Kick Frustration to the Curb With These Online Dating Tips for Success

online dating tips

While many people will try to tell you differently, online dating is a weird thing. Not that it’s weird to do it, but when you’re experiencing it, there’s something a little off.

You have to create an online persona that’s attractive but not too far off from your real self, meet a total stranger, manage your expectations, and deal with a whole lot of things that you wouldn’t have to if you just met the person in real life.

That being said, online dating is everywhere. People are doing it all the time and you have a great chance of meeting someone if you have the guts to do it. But what happens when you don’t get results?

There are sure-fire ways to improve your chances while online dating. We’ve compiled some online dating tips for you to use as you enter the world of virtual romance.

Online Dating Tips for Success

It’s understandable to fail a few times. When you first start dating in person, for example, there’s a huge learning curve. That’s why high school kids are always so nervous and giddy around the opposite sex; they have no idea what to do!

The same is kind of true with online dating. While we all have our preconceived notions of what dating should be, we don’t necessarily know how to translate those ideas into the online world.

Little things like chewing with your mouth open or not holding the door for someone can have a huge effect on the way you’re perceived in real life. Alternatively, usernames and grammatical errors can have similar effects in virtual life. We’ll go in detail on a few things to watch out for.

Curate Your Profile

Before any contact is made, you’re faced with creating a good profile. The challenge is to make yourself look attractive while being honest about who you really are.

*Disclaimer* This is not to say that who you really are is unattractive!

As an example, think about Instagram. Studies show that people post photos that make themselves look happier and more conventionally attractive than they really are on Instagram and other social media sites. This is reflective of an internet culture that promotes unrealistic standards for human appearance and happiness.

The point is, we can post photos of ourselves that, while beautiful, don’t really reflect who we are or what we look like. It’s important to post photos that represent who we really are on a good day, ones that we can back up when we meet someone in person.

Common Profile Pitfalls

The same goes for the descriptions and usernames that we choose. There are two general pitfalls when it comes to online dating profiles: hyper-cutesiness and hyper-sophistication.

People try to be extremely bubbly or way too smart. This comes in the form of excessive emojis, powerful adjectives like “amazing” or “extremely,” and long winding sentences. Additionally, the hyper-sophisticated types like to list books they haven’t read and movies they haven’t seen in interests.

Put it this way, if you aren’t ready to discuss Nietzche at length, don’t include him heavily in your interests. It shows that people respond well to language that is easy to understand, relatable, and honestly reflective of personality.

When the Time Comes to Meet

Alright, so you have made a profile that is honest, attractive, and good enough to get someone to go out with you. Hooray!

Now it’s time to meet face to face. This could go a number of different ways that depend on your personality type. Maybe you are a freaker-outer, maybe you project success on your date because you’re nervous, and maybe you give up easily.

The key to this part of the process is to come in honestly, “be yourself,” and try to enjoy the experience. The “be yourself” part pretty much just means that you shouldn’t try to be someone that you’re not. If you’ve ever consciously tried to “be yourself,” you probably know that there’s no guidebook on how to do it.

People know when you’re faking, though. Plus, what happens when you get down the line and the person finds out who you really are?

It doesn’t matter if you’re nervous. Being a little nervous is appropriate, and a lack of nerves makes you come off as aloof or pretentious. So, the cost of doing business is sitting through ten or fifteen minutes of nerves.

Things to Avoid

Do your best not to research too deeply into your date’s social media profiles before the date. Even if you think it would be a good idea to do casually, you are wrong. The goal is to improve your life and your date’s life – no one will benefit from the horrible things you find when you creep.

Sure, you tell yourself that you aren’t going to bring up the person’s 4th grade Facebook profile picture or recite the names of all of their grandparents that you found online, but who’s to say your nervous brain wouldn’t let those things slip?!

It’s better to just move on with life without having ever seen those things. Gather what you need to from their dating profile, because the information on that site is all you should know. Most info gleaned beyond that point will be considered creepy.

It is creepy even though it feels good to creep. You can creep after.

You should also avoid being overly formal on the date. It’s crucial to be kind, be responsive, and act within the bounds of normal behavior, but you don’t have to be a stiff.

Nerves and formal situations are often stifling to personality. You’re going to have a lot more success if you let that personality show a little bit. You are great, you deserve to find someone, and your personality is far more interesting than the smooth jazz played over the glass clinks between sparse conversation.

Open it up a little bit and allow yourself to enjoy the date.

A Final Note

If you’re a person with a very specific niche of a partner, you should use sites that will help you find those people. Waiting for the right person on a large scale dating site isn’t going to be helpful. Look for the best Asian dating sites, best Jewish dating sites, or other specific group sites.

Don’t Give Up

It can take a while to find someone who you want to take on a second date. If you’re disheartened with the dating pool or by a lack of response, hopefully, these online dating tips can help you move forward.

If you’re in need of more tips on other areas of life, we have the information you need.

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