Chances are if
you’re reading this, you’ve been chatting up potential matches on
the internet and finally found someone you connect with. This online
communication you have with your new friend is exhilarating and new,
and filled with intrigue and charming turns of phrase. As your
feelings and connection have grown, it’s now time to progress
online romance to real life. You want to test if you two can keep the
same stamina and interest in person as you have online. But there are
so many ways that in person interaction can go wrong, with a lot less
control than online conversation. From body language to tone of
voice, in person meet ups can be a lot more intimidating. Are you
ready for this next step in your online dating journey? Here are 7
tips for meeting your online date in person.
Meet in public.
This is one of the
biggest rules to adhere to when shifting your romantic interaction
from online to live, in the flesh. This is not only just to give you
a perceived level of comfort, but it’s for your actual safety.
Avoid dinner.
Dinner may sound
harmless, but it is a big time commitment when you are just meeting
for the first time. Opt for drinks, food truck eats, or ice cream in
the park instead. This keeps it light, easy and provides an easy exit
strategy if you aren’t feeling it.
Keep topics
light.
Depending on how
much you’ve talked about online, you may not know your date
intimately. If so, keep your topics fun and light on the first date,
possible avoiding things like politics and religion. Instead, try
discussing favorite hobbies, music or aspirations.
Be yourself.
Catfishing isn’t a
recognized phrase now for no reason. Plenty of people act totally
different online than they would in real life. This can work for a
while, but if you ever decide to meet up offline, all bets for a
continued relationship are most likely off. So just try to be
yourself both off and online, so that you know what you’re getting
into and so does your date.
Admit any
stretches of the truth.
It is hard not to oversell yourself online. You can add an extra inch
of height here, or sprinkle in some extra accolades there. But
meeting in person will require you to get real. So if you have any
omissions or small time fibbing, it’s best to come clean before the
first offline date.
Keep a cool head.
You may find that
the chemistry you had online isn’t exactly sparking in person. You
may find that you disagree on things or don’t like something about
their in-person vibe. That’s okay—switching to in-person
interaction is a whole new game. Give it a beat and a chance, and you
may probably find your stride.
Take your time.
It can be overwhelming to finally meet your online date in person. But you can take your time with deciding how you feel and what you want. You may decide to meet up again the next day, or that you need to wait awhile. Whatever you feel is perfectly fine.
