theinterview


Matchmaking in the new millennium


Finding a perfect partner often takes more than singles scene or Internet connections


By CANDY WAYLOCK Waylock5@aol.com


For single women of a certain age and stature, jumping into the dating pool, especially after a long stint out of the water, requires more than just a bar stool and a glass of wine in one hand advertising your availability. After


all, most people seek


professional advice when buying homes, seeking medical treatment, legal matters and most other major life decisions. Why wouldn’t you turn to a professional when making what could be life’s biggest decision: a partner and companion? While the thought of a “matchmaker” may seem quaint, with images of “Fiddler on the Roof” and backroom deals with uncles and fathers in play, it is actually a very modern way to strike the perfect match.


operate


Leisha Murphy and Lisa Lyngos Single?Atlanta


-- the


time to respond to the emails and sort through the data base,” she explains. “My clients are serious about having more exclusive dating experiences.” Leisha


Murphy launched


Single?Atlanta more than a decade ago with her husband, Les Murphy, after working for years in a similar industry in her hometown of Houston, Texas. A few years later, her twin sister, Lisa, relocated to Atlanta to join the company, after more than 20 years in the modeling and fashion industry. Single?Atlanta has built a client list of several thousand – both men and women – who seek out the service to help navigate the icebergs of meeting others. Lisa says that while Single?Atlanta has been responsible for hundreds of marriages and long- term relationships,


that number is


not what the company’s success is based upon. “The quality of our success is not


Southeast’s largest, privately-owned, matchmaking service. The company serves a customer base primarily an hour’s radius of Atlanta. Many of their clients are North Metro women who have devoted their time and energy to building a career, and are now looking for a partner to share their success; or women who are newly (or long-term) single considering another try at commitment. Lisa says there is no “typical” client, just a deep desire to find a partner without going through the hassles and unknowns of Internet dating or the singles scene at the local bar.


“Online dating is a massive


[venture] and often not a nice place to date. It really is a numbers game and many people just don’t have the


“ ”


just how many marriages we have, but our success in enabling women


So many professional [people] are looking for


to meet their partner, rather than sitting in a bar with a drink saying


‘pick me’!


to make a change in their life…to take a bold step in a new direction,” explained Lisa. “It might be in getting a woman out of the house on Friday night and getting them going in their life. It’s those kinds of victories I view as success.”


compatibility through


Clients are screened for a general


assessment survey of what they are looking for, the “must haves”, and


6 | northsidewoman.com | february2012 a more dignified way


Leisha Murphy, left, and Lisa Lyngos of Single?Atlanta are modern-day matchmakers.


the “must not haves,” followed by a meeting with company consultants to get a broader scope of the client’s “hopes and dreams.” “We use


the component of


compatibility [assessments], but as a matchmaker, it involves a lot of intuition and skills in knowing people and getting a sense of who they would [match with],” said Lisa, who notes every applicant is screened and background checked before qualifying as a client.


Often, a new client will come in and there will be an instant recognition of who that person would match up with.


“It happens all the time!” said


Lisa. “You instantly have a gut feeling of someone you know who would be perfect for this person. It’s uncanny how often that happens -- when things line up perfectly, and the right person walks right in.”


Depending on the contract,


clients are guaranteed a certain number of matches/dates, with a follow-up interview after each date to further fine tune the process. Leisha said most people meet


someone with whom they are compatible within six to nine matches, although it varies with the person and where they are on the commitment scale. Once a client determines they have found someone they click with, their future matches are placed on hold.


“What I consider a successful


match is they like each other well enough to say, ‘let’s hold off on the next match’,” said Leisha. Meeting your mate through a matchmaking


service no longer


carries the stigma it may once have held, notes Lisa. “So many professional, educated men and women are looking for a more dignified way to meet their partner,


rather than sitting in a


bar with a drink saying ‘pick me’,” laughed Lisa. “In the beginning, people were more secretive about using a matchmaking service, but that has all gone away.” Leisha agrees


assessment, noting that


with that successful


people want to control the process of finding a partner and approach it thoughtfully.


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