One of the most important things when it comes to dating (whether that’s offline or online dating) is your self-confidence. If you’re not confident in yourself, it’s going to be a serious challenge to get anyone to like you. If your online dating profile is self-deprecating and points out every fault you have and every sin you’ve ever committed, you’re not going to draw a huge amount of interest. That doesn’t mean you need to be full of yourself and egotistical, but it does mean you need to recognize your strong points and build on them. Here are some ways you can go about increasing your online dating confidence.
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Decide whether you’re ready to date. If you’ve just come out of a relationship, you might need some time for your broken heart and bruised ego to heal. Take the time you need. Figure out what you don’t like about yourself. It might seem counter-intuitive, but this exercise is important. Figure out those things about you that you don’t like, and that other people may not like either. Make positive changes. You aren’t going to go from zero to hero overnight. However, if you can identify one or two small areas and make a positive, consistent change, you’ll be surprised just how quickly your confidence builds. Dress for success. The old saying goes that “the suit makes the man.” If you wear wrinkly t-shirts and sweatpants all the time, you’re going to feel like a bum. If you wear stylish clothes that fit well, you’re going to feel better about yourself. Get in shape. Sure, you might need to lose 50 pounds. You’ll be surprised, however, how much your confidence grows if you lose just 10 pounds. Join a gym, or establish some other sort of regular exercise regimen. You never know, you might even meet someone while you’re at the gym! Identify negative influences. There are some folks in your life who just seem to drag you down. You don’t need to drop them off your radar entirely, but you do need to try to spend less time with them. Instead, focus on hanging out with positive people who will help build you up and encourage you as you adventure into online dating. Learn the lessons of failure. If you’re not having luck with online dating, don’t beat yourself up. Instead, identify specific missteps –- such as a bad profile picture or inappropriate comments -– and avoid them going forward.