PlanJam!From your screen to the scene

You do everything together. You like the same movies, food, have the same sense of humor and many similar little quirks. A day doesn't go by where you haven't spoken to each other at least 3 to 4 times a day about absolutely nothing and they're usually the last person you talk to at night.

Whenever something amazing happens or you've had a piss-poor day, they're the first person you call. You can't wait to call them and complain about your current boyfriend or girlfriend because they don't understand you at all. Whom am I talking about? Your best friend!

I've asked many of my friends what's the secret to their long-term relationships and they all say the same thing…they are dating their best friend. So the question is… Can you see yourself dating or even marrying your best friend?

Many feel that it's wonderful to date a friend because there is a certain effortlessness level and communal awareness. But others feel that dating your friend leaves no room for passion and excitement because there is too much predictability which can eventually lead to boredom and staleness in the relationship. Can you really date and fall in love with someone who has been your friend? I believe you can and more importantly I believe strong relationships begin with friendships first.

Usually we are so enthralled by the person physically that two months into dating them, we become bored realizing we have nothing in common with that person

There are so many things we think about when beginning a friendship. You want to make sure they're definitely someone you won't mind spending time with. But these are also the things we need to consider when entering into a long-term relationship. What attracts you to another person when it comes to building a friendship and what makes and builds a solid friendship? It usually starts with having something in common, the conversation just flows and you find yourselves talking about everything from religion to politics, you enjoy doing some of the same things and you like spending time with them. So shouldn't these be some of the qualifications we look for in a mate?

OK, so it's hard to get past the physical attraction when you first meet someone – it's normal, but two months later if you don't look beyond that, you might decide that you've wasted your time again with just a pretty face with no substance and you come to the realization that you only had one thing in common and that has become boring and predictable. Was it worth it? Maybe, but how long before even that gets stale.