Clubbing. Heavy drinking. Facebook stalking. All sorts of dating habits were considered okay—well, kind of—when you were younger. Because you were young and didn’t know any better, right? But now that you’re older, those habits from your 20’s have got to go. People’s life priorities have changed and you need to adjust your dating tactics accordingly, lest you get left behind with all of the other people who still think copious amounts of fart jokes are funny.
Take a look at these 10 bad gay dating habits you need to lose by age 30 and see what we mean!
Don’t Stalk The Guy Online
Long gone are the days where it was kind of sort of maybe okay for you to Google the guy’s name or comb through all of his old Facebook photos soon after you met. Now you’re just being creepy. Online stalking is only somewhat acceptable when you’re younger because it’s assumed that you don’t really know what you’re doing yet. But now that you’re older, you realize that any and all information you should learn about someone should come directly from that person’s mouth. It’s respectful.
Don’t (Always) Put Your Budding Career First
When you were younger, it was okay for you to be working hard to make something of yourself professionally. But now that you’re older, you should have enough basic success in that field to finally slow down. If you keep focusing on your work, you’re going to lose what time you have for dating.
Don’t Make The Relationship The Focus Of Your Life
Likewise, your relationship shouldn’t be your only focus, either. Your life needs to be kept in balance or else one of your realms—professional, romantic, cordial, familial—will eat the other ones alive.
Don’t Get Caught Up In Your Exes
They’re in the past, so leave them there. If you genuinely want to stay friends with some of them, that’s fine. But don’t drag their names into every conversation or topic, especially ones associated with your current man.
Don’t Be Obnoxious
A wacky sense of humor can be great, but don’t be swearing your head off or making fart jokes all night. Some guys will find that funny, but plenty won’t. Make sure you know your date’s humor before getting into the more obnoxious stuff.
Don’t Drunk Text
Drunk texts are the most irritating things to receive. The only time they’re acceptable is when you’re requesting a ride so you can get home safely. But you shouldn’t be drinking that much anymore, anyway. You’re 30. It’s time to find new ways to have fun with your friends or beau that won’t destroy your liver.
Don’t Waste Your Time On Someone Who Isn’t Interested
Don’t pine after unrequited love. It does nobody any favors. It irritates the person in question, makes you feel like a loser, and keeps you from finding a guy who will actually appreciate you. Learn to tell the signs of someone who just isn’t romantically interested in you and find someone who actually has good taste.
Don’t Focus On Flaws
With you getting older, you’ve probably noticed that you don’t quite look or act exactly how you used to. And that’s okay. Just don’t make what you consider to be your (or his) flaws the center of the universe. You both have much more to love about yourselves than a slowing metabolism.
Don’t Make Him Be A Mind Reader
Basically, don’t make him guess what’s wrong when you’re upset or are mad at him about something. It wasn’t okay when you were younger and it’s not okay now. Adults communicate if they want their relationships to last. They don’t play games.
Don’t Make Out With Someone In Public For Attention
It doesn’t matter if you’re drunk, getting revenge on your ex, or trying to catch the attention of the cute guy on the other side of the room. Acting like the precursor to the town bicycle can make people lose respect for you. Did you want to make out with someone in public because you like them, they like you, and you both felt like doing it? That’s fine. But if you’re doing it purely so other people can look at you, you still have a little growing up to do.
So how many of these sins have you been doing? How hard has it been to take them out of your dating scheme? Let us know in the comments!
