Ruling out love?

When I was in college, I remember telling my friends that I would never date a guy more than five years older than me and I would never even talk to a guy with a child. My other requirement was that a guy could never have been married.

That was back in 2003 and here we are in 2007 and I've done both. Though we didn't hit it off, the guys were nice enough for me to give it a try.

But I know several people who strictly adhere to the rules they set. I know one person who won't date anyone who makes less than $50,000 a year, even though they have yet to make that kind of money for themselves. I also know a person who refuses to date anybody without a college education. I know a person who actually refuses to date anyone from a particular geographic region (of the U.S.) because of assumptions about politics and cultures. And I know several people who would never think to date someone outside of their race.

However, when it comes to setting these rules, a person is also limiting their dating pool, sometimes drastically and unrealistically. For instance, I understand that as I get older, not only do I have more experiences under my belt, but the men do as well. That increases the likelihood a man has a child or has been through a divorce. So, to rule these men out, I'm beginning to look at a population of men that is getting smaller and smaller everyday.

Do you have any rules that you tend to stick to when dating? Are they working for you? Have you ever went against these rules and how did that work out for you?