Tag Archives: match.com

Six Pieces of Odds and Ends Advice

More and more dating questions are being dropped in my lap by friends and readers via private email that I thought might be interesting to the public at large… so this post snapshots some recent questions and answers in a broad stroke. Granted… I don’t know your full situation (no one really does) and circumstances can dictate some exceptions to the rule, but here are some general guidelines for solving common dating problems, myths and frustrations.

Q: Should I give them another chance? They say they’ve “fixed” what they did wrong. Continue reading

Online Profiles: What Not To Do

In light of the fact that online dating sites like Match.com are reporting a record number of members, I thought a quick re-cap of what not to do on your online dating profile would be in order:

1. Be Fun! Cynical, pessimistic and skeptical only come across as attractive to like minded folks and the CIA. Listing off what you don’t want only taunts those very people to email you and tell you either (a) why they aren’t that person or (b) why there is nothing wrong with being one of the points on your list. Go with mom’s old axiom here… “If you don’t have anything nice to say… don’t say anything at all.”

2. Speaking of mom…if you’re puzzling on profile picture selection, ask your opposite sex friends for feedback first. After all, mom’s not really your target market. Find out what picture they think not only resembles you but best shows your personality and makes you look H.O.T. (If your “friend” picks a picture with any of #3′s points, ditch said “friend” from your advice pool. ASAP!)

3. On the topic of pictures. The SO NOT HOT list includes the following:

  • bare-chested bathroom mirror self portraits
  • pictures with only bits and pieces of your ex left in the frame
  • pictures with you and a bunch of hooters waitress look-a-likes Continue reading

The Tweet and Run: Or how to date smart in the world of social networking

Except for the under a rock dwellers, most people have embraced the rules that govern the Googleverse as far as being aware of what a name search will reveal about who you are and what you’ve done. Job seekers strive to create a professional presence through various means and business owners jockey for search placement but many of us seem to be forgetting that people also do personal name searches.

Realistically, I know very few people who don’t Google a potential date these days. There are some who maintain that they want to get to know their date the old fashioned way and refuse to Google until a few dates are under the belt, but for reasons spanning the gamut from safety to curiosity, most people will Google you before they ever meet you. So, what does a name search reveal about you and your attitude towards dating? 

You may scoff and think… nothing! Well, think again. Twitter, Linked In, Friend Feed, Facebook, Myspace, etc. are all beloved by that happy and busy Google search engine, so its time to take a minute and think about how you are not only coming across to a professional contact but also to a potential date.

A few rules of thumb for online image management: Continue reading

How Do You Meet Someone New?

Pullin’ on your party shirt, listening to a little Seether, returning a few last minute text messages about where “the gang” is meeting, sliding your keys off the table and heading out the door… but you are so not excited about going out tonight. Same places… same people wearing the same clothes, talking about the same things, doing the same things and hooking up with the same people… Week in and week out, its the same old thing. 

You love your friends but you know that doing the same ole same ole is doing nothing for your dating life. After all, you’ve explored all the possibilities within this circle, so how can you meet some new faces? Continue reading

Ultimatums Part 2

Continuing from yesterday’s post… What will the guy do?

Option 4. Period. If you are lucky, he MIGHT communicate with you what he would prefer, but like as not… he’s going to make up his mind and bail if he doesn’t like the way you are treating him. You might think that’s not fair, and in some ways its not. (I’m always a fan of communication)But, there is also no attempt to control the other person with guilt, manipulation, etc. This is a simple — deciding to be his own best friend and doing what’s best for you both in the long run. After all, if he doesn’t like your leopard spots, its better to leave sooner than after he’s tried to turn you into a zebra.

If a guy likes you and wants to keep your attention all to himself, he’ll likely broach the DTR. As in, “I don’t want to share you with other guys and am not interested in other girls. Can we be boyfriend/girlfriend”  (or some derivation thereof.) Note for my male readers: most women LOVE to know the lay of the land and you might very well avoid any kind of ultimatum-ish behavior by just communicating up front what your intentions are. Another note for guys: if you are dealing with a commitment phobic woman here… tread lightly. Caveman speak is going to send her FLEEING into the sunset without you.

Now, lets talk about you ladies. Admit it, you’ve done the whole… if you don’t put a ring on my finger, I’m leaving. Or the, If I see you active on Match again, I’m done! … haven’t you? How did it turn out? Did he sheepishly agree to your demands and roll over? (If so, how are you liking that several years later? Do you still respect his passivity or have you broken up with him?) Or did he say fine and continue doing just what he was doing until you extended your “deadline” five or six times? Or perhaps you had an alpha male on your hands and he broke up with you right then and there. The point of all of this… give him room to hang himself (figure out what he’s going to do without your input) and stick to your personal commitment to yourself to do what is healthy for you.

If you want to know when he is going to marry you, well, he might be wondering the same thing and if you lay down the law, you pour water all over his fire. As an alternative, I’d suggest deciding what you can handle and setting your own deadline for yourself. Kudos to you if you know your timeline up front and communicate to your new love what you want. But not everyone thinks that far in advance, so if you are one of those girls waiting and waiting for a ring, there is a better alternative to giving him an ultimatum.

Ask for his input. (I may come up with a script to put in here later so you can have some ideas of what to say, but would rather have my trained therapist friend do a once over before I post it. You know me, always protecting my readers. LOL)

The important thing to remember: do not back him into a corner and still stand up for what you need. By letting him know that you respect his needs as well as your own, you are giving him the opportunity to make a choice that he can live with instead of responding to an ultimatum. By giving you both an open forum to discuss, you aren’t trying to force your will on the other person and when your partner does make a decision, you know its not out of pressure, but out of love.

To Reply or Not To Reply

I’ve been hearing lots of conflicting thoughts on how to manage an online dating profile inbox. Here are the top discussion issues and I would love to hear your thoughts on it…

1. To reply or not to reply when you have no interest in the person emailing you.

  • First School of Thought: I have no investment in this person, so why bother sending them a dear john?
  • Second School of Thought: I get hundreds of emails a week. I don’t have the time to reply to everyone.
  • Third School of Thought: Its rude to not reply.
  • Fourth School of Thought: Its rude TO reply since it might hurt their feelings!
  • Fifth School of Thought: It may be rude, but I don’t care. I’ll reply to who I want to reply.
  • Sixth School of Thought: Since every person is an individual, you should reply to each individual.

2. What to do when you’ve been emailing for a while and start to realize that you just aren’t interested?

  • Write a dear john letter and “break up” with your online suitor
  • “Fizzle it” A nice but slightly conflict avoident way of just letting the conversation die. Reply times become greater and greater and you engage less and less in the actual email conversation.
  • Disappear. Just never reply

3. What to do after the first date is a dud?

  • Dear John letter?
  • Dear John call?
  • Fizzle?
  • Avoid?
  • Try one more time to see if it might get better?

4. And the last issue… how “honest” should you be?

  • Clear, precise and unemotional. Dish it to ‘em straight including your reasons why so they don’t have to wonder.
  • Compassionate and gentle. Mix the truth in lightly.
  • The old — its not you, its me line.
  • No need to get all truth-telly … just say it isn’t a match for you.
  • Don’t tell them anything at all (popular with the avoid and fizzle crowd)

I’ve noticed that guys and girls have really different takes on this. And it depends from site to site how people react. On Match and Yahoo! — its such an avalanche, most just use the avoid or ignore. Eharmony — ignore or close out with reason. Chemistry — no reply needed… it goes immediately to archive w/o notifying the other person. etc, etc, etc. What sites have you used and did you notice a difference in how people replied or didn’t reply? Do you have a reply policy?

Wear Red and Catch His Attention

The story of the week seems to be that men like women who wear red. Not only do men “rate” these women as more attractive, men are also, apparently, willing to spend more money on the lady in red. (Methinks there might be a run on red in the fashion world when word of this leaks out.)

It does make sense. Not only is red eye-catching but nature backs up red’s attention garnering abilities with everything from blood and flowers to baboons, body parts and sunsets. Feng Shui principles, dating back 6,000 years also claim that putting the color red in the right part of your home can stimulate love and passion. Chinese traditions claim love as a color of luck and happiness and Indian culture prefers red for marriage. In the West, red is used for everything from getting a driver’s attention to Valentine’s day cards and red carpets. Even Match.com got in on the action and for a slightly higher monthly fee, you too can have your profile picture bordered in attention grabbing, dark red and come up to the top of profile searches.

Passion inspiring, attention getting, traffic stopping, eye catching, heart racing red. If you don’t want to give him a heart attack, perhaps dashes of red on accessories and shoes. But if you want to stop him in his tracks… a full on red dress may just do the trick.

Since red is one of my favorite colors (to the point of having a twice yearly “Red Door Soiree” named after my fire-engine red front doors), I would hate to see the fashion world saturated in a color that I love to throw on as an instant pick-me-up (I just didn’t know it was sending out that literal signal!) But we all know that when a trend goes berserk, the non-lemmings just get creative.

How To Read An Online Profile

As easy as it is to vilify online dating, not everything about it sucks.

For example, you actually get to weed through mass amounts of people in a short period of time looking for what are deal breakers and deal makers for you personally. Not so easy to do at a bar when you are shouting over music and avoiding the REALLY drunk girl’s drink being spilled all over your back.

Some people are actually looking and posting online because they want what they say they want — a relationship with a quality person. Its not easy since there are a lot of…ummm…”non-truth tellers” out there, but there are also a lot of very transparent and honest profiles where you can see a glimpse behind the cute dimples into his or her actual personality and priorities.

Here are some quick tips to look for in a good profile:

1. Take a look at the “handle” the person has chosen. If its something along the lines of “playeronlyforyou” then you may want to skip ahead to the “marathonerinATX” profile. One says pretty clearly that they are online to get some nooky and the other expresses an honest identity and possible shared interest. (they may also want the non-committed nooky — but then, that’s the risk you take with any date *grin*)

2. Take a look at the interests and activities — they can show you a lot about how a person approaches the world. For example — if they have checked off every interests box from housecleaning to running and everything in between — you may want to look at the rest of the profile to see if they are just exuberant and high on life or if they are casting a wide net in hopes to pick up anyone.

3. Read the whole profile. Yes, people can be REALLY long winded at times, but the great thing about the long winded daters — you get a more complete picture of what is important enough for them to say to virtual strangers. If there isn’t a whole lot of info there, you may be dealing with a “clicker” or “cut-n-paster” (they are notorious for the wink and run or the cut and paste emails to everyone) OR you could be dealing with someone who values their privacy and will not only want you to as well but will respect your privacy in return. Look for consistency.

4. Pictures…ah pictures. Look for the current, clear and non-photoshopped kinds. Some people will post LOTS of pictures and some only one or two — both approaches tell you how they want to be approached. If they have 15 pictures and only 2 paragraphs — this is someone who knows they are attractive and want you to notice that as well. If they have 2 pictures and 15 paragraphs — they want you to actually be a compatible match for what they are interested in. (ie. if they wrote about fitness and health or movies and music or school and family — you now know what they want you to pay attention to.) If their pictures tell a story in and of themselves — read that story. Are they with friends in every shot? Are they in places all over the world? Are they shaking hands with famous types? Are they engaged in activities in every shot? Read that photographic story and you have some important information to digest.

5. Look at what they want in a match. Do they specify a few particular religions or say any and all? Do they want only “slender” and “athletic” or do they run the gamut from “slender” to “stocky” or “curvy” or “large?” Do they have an wide age bracket or a small one and are you inside it? Ethnic preferences? All of these things are important to notice if you want to get a return email and will tell you again, what is really important to that dater. For example, if they have no preference on the religion part, they are a good fit for someone who also has no preference. If they single out one or two — they are going to seriously look for those on your profile as well.

There are more tips to be had — but surely some of you have tips of your own. Would love to hear the comments from the folks who have braved the online dating scene. A quick word of advice…check into the reputation of the site you are signing up on as each has it’s own predominant personality…for example —  adultfriendfinder — all sex all the time. match.com — hook ups and hotties. Chemistry and Eharmony — serious relationship seekers. 

Good luck!