So you’re finally ready to go on that first date, complete with your newly purchased outfit and perfectly coiffed hair. Your heart is likely aflutter with excitement! Now make the most of your new dating opportunity by impressing your guy. It’s best to be yourself in a relationship, but a first date is the time to show off your very best qualities and make a good impression. Avoid being these gals on your first date, and you’ll have a much better shot at that second date.

Meager Bird
This just in: men are becoming wise to the fact that women also need to eat to stay alive. The secret is out; eating two grapes and some lettuce without dressing is not nearly enough to provide the proper nutrition you need to sustain a healthy body. Nevertheless, women often order the most meager selection on the menu for their first date. Contrary to popular belief, this actually makes many men uncomfortable, feeling self-conscious about what they have ordered and wondering if it’s perceived as too much. This doesn’t mean you need to order the biggest steak and potato dinner on the menu, but at least order something you actually enjoy. Your date will notice you enjoying your dinner, and will likely feel you are a confident woman who can order and eat whatever she wants, whether you are a size 2 or 22.

Chatty Cathy
Women have a natural tendency to talk far more than men, and this is only magnified on the first date because of nerves. Because men process information more quietly, they need a break from all the chatter to digest what you are saying. So before your first date, practice allowing moments of silence in your conversations, so you are not perceived as a Chatty Cathy, which can be overwhelming to a man. Practicing these moments of silence and then using this skill on your date may even result in your date taking the opportunity to talk more!

The Princess
So maybe your food is not perfectly prepared, or it’s too humid outside which makes your hair horrible, or perhaps your feet hurt from the four-inch heels you are wearing. Your first date is not the time to complain about every single thing that bothers you slightly. Instead of focusing on the things about your day or week or year that have gone wrong, focus on all those things that have gone wonderfully, and mention those things to your date instead of complaining. Making a list beforehand will do wonders in helping you prepare, so you don’t come off as The Princess to your date.

With a little preparation before your first date, you will be ready to avoid being these types that send your brand new guy running for the door, and it may even lead to another date and another down the line.

taraDating EssentialsChat,First Dates,WomenSo you're finally ready to go on that first date, complete with your newly purchased outfit and perfectly coiffed hair. Your heart is likely aflutter with excitement! Now make the most of your new dating opportunity by impressing your guy. It's best to be yourself in a relationship, but...Advice and Tips for Online Dating