The Meet-Cute

A Message From Coach Bernadette

It's Valentine's Day and, once again, fabulous singles are being constantly “reminded” of their single status.

Don't let the Hallmark cards and heart-shaped chocolates get you down. February is actually a perfect time to reflect on the advantages of being single.

Singles are free to learn and grow in ways that women in relationships simply can't. Don't believe me? Here's a short list of things you'll learn about yourself only when you're single.

• You'll discover the importance of being your own best friend.

  Becoming comfortable in your own company may be one of the most challenging skills you will ever master. It may also have the greatest payout.

• You'll rediscover your sexuality.

  Heartbreak decimates egos and shatters self-esteem. Rediscovering flirtation, romance and attraction works wonders to heal your spirit.

• You'll fuel your passions.

  As a single, you'll have more free time to rediscover interests and hobbies. You'll have the time to go back and rediscover what brought you happiness. It'll expand your social circle with like-minded people.

• You'll learn how to become a confident, conscious dater.

  Compatible partners share lifestyle choices, habits, interests, core beliefs, and personal goals. They're attracted to one another, yes, but their attraction is based on a deep and meaningful connection that extends beyond an initial spark or a great first date. Discover your Top 5 Romantic Compatible Traits to recognize Cupid's pick as soon as he shows up!

Although it may seem that Cupid's a bit slow these days, once he finds that compatible guy to warm your heart, February will become hotter than July! In the meantime, get on with learning how to recognize, align, and capture your ideal compatible partner ASAP. If you're not sure how to get started, we're here to show you how!

You Deserve True Love,

Dating Tips

Are You A Flasher On A First Date?

The Flasher divulges negative personal information about herself on a first date, often without (consciously) realizing it.

This is typically labelled "baggage" and it lands with a resounding thud on the con side of the pro / con list your date is tallying up in their head.

Don't end being the "Yes, she was great but ..." girl after a first date! Get to know men better before you start to open up about your past. If you don't, most men will take a pass!

New Glossary of Modern Romance

Cuffing season? Meet-cute?

Chances are you've heard these terms being tossed around. There's also a good chance that you have absolutely no idea what they mean ...if you're anywhere north of 40, at least.

For women of a certain age, having conversations about modern romance can feel a bit like trying to decipher a foreign language.

But no worries, we've got your back! Here are some key terms and definitions to help you make sense of the New Glossary of Modern Romance.

Cuffing Season

Cuffing season is the period between early fall and late winter when everyone starts to shack up with the nearest half-decent single person to ward off loneliness and cold during the cooler months. Cuffing season typically implies a short-term, mutually-beneficial arrangement that's strictly seasonal, and it ends as soon as the leaves start turning green again.

Meet-Cute

A meet-cute is a scenario in which two individuals are brought together in some unlikely, zany, destined-to-fall-in-love-and-be-together-forever sort of way. These serendipitous encounters are a staple of romantic comedies ... and the inspiration for our newsletter!

Dating App Spotlight

All Star Fake Number

A fake number you can give out to annoying guys.

$0.00 (Free)

We've all been there.

You've tried multiple times to politely decline a guy's request for your number, but he just won't seem to take no for an answer.

There are almost as many solutions to this problem as there are single women, but one tried and true strategy is to slip our Annonyingly Persistent Friend a fake number.

How do you decide what number to give him though? There are so many possibilities ... and you don't want to just randomly recite a bunch of numbers and hope for the best.

Well, thanks to Kyle Kelly-Yahner, a tech-savvy drummer from San Francisco, you now have the option of slipping your would-be Romeo a number that plays Smash Mouth's "All Star" on a constant loop!

(For those of you that aren't familiar with Smash Mouth, they had a couple of Top 40 hits back in the 1990's. See the video below.)

The number is 830-476-5664.

Add it to your contacts so you'll have it ready the next time you need it! That's a San Antonio area code, though, so be sure to have a back story ready in case there are any questions.

The Heart Beat

Facebook is getting into the online dating game, even as their PR woes surrounding user privacy continue to pile up.

Will disenchanted users come back to FB for its dating services ... even if it means sharing more personal data about themselves? Everyone seems to have an opinion on this one!

As online dating loses its stigma and dating apps become "the new normal," researchers are starting to run honest-to-God experiments to determine why singles prefer some dating sites over others.

Do people like to make their own choices? Or are they happy letting an algorithm do the matching for them? The answer might surprise you!

Artificial Intelligence ("AI") is re-shaping industries at an astounding rate, but can super-smart computers really help you find the one?

Plenty of start-ups are saying yes - but some observers are quick to point out that AI isn't without its drawbacks or problems.

Of course, other start-ups are using mice science from the 1970s to tout the benefits of DNA-based dating.

Maybe we should take all this futuristic stuff with a grain of salt?

Despite online dating's popularity, some studies are finding that people are lonelier than ever.

That's the bad news.

The good news? More and more lonely people are turning to matchmakers — both digital and human — to help them find companionship.

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