producer isn Whole Beamster Board. Sage Bauman is 285 00:15:02,160 --> 00:15:05,640 Speaker 1: Bloomberg's head of Podcasts. If you liked this episode, make 286 00:15:05,680 --> 00:15:08,400 Speaker 1: sure to subscribe and review the Big Take. Wherever you 287 00:15:08,480 --> 00:15:12,120 Speaker 1: listen to podcasts, it helps people find the show. Thanks 288 00:15:12,160 --> 00:15:14,680 Speaker 1: for listening. We'll be back next week.