How To Practice Safe Online Dating

Feeling tempted to post an online dating profile but too scared? Here are some tips to help you avoid encountering or attracting psychos and boost your chances of finding your soul mate.

1. Be Honest in the Information You Provide About Yourself: Age, sex, ethnicity, income, body habitus, marital status (this is a big one), expectations, etc. Most of all, the picture you choose in your profile should be a recent one that truly represents you. Do not use that old high school or college graduation picture because you looked slim or better. Another big no-no is to place a picture that has another person in it with you whom you have cut out...I cannot stress on how bad an impression that creates!
2. State Exactly and With Radical Clarity What, Where, Who you are Looking For and What He or She Can Expect From You and Vice Versa: This includes what type of relationship you are looking for. If you are looking for a serious one, then please don't post your profile on the intimate encounters section or site as that massively reduces your chances of being taken seriously. Are you interested in long-distance relationships? Are you willing to travel to see your date and if so, how frequent and how far? If not, minimize your contacts to people who are local to you and make that clear.
3. Be Realistic in Your Expectations: Don't expect Mr. Charming to come into your message inbox right away and filter through people who contact you using all your senses, including the sixth sense! Ask a lot of questions and take notes if you have to. Don't think that everyone who contacts you has the right to meet you in person and do not trust people after one or two chats. Communicate via the site's messaging system first, as it is more secure. If and when you feel comfortable, switch to email and take it slow and easy. After that, switch to the phone and only after that should you meet in person, presuming no red flags have gone up during this time. Don't be upset if you don't get a lot of second dates and don't push for them if you are the only one feeling the connection.
4. Be Safe: First dates should always occur in public, no questions asked. Always make sure someone knows where you are going and who you will be with. Plan to have your own transportation as well as backup if needed. Have a cell phone that is working on you and if you are traveling long distances, do not meet in your or the other person's hotel, etc. Always meet at a neutral place first.
5. Look For Red Flags: These include things like the person looking nothing like his picture or how he described himself, bad manners in public, disrespect to you or people around you, inconsistencies in facts such as his job, sexual orientation, and marital status, and so on. Other deal-breakers are if he avoids answering direct questions or becomes too physical on the first date. Trust your instincts here.

In the end, never ever rush to meet someone in person after a heated online chat. Good luck!