OKStupid Part III: Actually Practical Dating Advice

Okay, Valentine's Day is over and it's time to get back on that horse. I have had some luck with online dating, so in my experience, here are some of my top tips that will help you get the most out of it.
  1. Decide what you want.
I found it helpful to make a criteria list. You had to meet all of the criteria for me to agree to met you in person. These included being in the right age range, not having previous children, having a college degree, preferring dogs over cats (I was in the process of acquiring Biscuit at this time), whatever is important to you. That way, I could go down the checklist and systematically reject people who didn't fit what I was looking for rahter than realize that after a couple of bad dates.
  1. Choose your website wisely.
What are you looking for? Something long-term? A casual hookup? To get married within the year? Different websites will give you different things, so decide what you want and choose accordingly.
  1. Photos.
These also need to be chosen wisely. Put up 3-5 photos and make them good. First, you do need to look like your photos. Yeah, they can tell. You also need to be alone in these photos, and they need to be of you, not a pretty landscape or your dog or whatever. You and only you. No group shots. Also no mirror selfies. None. I recommend using a real camera, not a phone, if possible. You can see the quality difference. One of your photos should also be you doing something interesting. At the very least, it's a great conversation starter.
  1. Don't lie.
You will get caught. There is a difference between good marketing and flat lies. I went on several dates with guys who said they were 5'10. If I'm 5'7 and am the same height in flats, you're not 5'10. This also goes for things like body type, job, education...whatever. Just don't lie about it.
  1. Put yourself out there.
At some point, there is an element of risk here. I'm not talking about the things that you know in terms of safety. You know to meet in a pulic place, and not give out too much information before you've met a few times. But there is also the need to take some emotional risks. Going on a date with someone you've never seen in the flesh is hard for some people, and you have t get past that. There are probably going to be some losers before you find a winner, so don't give up after one or two frogs before you find the prince.

You are going to find someone great, I just know it.
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