March 29, 2024

White Lies & On-line Dating: DON’T!

Posted on March 29, 2016 by in Features

“Some people are going as far as to include hobbies

they’ve never actually participated in

just to up their appeal to others.”

Apr2016WomanCrossesFingers

By Emily Bartz

There are a million different ways that singles can go about trying to impress a date. Some might opt for a new haircut while others might choose to tell their date about an impressive trip they took recently. Whatever the strategy may be, each dater has the chance to show off a little bit about what makes them great.

Online dating is no different, even though the logistics may change a bit. Unfortunately, a common trend has broken out among online daters that is less than ideal — white lies. While a little embellishment may not seem too harmful, it can actually be more damaging than you intend. We’ve broken down three areas where online daters often stretch the truth, and explained why opting for a white lie may not be the best idea.

Exaggerating your appearanceApr2016HandsomeMidAgeMale

Perhaps the most common form of white lies on an online dating site is profile exaggerations, specifically when a dater stretches the truth about their physical appearance. When daters first sign up for a service, they’re asked to fill out a brief questionnaire, including such information as their height, body type, hair color and etcetera. While it’s understandable that not all online daters will want to divulge such information, there is never any reason to outwardly lie about your stats. Not only is this a dishonest way to begin any potential relationship, but the plan is bound to fall apart immediately upon meeting any potential date in real life. Men and women alike are notorious for exaggerating the truth about how they look on their online dating profile, but most will tell you that the risk is simply not worth the reward.

In the event that you don’t feel comfortable being honest about your physical appearance on your online dating profile, it’s a much better idea to simply forego answering or filling out any questionnaires rather than lying. If the opportunity for a date in real life does arise and your match is genuinely curious about what you look like, you can choose to divulge the information you’d like then.

Keep in mind that the description of your appearance is not the only place on your profile where you can lie, as you can also purposely or unintentionally deceive potential matches with your profile photo. While we all love photos of our younger selves, it’s not an accurate depiction of how you look today. As such, you should be sure to include only relevant photos (taken within at least the last six months) so fellow daters can see what you actually look like. Learn more about the top online dating photo mistakes so you can be sure to avoid them.

Jobs and moneyApr2016RichManAirplane&Car

It may seem odd that money talk would come into play at any point during a potential romantic endeavor, however, it’s not uncommon for online dating sites to ask their users to submit some information about what they do for a living or even a “ballpark” range of how much money they make. Some users opt not to include such information, others might give a vague idea of the lifestyle that their particular income affords them. Again, unfortunately, there are some people who take this as an opportunity to grossly exaggerate how much money they make or create a fake job title to impress other online daters.

Lying about money is a serious offense, and should never be taken lightly. Especially when it comes to interactions with other people with whom you hope to share a relationship, lying about your income or your job title is extremely misleading and dishonest, and can lead to an unfixable situation.

Hobbies and weekend activities

Apr2016OlderHikerThe days of including “long walks on the beach” as a part of your list of favorite pastimes are behind us, thankfully. Now online daters have taken it upon themselves to get a bit more creative in what they include in the “interests” section of their profile.

In fact, some people are going as far as to include hobbies they’ve never actually participated in just to up their appeal to others. This may seem like a harmless strategy — after all, how can someone disprove that you don’t actually like to go hiking on the weekends — however, that plan will backfire almost immediately when you chat up a match and can’t figure out how to accurately describe which local hiking spot is your “go-to” destination.

The beauty of online dating is that there is a niche out there for everyone. That means, no matter what your hobbies may be, there is someone out there who loves to do the same things as you.

While lying or stretching the truth may seem like a good way for you to meet someone fast, it’s still important to remember that you’re joining a dating site to meet a potential match with whom you likely hope to share hobbies and interests. Being honest will always be the best option, and ultimately land you a more satisfying date with someone who wants to get to know you authentically.     

Courtesy: NextAdvisor.com

Some people are going as far as to include hobbies they’ve never actually participated in just to up their appeal to others.

Courtesy: NextAdvisor.com

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