Common Dating Mistakes You Didn’t Know You Were Making

Dating can be tricky enough but for some, adding dating sites and apps to the mix has made it even more confusing. There are several common online dating mistakes that are easily fixed – check out our list of dating mistakes to avoid and see if you are guilty of any of these faux pas.

Top 9 Online Dating Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Early Dating Mistakes: The fear of leaving your comfort zone

If you are afraid of leaving your comfort zone and jumping into the online dating world, you might never give yourself the opportunity to find true love. Many people are afraid of getting hurt, but without opening up yourself to new experiences, you are closing yourself off to meeting new people. One of the biggest early dating mistakes someone can make is being closed off to new experiences.

Subscribing to the wrong sites

You want to get into the dating world, but with a seemingly endless number of dating sites out there, it is important to remember that not all dating websites are created equal. Online dating is not a one-size-fits-all, and it is important to understand the differences among the sites before laying out subscription money. The very first of the most important online dating tips is do your research and make sure you find the right site for you!

Match.com has a great reputation for a reason – they have been around for 20 years, and they know what they’re doing. They offer paid subscriptions with different bundles, offering different features. They also have an incognito mode so people don’t know when you are looking at their profile. Due to their large user base, Match.com hosts great singles events with discounts for their subscribers. If online dating is something that makes you nervous, Match.com is known for their excellent security and vetting process, and will allow you to report a profile you feel is inappropriate or may be fake.

With over 35 million users from 85 different countries, your chances of finding love on Zoosk are pretty good. Their carousel feature allows you to browse profiles with high match potential, based on the findings of Zoosk’s Behavioural Matchmaking™. The algorithm will learn your behaviours and preferences and will adapt to suggest better matches each time.

Older singles have a hard time in the dating world in general and may feel more uncomfortable with the world of online dating. That’s where Silver Singles comes in. Geared towards singles over 55 years old, Silver Singles has a lengthy application process with many questions to ensure that you are matched well. Some may find the lengthy questionnaire difficult, but it has proven to help people find true love later in life.

Being lazy when making your profile

Your online profile is the way you present yourself to the dating world. If you are lazy when making your profile and don’t put in a real effort to present yourself, you can’t expect people to be interested in your profile, and therefore in you. Your best shot at finding the best person for you is to work hard on your profile, make it shine, and make it interesting. Make the kind of profile that would make you say “I want to meet this person.”

Forgetting that honesty is always the best policy

Do not lie on your profile. Use real photos of yourself, write true information about who you are. You might think that your interests seem boring, but they are interesting to you and will likely be interesting to the right person for you. If you lie on your profile, you are lowering the chances of finding the right match for you.

Thinking you can find love without meeting lots of people

When we want to do well in school, we study for hundreds of hours. When we want to find a job, we go for endless interviews. If we want to master a skill, we practice until perfect. According to relationship coach Mark Rosenfeld, dating should not be any different. Thanks to Hollywood, many of us believe that true love should be effortless, but that simply is not the case. Just like all of your relationships in life, romantic relationships take effort and hard work.

Online Dating Mistakes Guys Make

This one is for all the men out there. Some of the biggest known dating mistakes guys make include topless profile pictures, poor grammar, and only messaging much younger women. Present the best version of yourself to the world (preferably dressed), show that you are smart but not obnoxious, and be realistic about what you are looking for in a match.

Trusting too soon

Talking to someone online takes away the intimidating face-to-face interaction. This can be a good thing, but can also be dangerous. It is easier to open up to someone online, and you need to be careful not to spill too much too soon, or fall too hard too quickly. You don’t really know this person yet, so keep your guard up a little bit for your own safety and emotional well being. Keep in mind that unfortunately, you might not be talking to someone who is completely honest, which is something that is easier to detect in person.

Giving up too fast

Making a profile is quick and easy, and deleting it is even quicker and easier. Don’t give up entirely on online dating just because it is slow or you’ve had a bad experience. Life is full of challenges, and dating is too. Give it a fair chance to see if things will work out.

Online Dating Tips

Online dating comes with a whole new set of online dating mistakes that did not exist previously. For example, stalking exes. With social media and the huge amount of information available, it is all too easy to go down the rabbit hole of stalking exes. We’re not just talking about your exes either, but also your exes, your exes’ exes, your current partner’s exes… just avoid the ex-stalking altogether.

Rachel Sussman, a licensed clinical social worker, licensed psychotherapist, and author of The Breakup Bible cautions people about online dating. Once you enter the world of online dating, don’t forget that there is still a real world out there. “I believe you have to push yourself to go out and be willing to meet someone in person too,” she explains. “Don’t let online dating stop you from being social, going out with friends, and being open to who your loved ones think could be good matches. You never know when/where you could meet someone you really like.”

There you have our top mistakes in dating – both online and off. We hope you remember these dating mistakes and how to avoid them when selecting a dating site, creating an online profile, and jumping into the dating pool.