How to Make First Dates Less Awkward
First dates can cause a lot of anxiety and discomfort for even the most outgoing personality. Some small changes which may help to ease the situation are:
Getting to the location early: This can help you to feel comfortable in the environment around you rather than feeling on edge or possibly feeling eager or anxiety about running late. Take in a deep breath as you get to the destination and locate a space that feels comfortable and easy to see someone. This also allows you to take in anything that may feel distracting around you, and gives you control over whether you need to relocate yourself to be able to focus on the other person.
The purpose of a first date: What is the purpose of a first date? Really, it's determining if there is enough interest for a second date. Allowing space to hear the other person, showing interest towards them and noticing if there is allowance for you to share as well. Simply highlighting aspects of someone's profile can be enough to establish and kick off a conversation. If they mention humor, what type of humor or movies do they watch? If travel is mentioned, what is the next destination in mind and have any plans been established in the near future for a visit? Do they like to do city tours or relax and spontaneously explore a new environment? It's less important to look for similarities but to remain curious about this person and being able to decide if there is enough interest for you to go on yet a second date. Are they interesting? Be weary of measuring chemistry, as that is something that can grow over time as you start discovering more about the person and is less of an indicator of compatibility long term.
Get active: If you already have difficulty breaking into conversation and flow with another person, chose to do something active on the first date to allow you to focus on other things and not put as much emphasis on staring across the table from one another. Take a walk around a lake, go on an easy hike, or take a walk in the park together. They don't have to be five-star resorts and sometimes the active dates can be more interactive and feel less like an interview.
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