There's probably no need to explain how a date that started with an online encounter can turn out. We've all heard countless stories of how a young blonde turned out to be a 40-year-old father, or how a mysterious handsome man with a stunning photo turned into your 14-year-old neighbor from upstairs. However, you're unlikely to know anything reliable about the person on the other side of the screen until you actually meet them. What you should do is review your dating profile.
Spelling errors certainly won't enhance your online profile. However, there are worse things. According to a survey conducted by a women's magazine among its readers, most women wouldn't be attracted to a dating ad from a man who feels like he's 17.
A youthful spirit is wonderful, but every woman needs a strong shoulder to lean on, and castles in the air alone won't do. Peter Pan is a wonderful story to read, but walking alongside him in life is extremely difficult. Those “forever young,” as many women rightly believe, are unlikely to have had the experience of living together with the woman of their heart.
After all, you don't have to write about how old you feel – your silly jokes and silly photos will still give you away.
The second common mistake is posting a profile photo that includes someone else, especially if that someone else is prettier than you.
Judge for yourself: wouldn't it be stupid to send a friend's resume to an employer for a job you're interested in? In this case, you're doing exactly the same thing. Your woman doesn't need to know you have such attractive friends. You're arranging your life, aren't you?
Don't criticize others unnecessarily. Promises like, “Baby, only with me will you know paradise, because no one but me is capable of true feelings” will only make a sensible woman smile. The one who shouts loudest about “brats” is often one of them themselves.
Kicking the bucket before starting a new relationship without ending the old one isn't just bad manners, if you so choose, but also short-sightedness. It's unlikely anyone will want to be a backup plan, so your honesty will likely be appreciated by only a few, and even then, it's not guaranteed. We've all had our share of troubles, so it's best to calm down and wait to see how things play out, rather than rushing off to find a new love after the first argument.
Perhaps the most important piece of advice is to avoid including all the previous tips in your profile. Statements about “do not disturb the elderly, the unattractive, the poor, etc.” will make the reader wonder: what is such a queen doing here?
Keep your list of requirements in your head, and nowhere else. Firstly, overly categorical profiles aren't popular, and secondly, there's a high risk of running into a prankster posing as a young prince and ending up with nothing. Besides, you're depriving yourself of a pleasant encounter by specifying an age of, say, under 30. Tell me, is an extra year so important to you that a 31-year-old would lose interest?
What's worth paying attention to is the presence of bad habits. It would be appropriate to inform anyone who asks that you, for example, can't live without cigarettes. It's also a good idea to inquire about a stranger's relationship with tobacco and alcohol—even if they're well-versed in Schopenhauer's works, that doesn't preclude them from spending their evenings in front of the TV with a couple of beers.
It's best to extol your virtues subtly. “Wonderful housewives,” “passionate lovers,” and “caring mothers” are unlikely to be noticed in the crowd of women seeking their happiness. “Master of artistic potato cutting” sounds much more interesting, but when combined with a number of other descriptions of yourself beginning with “genius,” “guru,” and so on, it will begin to resemble some kind of parody.
In any case, don't forget one simple truth: he who seeks will always find. You go to work to earn a living, so work a little to find your soulmate. If you don't tell the world about yourself, no one will ever know that you can screw in a light bulb in half a second or bake delicious pancakes. Natalia Sinitsa
