Dating Friends – Asking out a Friend
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Asking out a friend is risky. At first you might think that it would be less gut wrenching than asking someone you don’t know well. This makes sense at first, but you have to remind yourself what is at stake. When you ask a stranger on a date, you can forget their response quite quickly, but if your friend says no, you will likely lose the friendship. Try considering alternatives. Go check out some of the best dating sites on the web and see if anyone catches your eye.
Dating friends is a question that comes up again and again because it has obvious upsides. You already know your friend well and you feel you understand them. You are surely compatible on some level or you would not be friends.
One of the most difficult things to understand when asking out a friend is that even if they say yes, there could still be problems. This sounds obvious, but really it isn’t. The fact is that they might say yes purely because they don’t want to hurt you. It will probably be easy for you to see whether you are getting a YES or a yes based on their tone of voice and body language. If you feel that they aren’t fully committed it might be a good idea to back out and try to convince them it was a strange joke. You will be amazed how generously people forget minor awkwardness.
Another thing to remember is that even if you do succeed there will still be some weirdness between you. If you’ve ever dated someone before you’ll know there are all kinds of little things one usually does with a partner. All of these will be different when you date friends. Everything, at least at first, will feel slightly off because you will both be used to acting with each other in a certain way.
Over thinking is not the answer. Remember what I said earlier about considering alternatives. However, if you are sure, then go for it!
Dating friends can be very rewarding but only if you pull it off right. Think before you act and you will manage just fine.
