6 Little Things Women Do That Give Men The 'Ick'
Did he never call you after the first date? Here are some potential reasons why.
AaronAmat | Canva Learning to let the little things go is not in the cards for these men — especially when it comes to first dates. What caused them to call it quits before things even had a chance to get started?
Here are 6 little things women do that give men the 'ick':
1. Debating for the sake of debate
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"A girl in college that I was on a date with once asked if I thought cheerleading was a sport. I said yes since it fell under the Athletic department. For the rest of the night, she kept bringing it up, completely off-topic. For example, when I asked what she wanted to eat she said, 'Well, what do cheerleaders eat to prepare for their sport?' When I took her home, I said goodnight, and she said, 'You know it's not really a sport, right?'" —Mike, 31
2. Making rude comments
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"I was once on a first date with a girl who I thought was so sweet and kind-hearted, but when the waitress brought her the wrong drink by accident, she was so rude and belittling. I was embarrassed, and left the waitress an extravagant tip with a note that read 'sorry for her.' At the end of our date, I said, 'I don't think I'm the guy for you.'" —Joe
Quite a few CEOs have admitted to using business meals to perform a very particular test. “It’s hard to get a dozen CEOs to agree about anything, but all interviewed agree with “The Waiter Rule.”
They acknowledge that CEOs live in a Lake Wobegon world where every dinner or lunch partner is above average in their deference. How others treat the CEO says nothing, they say. But how others treat the waiter is like a magical window into the soul.”
3. Making off-color comments
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"I dated a woman whose hobby it was to paint pictures of women's bathing suits, and she suggested on our first date that orange was not a good color on me. I was wearing a burnt orange sweater. That date was one and done." —Mike, 53
4. Having bad table manners
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"Not knowing how to hold eating utensils properly. On top of the fact that it gets on my nerves, it also makes it next to impossible to bring a girl home to the family. Or even friends, for that matter." —Nick, 27
As it turns out, scoring a second date can be predicted by a single act: sharing food. At least that is according to psychologists at Leeds University, who have analyzed the dining habits of couples on the Channel 4 series First Dates. They compared 58 dates where couples shared food with 49 where they did not. Nearly all those who tasted each other’s dishes wanted to go on a second date – contrasting with 43% of those who did not share.
5. Excessively sneezing
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"I took a girl out on a date during the height of allergy season. I was willing to look beyond her sneezes, which were happening every 10 minutes or so until she accidentally sneezed right on me...and all over our dinner. I never called her again." —Caleb, 22
6. Disrespecting her own parents
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"I'm already annoyed when I'm on a date with a girl and she's checking her phone the entire time, but I gave this girl the benefit of the doubt when she apologized and said, 'I should take this, it's my mom.' The way she spoke to her mom was condescending, and I wasn't interested in seeing her after that." —James, 27
First dates will naturally feel awkward or tricky, so don’t worry if you’re feeling jitters or anxiety beforehand. While avoiding specific conversations is helpful, the most important thing is to be yourself and try to get to know the other person.
“Remind yourself that this person has agreed to meet you for a date because something is interesting about you,” licensed professional counselor Bonnie Scott says. “They want to be there and are feeling excitement about the potential of this interaction.”
Danielle Page is a writer and editor whose work has been featured on Woman’s Day, Bustle, Cosmopolitan, The New York Times, Thought Catalog, and Huffington Post.