When posting pictures of yourself online you should use some judgment. It may be superficial but your picture is the first impression that someone gets about you (even before reading your profile they will see your picture). YES, a picture is worth 1,000 words. I am not sure if there are statistics yet for how long you have to catch a potential date’s attention. However, I do know that in a resume situation you only have 10 seconds to gain an employer’s attention.

Please Refrain Yourself

You should avoid putting up pictures of your chest/cleavage, etc (yes even MEN).  It sends the wrong message (if you are looking for a one night stand or just a booty call, then by all means put your chest up). However, if you really want to find a life-partner, long term relationship, etc putting a pic up of your cleavage or chest will only get attention from the wrong people. Come on girls, do you really want those emails that say “NICE RACK”. I have even heard of women that put up pics of themselves in a wet t-shirt and then get upset at guys for noticing and commenting. And on the other hand, if I see a picture of a guy in the hot tub it sends me the message that he is only interested in sex, and at that point he has already lost me and I don’t even read his profile.

Don’t Crop Out People

For those of you who think that you can crop out your ex from your picture and nobody will notice….who are you fooling? Everyone notices and it is just tacky. What else is tacky is putting up pics that your current significant other (so) or x-so took of you. Do you really want to see pictures plastered all over dating sites of your x-so that you took?

Personal experience: My so (while I was STILL with him) created a profile on a dating site (saying he was single, unbeknownst to me) with pictures up of him THAT I TOOK!! That has to be the most rude and heartless thing anyone has ever done to me.

Also, what is up with everyone taking pictures of themselves in the bathroom mirror? I guess it is just one of those things everyone thinks they should do, I really don’t want to see a pic of a commode in the background, and nobody else does either!!

Pictures You Should Use

Ok, now that I have told you what not to use, you are probably wondering what you should use. I like to see pictures that show someone’s personality. Funny and goofy pictures are good, pictures that show you having a good time, maybe doing something you like to do, these types of pictures give your audience a better way of getting to know you. I suggest that you use 3 to 5 pictures. The reason being is because each picture shows a different side of you (personality wise), plus if you have a picture that someone doesn’t see flattering usually another one will give them a different viewpoint.

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• Online Dating Sites — Advantages and Traps (online-dating.suite101.com)

So, you have been online dating now for some time (or maybe you just started checking it out) when you find someone that you really like and want to get to know. You find that you are spending a lot of time with that person and you are really getting to know them. You begin to call each other boyfriend and girlfriend and you are wondering what you should do with your online profiles?

Change Your Relationship Status

I was having a conversation regarding that with my roommate the other day. I feel that one should return to the online site and change there status to “in a relationship”, “seeing someone” and/or “just looking for friends”. I don’t think you would need to delete the profiles and still corresponding with people as friends need not be an issue. However, if you really want to give someone a chance to really get to know them you should probably be only seeing them. Of course, that is a discussion between you and your significant other.

Make Time to Get to Know Them

I guess the internet makes it way to easy to find other people to date. Don’t be a serial dater going from one person to the next.  Take time to get to know the person you are with, you may be missing out if you are constantly going from one date to another. Relationships take a lot of work and commitment, and they don’t happen over night. In this age where everything is so quick paced and meeting new people is probably easier now then ever before, make sure to take time to get to know the person you are with.

Here are a list of articles about online dating that I read that you maybe interested in:

• Social Networking: the Advantages and Disadvantages to Using Social Networking Sites to Find Dates (articlesbase.com)
• Social Networking: Social Networking Websites – is it Possible to Find Love Online? (articlesbase.com)

Yes, online dating can work. And internet relationships are safer than dating the guy your friend tries to set you up with.

Let’s face it there maybe plenty of fish in the sea, but if you are always fishing in the same hole – eventually you might throw all the fish back. So image that after years of fishing in a pond in your back yard, I told you that you could now jump on a boat and fish in the biggest body of water known to man. That’s what it’s like when you start dating online.

Sure you might have spend sometime getting familiar with the new waters. And of course you run the risk of running into some pretty scary sharks but at least your not still fishing the same pond, throwing back the same loser fish.

So here’s a few tips to get you started:

1. Decide what kind of relationship you are looking for.

If you decide what kind of relationship that you are looking for, it will help you narrow down which dating sites to try. Do you want a serious one? Try eHarmony.com or match.com. Want something more casual? Try OKCupid.com or plentyoffish.com. Or are you looking for something a bit more, well – undescribable? Then try craigslist.com, becollared.com or onlinebootycall.com.

2. Picture for a picture is good etiquette.

Remember though, never ask for a picture before you offer a picture. It’s just rude. And make sure that the picture is one that has been taken within the past year. Preferably in a natural setting, but not with all of your friends. Also it is good to note that at this time, the person on the other end could be your mom, dad or a cousin. So don’t show anything that you wouldn’t want them to see.

3. Emails, online chat, telephone and then meet.

There is nothing more akward than meeting up with someone that you haven’t taken the time to get to know, and then realizing that you have absolutely nothing in common. It’s like setting yourself up on a blind date. Dating online gives you some control over how fast the relationship moves so take advantage of that. You’ll know when it feels right to meet.

4. Be smart – always meet in public.

I said there were some sharks out there. Just in case you are wondering, sharks do not discriminate based on race, gender or sexual preference. If they are hungry, they will eat you. And you at least want people to know where they should send the rescue party to start looking.

5. Have fun being you.

Don’t think that you have to be someone else or put up a front. If you want something in particular, the Internet is big enough for you to find it. So enjoy being able to do so and never feel like you have to settle. After all this ocean is much bigger than the pond and I guarantee you will eventually find the fish you want to mount on the wall…or fishes.

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