Fairly recently I went on a date with a girl I could see myself dating seriously. I was taken aback by some of her gestures. Firstly, she suggested to actually meet up (on hinge) within the first 5-6 messages, instead of sitting there chatting for two weeks like some girls want to do. Secondly, when I paid for lunch she was very adamant about treating me to lunch/dinner next (and also offered to split the check, which I declined) Thirdly, she took initiative by text a few days when we were talking about meeting up again, to suggest she join me on a specific day/time so I can show her one of my hobbies.

And I thought...damn, this feels so unusual because women quite frankly do NOT put this kind of effort into dating. Let's be honest...what do girls do when it comes to dating other than showing up and looking good? Their concept of effort is putting on makeup and a nice outfit. But men have to look presentable, groom, and dress well too. As a man you have to:

  1. Initiate the conversation. The entire concept of bumble is centered around women doing this, and it quite literally does not work. They virtually always just say "hey" or send a waving emoji or gif, and let the guy make an actual witty, funny or engaging opening message.

  2. Guys generally have to take initiative to suggest meeting up, and also plan the date. Self explanatory.

  3. There is a societal expectation that that men should pay. Or someone women will say "whoever asks should pay!" which is just code for: the guy should pay. Some women will offer to split the check, which is great, but if you don't offer to pay there's a fairly decent chance it will be off-putting to a girl.

  4. Men have to appropriately decide when escalate things physically, striking a balance between avoiding giving off friend vibes when you take too long to make a move, and still respecting a woman's boundaries.

  5. Men take on the burden of rejection in essentially everything dating-related.

  6. Women don't need to have game. If you've ever seen a woman trying to flirt in a manner that isn't sexual, it is a complete and utter trainwreck. If you took an average woman and magically turned her into a guy, she would have zero chance at getting laid. Here's part of a YT video where a woman tried to be a man on tinder where she demonstrates two things: a) she (and women in general) have zero game (opens with hi) and b) the women she was matching with put virtually no effort into trying to make a meaningful connection or having an engaging conversation.

On the topic of dating apps women always say men struggle because their pictures suck, their bios suck ect... well i'm on dating apps and so are a whole lot of men. Most women's profiles suck. I've seen women swipe and they wont glance at your bio unless they find you attractive to begin with, so bio is largely unimportant and can do more to hurt you than help you. Men take pictures with a dead fish sure, but women put multiple poor quality group pictures Their bios are also generally a red flag resume that give insight into their baggage.

I don't really take issue with some of the things I listed, like men being expected to approach or escalate physically. But as a whole, they have to put more effort in. Women generally just show up.

Lastly, here are a few excerpts of one of my favorite dating-related posts, that was removed by the delusional mods over at the cesspool that is r/dating, that very accurately illustrates what I'm discussing:

I have to make her laugh, witty banter with her, ask her out on a date, logistically plan the date, pay for the date, ask her out on a second date and so on

.

I have to break the touch barrier. That burden is on me. I have initiate the hugging, hand holding, kissing, making out and sex. If I fail to do so, in a limited window of time of usually a couple of dates, I 100 percent wake up to a text message saying "you're a great guy, but I'm just not feeling it is all." That window of time is real. If you're not at least making out by the 3rd date because you get caught up in your head, hello friend zone.