Five Tips for a Safe Date
More and more people meet online. The stigma previously associated with online dating has, for the most part, been lifted. Everyone online dates now. But dangers still lurk. For your safety and so that you may enjoy that first face-to-face encounter, here are five simple to remember tips to have safe date.
Meet Your Date in Public
Meeting for the first time may be thrilling, but when meeting anyone for the first time, one should be cautious. On the Web, anyone can claim to be anyone else. Late night chats or not, you cannot know who you know until you meet him/her face to face. Aside from checking a face against a profile picture, one must also be cautious that a person matches up to his/her online personage. Never allow your online date to pick you up from your home; never let anyone online know where you live even. Public spaces are the best meeting venues, and a double or group date will also ensure your safety.
Pay Your Own Tab
Though many men will insist on paying, and though many women will insist that the men do pay, when first meeting your online companion in person, going Dutch is the best idea. Money spent on a date has a way of coming attached with strings. Avoid the erroneous expectation by nipping what creates its in the bud. Take care of your own tab.
Do Not Over-Serve Yourself
Alcohol is an easy choice to squelch your nerves, and on a first date, your nerves are jumping to say the least. However, alcohol impairs judgment. Though it is best to avoid alcohol on a first date, or even on the first few dates, if you do imbibe, do so responsibly. Decide your limit while sober, and keep to it. If beer affects you less powerfully, drink beer rather than liquor. If a third drink sends you over the edge traditionally, stay at two drinks or even one. Always keep your drink in sight to avoid harmful additions. This means that you buy your own drink. If your date does buy, make sure that your drink passes straight from the bartender’s hand to yours. In addition to your safety, your tolerance guarantees that you and your date both will leave with a clearer sense of your meeting.
Stay Safe on the Date
After you have met your date and spent an hour or so with him/her, do not let your guard down. Keep fast to your rules. Do not divulge your address, do not leave a public space for a secluded one, and do not relax your drinking limits. Always remain alert.
Trust Your Gut
Though these tips serve to help you make the best decisions while on a first date, the best advice-giver is your gut. Do not second-guess any misgivings you may have about your date. If it feels wrong, it is. If he/she gives information contrary to your Web profile, for example, do not allow him/her to smooth talk him/herself out of it. If the date sours for you or if you feel unsafe at any time, cut your losses. Go home and try again.
Your safety is the most important key to your happiness. Do not forfeit it in one fleeting moment, caught up in the fairy tale of romance. Online dating is a viable source to find love, but love is, as always, evasive.