All Good Just a Week Ago is all about crazy dating stories. We had some fascinating entries on crazy things that happened while on a date. As shocked as we were to discover we weren’t alone in our wild dating experiences, we realized these aren’t one-off situations after all. To make sure you aren’t the crazy dating story we are writing about, here are some things you should never do on a first date and some alternatives that will help you avoid leaving a crazy first impression.
Stare at your phone the entire date.
As crazy as it may sound, many people are addicted to their smartphone devices and can’t seem to sacrifice at least two hours without staring down at it. If you’re one of them, it’s safe to say that your date already ended before it even began. Dates are about knowing more about the other person, and it’s difficult for this to happen if you’re obsessively checking your phone. Many of our friends have been on dates like this. They would have rather been curled up at home watching a movie by themselves. It was that bad.
Here are some alternatives:
Give Your undivided attention.
Let your date know that you are interested in getting to know them.
Instead of being engrossed in your phone, take the time to really enjoy your date’s company. If the date is so bad that you need your phone to distract you, you should probably end it early.
Talk about yourself the whole time.
This is a self-centered person that should learn some manners before pursuing a relationship. Unfortunately, you may experience a self-absorbed person a time or two. Just make sure you’re not one of them. Never spend the entire date talking about yourself, as that would obviously leave a bad impression.
The Alternative: Ask questions where you both can contribute to the conversation. Learn about your date. Instead of spilling the beans about yourself, have an even exchange of learning each other’s interests.
Be rude to the waiter or anyone providing you service.
Some people see dates as a time to be rude to servers at the restaurant, and disguise it as being bold. Learn from the Nasty Natasha story in All Good Just a Week Ago. It would help if you never talked down on anyone, no matter how lowly you think they are. We are all humans that deserve every bit of respect.
The Alternative: Be polite. The sure way to tell if someone is genuine is to observe how they treat other people around them. Especially the ones that are providing service.
Go on an “I hate my ex” rant.
Is there ever a good time to go on this rant? We don’t think so. It would help if you only talked about past relationships when it happens naturally. You may even slip up with a quick mention. But referring to every situation with “me and my ex came here a lot” or “I could never eat shrimp around my ex because he/she ex was allergic” is not a good look. It’s even worse when you specifically change the subject so that you can go on a rant talking about how much of a crazy person your ex was. Yes, it happens…sadly.
The Alternative: Use this time to learn more about your date. At this point, your ex is irrelevant. Why bring an ex up too early when your date could be a potential bae?
Talk about marriage.
Take it from the God told me you’re my husband story in the book. You never want to talk about anything serious such as marriage or children on the first date. Any conversation that emphasizes something permanent before you even get a chance to know enough about your date reeks too much of desperation. And that’s a quick and valid way to get your date out the door. Speaking about marriage is equivalent to showing up on your first date in a wedding gown or proposing on the first date. Even if marriage is your ultimate goal, it doesn’t have to be discussed on the first date. Yikes!
The Alternative: Talk about a second date. If the date is going really well, there’s no harm in suggesting another date in the near future. This lets your date know you are interested but not desperate.
Our ultimate tip: Reverse the roles for a bit and try to evaluate how you would react if you were sitting on the other side of the table. What crazy behavior would have you headed towards the door? Think about these things while on a date with a potential bae.
Check out https://allgoodjustaweekago.com/ to learn about kingdom relationships, plus funny dating stories that will have you rolling on your seats.
