What Are the Odds of Finding Mr. Right Online?

The odds of finding your “soul-mate” online are a lot better than you may think. It doesn't happen for everyone, of course, but it can happen for you. The world of internet or online dating has exploded over the last few years.

As our lives become busierand busier we need to make better use of our time and energy in our search for the one man who will make our lives complete.

The old saying, “You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a princess”is no longer true. Why kiss frogs when you can read hundreds of profiles and look at the pictures that go with them for a small monthly fee? That saves time and money…not to mention lip burn.

These are a few good reasons to consider online dating:

• There is a wide range of men to choose from. Youaren't limited to the menin your social circle or work environment.
• You have the opportunity to get to know a lot about a man before you ever contact him for the first time. Youwill know his age, maritalstatus, what city he lives in, whether he has children, his height/weight and his likes and dislikes all fromhis profile. You'll even see a picture of him.
• You have a better chance to present yourself in a favorable way. This is especially useful for those of us who are shy. We have time to think about how we want to say things about ourselves and can avoid being tongue tied.Even those who are more extroverted can take time to reflect on who they really are before writing their online profile.
• Online dating is certainly a time saver. You can meet so many more menin a lot less time than you ever could out in the real world.

Mr. Perfect Does Not Exist!

The sooner you realize thissad but true fact, the sooner you can get on with finding Mr. Close-Enough-To-Perfect. Prince Charming, riding on a white stallion, lost his way or found Princess Charming and got marriedon his way to your castle. Get over it and get on with it. You ARE going to have to actively seek the man of your dreams and you won't find him hiding under your bed. You already know that he isn't among the men that you are acquainted with so, now what? Online dating is“what”.
It's true that online dating,while in its infancy, was only made up of perverts, sexual predators, nerds and weirdoes but that is no longer true. It has become the main tool of the single person in every developed country in the world. Forty million people can't all be wrong. Ask your girl friends if theyhave ever used online dating or are using it now. If they are honest with you, most of them have orare now members of at least one online dating site and maybe more than one. It really is the way togo to meet eligible men who want to meet you. It doesn't matter what any of your numbers are…like age, height, weight or income either. Somewhereout there in the big wide world there is a man who will like you…..then love you….and think that you are beautiful and desirable. “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” is true. What is considered beautiful in one part of theworld is completely different from what is considered beautiful in another part of the world. It's even different from one part of this country toanother.
Find an online dating site that fits your needs. Write a great profile and post a flattering picture. Start contacting eligible men onthe site. Mr. Close-enough-to-perfect could be a few mouse clicks away.

Online Dating For the Single 30 Something Woman

Life isn't fair. Men get all the breaks. You've devoted all of your 20's to getting your career off the ground. Not that you haven't been dating…you have, but not seriously. Now here you are…30 something and there is no long term relationship in sight. You can actually hearyour biological clock ticking. You have a precious few years to find a man to fall in love with, make him fall in love with you, get married, and havea baby or its lights out. You already know all of the men in your social circle. Not that they aren'tnice guys…some of them…but none of them are your soul mate. What'sa girl to do?
Consider online dating. You have the opportunity to read hundreds of profiles and look at hundreds of pictures in search of that “someone” that will be right for you. Maybe he will live in the same city you do…maybe he will live across the country or even in anothercountry altogether. You aren't limited to only those men that you come in contact with personally. The possibilities are almostendless.
“Is online dating safe”, youask. “Aren't the online dating sites made up entirely of perverts, sexualpredators and weirdoes in assorted shapes and sizes?” the answer is, no they aren't. Not anymore anyway. That was true when online dating first came on the scene but now it is mainstream. It's as safe as you make it using common sense and sound judgment. Use the same caution that you would when meeting any stranger. Don't give your real name, address or phone number until you feel safe doing so. Don't rush into a face-to-face meeting until you are confident and then make the first meeting in a public place and during daylight hours. Give it a try…Mr. Right might be a few mouse clicks away.

The Advantages of Online Dating for Women

In the past, i.e. the 1990's,online dating was a brand new idea. Unlike today, most people did not own PC's or even have access to the internet. Times havechanged. Online dating is not only IN the mainstream, it IS the mainstream.
There are many reasons for the phenomenal growth of online dating sites and the number of people, men and women of all ages, races and religions who use them as their primary source for meeting people and looking for “the one”. If you don't believe me, just ask your friends in the “real” world. If they are honest, most of them will tell you they have or are using an online dating service. Here are three good reasons why thousands of people sign up for dating services everyday:

1. You can be anonymous. You will never be required to give your real name, address, email address, phone number or place of employment to another online user. You, of course, may do so but only at your own discretion and only whenyou feel completely safe.You are not required to post a picture of yourself. Posting a picture, however, will getmore responses to your profile. So you can surf through the other members on the dating site you have joined withcomplete anonymity.
2. You have so many more choices online that you do in your brick and mortar world. Before theworld of online dating came of age, the choice of friends and even of lifetime partners was limited to those we came in contact with through college or work.No more…the world is your oyster. You can go through hundreds…even thousands of profiles to find the right man for you.
3. The “safety factor” is the biggest reason of all. An online dating service will never reveal your personal information. You get to choose who has that information and when they have it.

A Woman's “Don'ts” of Online Dating

There are some things thatwomen should never do while engaged in an onlinerelationship with a man. These things are certain toput a quick and final end to any further communications with him. While chatting online or byemail do not write your life story. His eyes will glaze over and he will fall out of his chair. Keep it short and sweet until he asks for details…then provide them slowly and only answer the questions he asks. For instance: If he asks how many siblings you have, he is NOT askingfor the details of your interaction with them. He really just wants to know how many you have. Say you have 2 (or whatever istrue) and then ask how many he has. For every question he asks you, you should ask one of him. Nothing turns a man off like a long- winded woman who just doesn't know when to shut up or how to listen. Never, ever, EVER lie. I really believe that lies will catch up with you sooner or later. Many women (and men) lie about their age, marital status, employment, height, weight and a host of otherthings in their online profiles. That is a huge mistake. If you find a man who you are really interested in, he will find out you lied and there goes any possibility of the relationship progressing. So, just be honest. There issomeone out there who will like you…even come to love you…for exactly the person you are. Don't be too eager. It makes you look desperateand it really puts a man off. They are first and foremost conquerors and if getting the person of their desires to like them too is just too easy, they will quickly lose interest. I don't mean play “hard-to-get”. I mean, don't push for a face-to-face meeting. Don't email themor IM them too frequently. Play it safe andplay it cool.

Online Dating Safety for Women

Online dating can be a fun and certainly a rewarding experience for women of all ages. Maintaining your safety while doing it is simply a combination of using common sense and exercising good judgment.Online safety rules are the same as real world safety rules. You wouldn't give your name, address and phone number to a strange man that you met in a bar or on the street so you should never do that online either. Play it safe. Get to know this man who could turn out to be Prince Charming before you give out any information that could make it possible for him orothers to trace you. Don't tell a stranger exactly where you work. Say that you are a legal secretary (if that's what you are) for a mid-sized law firm….not that you work for Brown, Smith and Jones Attorneys-at-law. It is safeto tell him what city you live in but you should wait to be any more specific than that until you have been chatting and exchanging emails for awhile. Use only the tools provided by the dating service you belong to. Most offer chat and private email on their site. Do not give out your isp email address. If you mustgive out an email address make it a free one such as Hotmail or Yahoo. Your ispaddress is traceable for anyone who wants to go to the trouble. When the time comes for you to have your first face-to-face, make that first meeting in a public place and during day light hours. Take a friend with you or arrange for one to call you on your cell soon after the arranged meeting. Remember…you ARE in control so do not let anyone pressure you into revealing more personal information than you are comfortable with revealing.

A Man's Secrets to Successful Online Dating

People have taken to online dating like a duck takes to water…because it works…or, at least, it can work. Women are, in general, terrified of meeting a man that she has been chatting with online. All they have heardabout are the scary things that can happen…and, I must say, they have a rightto be careful to the extreme. That's not only wise but vital. So what's a nice guy to do? You aren'ta pervert, a sexual predator, or a weirdo. Youare just a nice guy lookingfor “the” girl for you. You must be patient. Don'tpress her for personal information like her real name or where she lives. Keep your conversations light and fun until she feelscomfortable talking with you online. Don't try to rush her into meeting face-to-face. She will think you are desperate or a pervert. Patience. Patience. Patience. Be absolutely honest about your physical appearance and job. A good relationship has never been, and will neverbe, built on lies and deceit.Eventually she will find outthe truth anyway and there you are back at square one. A picture really is worth a thousand words. Post many pictures of yourself doing your everyday activities and make them full body shots, not just head shots. If you were dating a girl in the real world she wouldn't just see your head. Once the discussion has been opened about meeting face-to-face for the first time, suggest that you meet in a very public place, during daylight hours and that she bring a friend with her. After all, you have nothing to hide. You've told her the truth about yourself and she hasalready seen a lot of pictures of you. The only thing left is to make her feel safe meeting you.

Online Dating is Not a Contest

Online dating is not a competition between competing males for the attention of a female. Grow up. Change your mind set from “winning” to“searching”. This isn't high school. You are all grown up and have been for quite some time, now. Your attitude is the most important asset you have. You should like yourself and not concentrate of all of the things that aren't YOUR idea of the perfect guy…the one the all women want. What is that women want, you ask? That's the age old question. Being of the female persuasion myself, I can tell you a few things women want and don't want. Women want a man to be confident…NOT an arrogant jerk. There's a big difference. You need to like yourself and not beself depreciating but you don't need to come across like you believe that you are a gift to themfrom God and have just fallen from the sky. They don't want you to think that THEY just fell from heaven and are some kindof perfect being, either. They can't live up to that expectation. Women want a communicator. The “strongsilent type” really isn't appealing at all. They thinkyou probably don't have an original thought in yourhead and you probably haven't heard a word theysaid, either or that you justdon't care what they said or didn't even hear what they said. They want you to be interesting enough to want to know more about you and they want you to think that they are interesting enough to ask intelligent questions aboutwhat is important to them, too. Women do NOT want to be a prize to be won. Theydon't want to be a trophy.They want to be the ONE woman that you want to be with.

Nice Guys Do It, Too

I'm talking about online dating, of course. When the phenomenon of onlinedating sites started several years ago, they were a haven for perverts,sexual predators, nerds, and weirdoes of assorted varieties. That is just no longer the case. All the stigma of online dating is gone. Online dating has gone main stream and is, not only acceptable, but expected. Online dating has become the primary tool of single people of allages to generate an interesting and rewarding social life. Let's face it…we are busy guys. We just simply do not have the time, the energy, or the financial where-with-all to date several nights each week while we look for the “one”. You can sort through hundreds of profiles in a month for lessmoney than you would spend on one evening out,thus, saving time and money. We use the internet to save ourselves time and money for a lot of things like investments, shopping, medical information, and communications. Why not make use of such a useful tool for our social and personal lives as well?You could find the love of your life. At the very least,you will meet some interesting people and possibly make some lasting friendships. It's easy to get started. All you need is a computer and an internet connection. You'll need to search for online dating services that meet your specific needs. They are many and varied. Join one or two. Then you'll need to write a great profile, upload a recent picture of yourself and start making and answering contacts. That really is all there is to it…that and patience. Don't wait any longer to start your new and interesting social life. Miss or Ms. “Right” could be only a few clicks of the mouse away.

Ask the Right Questions First

OK. You have joined a couple of dating services and written a killer
profile. You've uploaded a good picture and now you are going to chat
with a contact. What now? How do you start separating those who have
real potential and those who don't have any potential at all? You need
to find out something about who this strange woman really is and not
just who she wants you to believe she is. It would be nice if women
wore labels like "Gold Digger" or "Daddy'sgirl"….but they don't so
it's up to you to find thesethings out and you can't just ask direct
questions. You need to know what mistakes you can avoid making and how
to impress this lady if you decide you want to do that.
After you are past the initial small talk, ask her, "What are the
biggest mistakes guys make when dating online?" Listen carefully to
her answers. She's going to tell you a lot about herself and her views
on men in general.
Next you should ask her, "What do you really think about online
dating?" Nowshe will tell you if she has had any bad experiences
dating o line and help you to avoid making the same things wrong.
Now for the all-important one….."What caused the break up in your last
relationship?" If she puts all the blame on the guy, you should
probably moveon to the next prospect. Ifshe takes all the blame
herself, you should probably do the same. If she says the breakup was
by mutual consent or that the relationship just wasn'tright for either
of them, you've heard the right answer. Move forward but always with
caution.
Asking the right questions will give you insight and make you more
confident when you meet the lady for the first time.

Online Dating Safety For Men

Almost everything you read about online dating safety is directed at
women but men need to be concerned as well. Perverts, sexual predators
and weirdoes come in both sexes, all sizes, and all ages…as do, liars
and cheaters. So men need to stay on guard, too.
It is common knowledge not to readily give out personal information to
strangers. The reason for not doing so is as large as the number of
strangers who want that information.If you come across a person who is
giving out personal information and asking others to do the same,
don't do it. You don't know what they want to use it for….and you had
better believe they want to use it for something. That "something"
will not be foryour benefit. Men, also, need to guard their real
names, addresses, phone numbers, and place of employment. Do not give
that information to anyoneonline until you are confident that they are
who they say they are.
Men, be wary of women who seem too financially needy. If they ask for
money, in any of a dozen ways women can ask for money, cut the
relationshipoff immediately. They are not looking for love or even
friendship….they are looking for financial help.
If a woman gives you a contact number but you cannot ever reach her at
that number, beware. If you always have to page them or text them and
have them call you back, this could be a sign that what they are
telling you is not the complete truth.
A need to get married and insecurity are other signs men should be
very wary of. If the woman is pushing too hard for a commitment you
aren't ready to make, it might bea good time to head for the nearest
exit.

Honesty Really is the Best Policy

When you join an online dating service, you are looking for a girl
that you can like…even come to love. That girl is looking for a guy
that SHE can likeor even love. What you aren't looking for is a girl
who would like your best friend or your idea of whatthe perfect guy
looks like or talks like or thinks like. So, in order to find the
right girl for you…and she IS out there…you need to be completely
honest withyourself about yourself when writing the online profile,
during the dating process and beyond.
The best way to begin writing your profile is to carefully analyze
your pastrelationship (s). What was right? What was wrong? What things
really made you like the last girl? Which didn't? Don't assume that
just because you hated that your last girl was so totally
self-involved that she couldn't see anything else,you'll be able to
overlookthat quality this time. You won't.
If you aren't 6'1" with a six-pack to be proud of, don't claim to be.
If you are a bar tender, don't claim to be a lawyer with asix figure
income. If you are 40 going on 50, don't pretend to be 30 something.
Remember, the idea here is to find a girl who will like you exactly
like you are. If you have lied in your profile, the first face-to-face
meeting will remove all her doubt that you are a liar…and probably a
cheat, as well.
Lastly, once you have found a girl that you believe can be the one
foryou, for goodness sakes, cancel your membership to the online
dating service. After all, you knowand she knows that online dating
services are intended for those who are looking…not those who have
found or been found.

3 Online Dating Mistakes to Avoid

While you search the internet for that special lady…the one of your
dreams…your soul-mate…the other half of yourself, you can do a lot of
things right. Sadly, you can, also, do a lot of things wrong….things
that will guarantee failure and a broken heart. Out in the "real"
world, being aggressive, demanding perfection and even little white
lies are all ingredients for success. However, those same qualities
are killers when you are dating online and off line, too, for that
matter.
There is a big difference between being aggressive or confident and
being too aggressive, over-confident, or just plain sleazy or slimy
from a woman's point of view. If you push too hard for a face-to-face,
you will come across as too aggressive…maybe even, scary. Try to
remember that you are not trying to close a business deal and keep the
relationship progressing at a slow but steady pace. Patience is the
key.
Nobody is perfect. We areall flawed in some way or another…and that
includes you, as well. If you expect the woman to be absolutely
perfect and demand that, you will always be disappointed. Demanding
perfectionism in your work is one thing. Demanding perfectionism from
a friend, co-worker or a lady you are interested in is not just fine.
It won't happen. Expect flaws and just deal with them. Decide the ones
you can live with andthose you can't.
Little white lies and false fronts won't work. Be honest from the
beginningof a relationship. Write your profile. Make it interesting
but don't makefalse statements. The truthwill come out eventually
anyway. If you say you area lawyer who makes a million bucks a year
and you are really an electrician that makes$75,000, you have set
yourself up for failure.
Remember…don't be too aggressive, expect to everfind perfection or put
on afalse front.

Online Dating Can Be Tough

Here's a little secret that those of the female persuasion keep from
us guys: Women, even very beautiful women, like to be approached by a
confident and interesting man. Are you surprised? It's true…and
confident and interesting are much more important than looksto ladies
of all ages, too. That's true for internet dating, as well as, dating
inyour brick and mortar world but we're talking about internet dating
here…so back to the subject at hand.
Once you have joined an online dating service, you will find that
there a lot more men than women and that the men are muchmore likely
to browse profiles and make initial contacts than women. Yes, it's a
woman's world…still. It's "traditional" for men to make the first
move. It always has been and it always will be. Some things never
change. That's why your profile and picture are so important.
Remember…confident and interesting….and that doesnot translate to
cocky andself-centered. It's important that your profilelets people
know that you have friends you care about and that you are
passionately interested in a variety of things…not JUST sports.
Another thingabout that all-important profile….please don't start it
with, "I'm the guy your mama warned you about".
You will have just shot yourself in the foot with that line. Another
one to never use is, "I could be the man of your dreams". The lady
HOPES you are but she will be the judge of that…so don't insult
herintelligence. Remember….exude confidence and interestingand you
will find that lady you have been looking for…or she will find you.
Won't it be nice to have the ladies contacting you instead of you
having to do everything? If you write a great profile that stands out
in the crowd, that will happen.

Online Dating For Single Men

No matter what your age, height, weight or physical appearance, there
are thousands of women out there eager to meet you and eager for your
company…whether short-term or long-term relationships are what you
want. If you have found yourself suddenly "on-the-market" again after
a relationship has dissolved or are just too busy with your work to
spend a lot of time looking for a lady to keep you company, online
dating can open thedoor to the dating scene for you.
The good news is that all you need is a computer and an internet
connectionto get started. The first thing to do is find an online
dating site that fits your needs. There are the large sites that offer
manyextras like live video chat and even match you up with ladies
using your profiles and, also, a lot of sites that cater to special
interests like religious preferences, outdoor enthusiasts, gays, etc.
You need to choose one or two that will meet your needs. I don't
recommendthe free sites. The paid sites have a money back guarantee if
you aren't satisfied and the investment is small. A whole month costs
less than one dinner and moviedate.
The next thing you need to do is write a killer, but honest, profile
and upload a recent but flattering picture of yourself. Now you are
all set. Start contacting ladies whose profiles sound interesting to
you and answer any lady who contacts you…and do so promptly…not,
however, on holidays or weekends. You don't want to appear that
desperate. Don't giveup after a month and thinkyou will never find the
right lady for you. New people join online dating services daily and
at least half of them are ladies many, of whom, will want to meet you.