Ever wonder why online dating lead to wonderful relationships, romance and adventure? It only very occasionally will you hear something going wrong. If you are interested in how to play safely and at the same time have fun, read on some dating tips to help you how to get started on your dating quest:
Go Slow. It is better if you take things slowly so that you can easily built trust. Take one step at time by starting with exchanging emails, swapping recent photos, and chatting. Listen first to your intuition and if you feel uncomfortable talking to the person then stop.
Stay anonymous at the beginning. Once you start building your trust to the other person and vice versa, it can be the time to reveal more about yourself. But be sure not to reveal your full name, address, or any contact information right away. It is also better to use a couple of cool screen names, and be sure to look at what other people are using to identify themselves.
Guard your email. Many relationships begin with exchanging emails because one particular email can reveal more about a person than just his or her email address. So make sure that your email information is set to private like a digital signature or your full name for instance. You can test what personal details will be sent by sending an email by sending a test message to yourself. Also, remember to make an email account, especially for your online dating purposes and definitely do not use your real name in your email address. Always keep your private and business email addresses to yourself.
Install an Instant Messenger Program. Ideally both AOL/Netscape and Yahoo are good instant messenger programs. You can easily download Yahoo Messenger and AOL on their respective sites. If you are chatting, it is nicer if you get a microphone for your computer so that you can chat and talk via computer instead of just chatting through phone.
Choose an online dating site. Once you have chosen the dating site you like, start writing a profile. It is advised to go to a dating site where you have already decided what to write or say about yourself.
Ask for a photo. Whether you value the personality of the person or the looks, it is still good to request a photo from your potential date. If the person keeps making excuses when you are asking to send you a photo, then better think if you want to continue the conversation with the person. It is still good to know how well that person you are talking to described himself or herself. Be sure to ask for more than one photo and when the photo was taken. Of course, meeting up is still the best way to get to know a person, so you may not really be sure about your date until then. Also, show him some recent photos of yourself: one close-up and another whole body. But if you are a woman, it is better to send this off when the man has sent his first in order to be safe.
Use the telephone. Once you are comfortable with your online date, you can give your phone number. This way, you can assess your potential date's social skills, not just in emails or via instant messenger but through the telephone as well. You can use a cell phone if you have one or a pay phone if you do not want to use your home number. But if you decided to use your home number, then you should get a Caller ID or a service like Privacy Manager in order to guard yourself and your privacy.
Meet in public. Select a meeting place where there are a lot of people. Before meeting, be sure you know the place, how to get home, what time are the last train or bus, and keep a taxi cab number in the area in case you are late or there is a change of plans.
Bring or tell a friend. It is a lot safer if you bring a friend with you on your first date. If things are going well, then you must have an arrangement with your friend to live early. You can just meet your friend after your date or inform them how the date went or you may meet your friend afterwards. Be sure you have a cell phone which you can use and where you can be contacted in case of emergency. However, if your friend can not come with you, always tell someone where, when, and with whom you are meeting. If you are travelling, it is best to leave a person all the necessary information such as hotel address and the phone number of that hotel. If possible, call them after your date.
Stay in your own hotel. When you are travelling to meet your potential date, do not be convinced to stay at their place. Arrange a hotel and rent a car, if you can. So that when things do not go according to plan, you can have your own place to stay. Also, avoid meting your date at the airport for doing this will reveal the place where you will be staying. If you follow all of these dating tips, surely you will never go wrong. Keep in mind that no matter how much you like to meet your potential date, your safety should still be your number one priority.
