Online Dating Dos And Don Ts

Online Dating Dos And Don’ts

Virtual reality and artificial intelligence nowadays solve problems that we find almost impossible to solve in real life. One of the problems that is being solved expertly on the great world wide web is that of creating well matched couples and finding people perfect partners. In case you are also looking for a relationship, but cannot seem to find someone who suits your taste, then joining and searching through internet dating sites might turn out to be a good option for you.

A few dos and don’ts that should help you in getting the optimum results out of your forays on internet dating sites are given below.

• First and foremost, find dating sites that cater to “your” kind of people. Different people have different tastes, hobbies, interests and sexual inclinations. So, if you cannot think of a partner or date who does not share your interest in dancing, then make sure that you log on to a dating site that specially caters to people who love dance. Similarly, if you are gay or lesbian, then a dating site catering specially towards homosexual dating may carry more profiles of interest to you than a regular dating site. However, most good dating websites carry loads and loads of profiles which you can sort through on the basis of a number of criteria in order to find your perfect matches.

• Once you have decided which dating sites you want to be a member of, then create a nice, informative and friendly profile. Your name, age and geographical location does matter, but most people would dither from going on a blind date with just “Tom,29,Washington”. Therefore it is important that you fill in as many details about your profession, education, interests, activities and hobbies as possible, so that people with similar interests can find you easily.

• A picture speaks more than a thousand words! If this fact was not true, then this statement would not have made it through centuries and centuries of linguistic evolution. So make sure that you put in a good picture of yours on your profile. If you are really shy and do not want everybody in the world to know what you look like, then you can also put in a movie star or cartoon character that you think resembles you the most. You can also put in an Avatar, but try to make sure that that the people who date you do not think you are someone else unless you are on the dating site for the sole purpose of fooling people.

• Your profile is your one and only introduction to a large number of strangers who could become close friends given the right kind of encouragement. So make sure that your profile is written in correct language, is easy to read and is not full of grammatical and spelling mistakes. Putting profanities and peculiar slang on your profile is also a big no no, unless you are posting it on an adults only site. Similarly ,refrain from putting vulgar pictures or snaps of your privates unless you are on a site where everybody else has done the same thing.

BONUS : Online Dating Etiquette

Online dating is very easy and convenient. You can meet people, talk to them, even if you sit in front of your computer in your pajamas and curlers in your hair.

But even if online dating takes out the pressure to dress to impress, this means you have to be extra careful about the way people can perceive the way you express yourself. Without realizing it, you can come across as rude or overbearing, simply because you forgot to take the caps lock as you typed. Or a simple joke may accidentally come across as offensive without the traditional “context clues” like body language or facial expressions. Take note of the following online dating etiquette:

• Be honest. It will be difficult to unravel the lies you make once you meet face to face. And having a reputation for being deceitful can spread among a dating site’s members, ruining your chances of anyone trusting you again.

• Don’t spill all your secrets right away. It can be uncomfortable for the other person to hear something very, very private about you even if you’ve only known each other for a short time. Besides, don’t you want to leave something to the imagination?

• Don’t be pushy about someone else’s personal information. Let them open up in their own time, and when they do, don’t spread it around or gossip behind their back. This may be an online relationship but you’re still dealing with real people with real feelings.

• Respect diversity. Online dating attracts many different types of people from different cultures and backgrounds. So no ethnic jokes, no religious jokes, no derogatory comments.

• Don’t lurk. This means tagging along a discussion, reading people’s messages, without contributing.

• Don’t type in all caps. It comes across as shouting.

• Don’t abbreviate. “Ur gr8, I lyk u” or even “ROTFWL” isn’t immediately or automatically decipherable. Remember that many people try online dating, and they may not be familiar with the codes and lingos. Plus, you don’t want other people think that you can’t spell or write. Type out the whole word, and be grammatically correct. This is all about making a good impression, right?

• Don’t sound desperate. If you come across too needy or eager for a relationship, you’ll scare away people or attract cyber-abusers (people who like tricking or playing around with their vulnerable victims). This includes using any user names that make you sound powerless or love-obsessed. (Would you go out with someone named Heartbroken?)

• Just to avoid confusion, pick a user name that is gender-specific.

Online dating can be a very rewarding and enjoyable experience if you follow simple rules of respect and sensitivity.