Tinder, Grindr, Instagram, Twitter: We all have at least one of these, right? Used to connect with old friends, or even make new ones, social media is one of the defining hallmarks of our generation. We love being able to see what other people are doing and pretend like other people care about the things we post on the flip side. Getting 100 likes on an Instagram selfie makes you feel special, feel attractive, and feel entitled. Being so arbitrarily connected to so many different people couldn't possibly be a bad thing, could it? We—as a generation—could not be more wrong.

If you aren't looking for a traditional monogamous relationship, this does not apply to you and there is nothing wrong with wanting that type of relationship for yourself. (Disclaimer: by traditional I am not referring to a relationship between a man and a woman exclusively, I am referring to two people going on dates and developing a monogamous relationship between themselves.)

All of us in college have definitely heard this, "Oh, I'm just looking for a hookup" or "I don't want to be tied down." We are living in a college hookup culture where the norm is either to have an FWB (friends with benefits) that you hook up with regularly or sporadically meet up with people from "dating apps" or at parties. And the reason why that is is simple: options. We have so many more options in college than we ever have had before or will ever have afterwards. There are thousands of potential partners within walking distance and we can so easily connect to these people. Parties. Class. Tinder.

"Settling." It's a word we all know, and it has a negative connotation now. We are afraid of settling. Like, this person I'm with now is pretty great, but there has to be someone better just around the corner, and I can't risk being tied down... Having so many options may seem great at first, but this toxic notion of settling gets into our head.

We always find a reason not to commit, to go back to Tinder, or to just find another person. It's so easy to do it too. I could hop on Tinder right now and start swiping and there, and I am back on the market. Tinder, Grindr, and other dating apps like these just make it too easy. There are hundreds of potential partners right there in your hand. One of them has to be better than the last, right?

Being connected so easily to so many people makes "settling" seem dangerous like it's a dumb idea. And all of us probably agreed with this at one point of another. We all get to college, we're drunk with all of the possibilities, and we want to see what's out there. But what happens when you get tired of all the failed relationships, the heartbreak that you have felt and caused others to feel? You want something real, something concrete. A relationship. There's nothing you can do. No one wants to settle. So you just get back on Tinder and swipe, swipe, swipe. "Congratulations! You have a new match!"