Karli Cadel / Staff Photographer

First dates can be gruesome. From the moment you sit down for dinner, you’re already preparing yourself to survive the interview-like meeting. And before you give the person a chance to break the first-impression mold, you have already potentially put them into a category: “friend,” “hook-up,” “girlfriend / boyfriend” or “none of the above.”

For singles who are looking for their special partner, the ritual of sizing up a first date often leads to losing interest without seeing the potential for a second or third date.
Consequently, the vicious cycle of serial first dates persist.

For those who want to move away from serial dating to finding love, it starts with your dating mind-set.

You’re no Cinderella
We all want to wait for the “sparks” and “magic” when meeting a potential new mate. And if it can happen for Cinderella and every other girl in a romantic comedy, why can’t it happen to me, right? But waiting for this fairy-tale love will often leave us feeling let down because of the unrealistic expectations associated with the “perfect couple” image. Rather, these expectations often end up being the source of our disappointment, which leads us to search elsewhere to fill the desperate void we have crafted in our minds.

Enjoy the moment
Nothing is more tiresome than flooding your mind with questions such as “Where is this going?” or “What does he think of me?” while out on a date. By doing this, you are focusing on details that are unnecessary for a first date 8212; your intense vibe may even be scaring your date off. By simply calming down and appreciating the first date for what it is, you can allow yourself to enjoy the moment and the person you are with. You may even find that first dates are enjoyable when the complicated questions are left at home.

Give the frog a chance
You don’t always have to kiss a frog to make him a prince. Rather, give the frog, or a guy you never thought you could see yourself with, a chance. While no guy is perfect, they all deserve a chance to grow on you, or at least a second date. If you discard them after the first date, you may never know how funny or compassionate he is, which would have possibly won you over. Getting to know someone takes more than a couple of hours on a date, so take a chance and give him two or three more tries.

Singles who tend to be serial daters may have high expectations for those who they allow to be more than a first date. If you are single and desperate to ditch the first date ritual and find that special someone, you may want to re-evaluate your methods of finding that person. Whether it’s your ego or high expectations holding you back from moving on to the second date, it’s time to listen to your heart and take a chance on the guy you thought had no potential.

8212;Nicole Callas is a communications and political science senior.

8212;This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec.