3 Tips for a Great First Date

There’s nothing like the sense of possibility and excitement after a great first date. The feeling before the date, however, can be a little more nerve-wracking. You don’t know what the night ahead of you has in store, and you don’t yet know what kind of chemistry you might have with your date. You could be meeting the love of your life, or it could be another awkward dud, but you’ll never know if you don’t go find out.This not knowing, as exciting as it can be anxiety inducing, is the beauty of a first date. The best dates are the ones that unfold organically and leave room for spontaneity. As important as it is to lead with your sense of curiosity walking into a date, it helps to be intentional about putting your best foot forward. Here are a few tips for a great first date that will be full of good surprises:

Tip #1: Stop trying to be interesting, and get interested

You can talk about yourself, your accomplishments, and your dreams all day, but an actual connection between two people is a two-way street. For someone to feel connected with you, they have to feel like they know you and also like you know them. So get to know them!
This means listening. This means asking interesting questions and exploring ideas together. Anyone will seem boring if you ask them boring questions, so think a little outside the box in terms of your questions, and you’re bound to get answers that are a little more intriguing than the norm.

Tip #2: Plan other exciting activities that week

Planning other exciting activities for the same week as your date has several benefits: it will take some mental pressure off of the outcome of the date, make for good conversation on the date, and communicate to your date that you’re the type of person who does fun and interesting things. Also, if all goes well, you can seamlessly invite your date to come with you to an event for date number two later that week.

Tip #3: Wear something that makes you feel sexy

Putting some thought and effort into how you dress matters. Not just because how you present yourself is the first impression someone will have of you, but also because it affects how you feel, which in turn affects your confidence and how you act. When dressing for a date, you don’t need to overly curate an outfit, or even dress up, but put some thought into what you wear on a date and make sure it’s something that makes you feel comfortable, confident, and sexy.

So get out there, dress the part, line up exciting things in your schedule, ask interesting questions, and let yourself be pleasantly surprised.