"Dating Humor - Asset or Detriment?"

Funny is important. And keeping your dating humor honed can salvage a good number of desperate situations.

You know the ones we’re talking about – that awkward silence on the phone when he says, “Gawd, I can’t stand women who paint their nails allll the time,” as you, that very minute, are dipping the brush in your new little bottle of Hot for Chocolate to spruce up your phalanges.

You could think, “Jerk!” and get off the phone before he rags on any of your other favorite pastimes.

Or, you could say, “Guess it’s a good thing you can’t smell the varnish over the phone then…” Bah-dum-bum. Chhh!

But you get what we’re saying, right? Humor can save the day. Humor can turn a bad situation into a good situation. Humor is just super-fabulous and it can be your best friend every day of your life, not just when you need a save during a date, a phone call, an IM conversation.

Getting Funny About Online Dating Humor
Humor is one of those things that, in their online dating profile, almost everyone claims to have in spades as one of their fantastic qualities. Yet, when they write their bio, it’s bo-ring. That’s OK. That doesn’t mean they aren’t funny, and it certainly does not imply that they can’t appreciate funny. They may just think cyberspace isn’t the place for their jokes, they’re cautious about letting their sometimes questionable sense of humor out of the box, or maybe they’re better at the verbal rather than written mish-mash.

Whatever the case, if someone’s profile isn’t all that ha-ha-ho-ho-hee-hee, try not to hold it against them.

On the opposite spectrum is the online dater who puts everything out there… the annoying Carrot Tops and over-the-top Howard Sterns of the world. The ones who seem to have no social inappropriateness alarm, heaven help ‘ya.

It’s super-easy for words to be misunderstood when they’re spoken face-to-face and you’re able to read so-and-so’s expression, see their body language, and hear their tone of voice. But these incredibly valuable clues are eliminated in online dating.

So that crack about religion? It might not be so funny online…

That slightly misogynistic joke? Not such a riot without the hand gestures…

You get the picture. Getting across what you want to say in words is important in online dating. The person you’re communicating with doesn’t know you very well. Whether you have a point to make or a joke to crack, they won’t automatically hear your sarcasm or realize you’re being funny (or serious).

Censoring the Dating Humor
We absolutely encourage you to show off that sense of humor and quick wit, but be attentive to the person you’re communicating with and, for pete’s sake, reread what you’ve written before you hit “reply” or “send.” Make sure your message is actually conveying what you want it to say.

The opposite of the comic relief dater who fancies themselves the next break-out stand-up comedian is the stiff-as-a-board, on-my-best-behavior dater. When you censor yourself, you spend too much time thinking about how to hold yourself back. You don’t have to let it all hang out, but you shouldn’t wrap yourself up with twine to avoid embarrassment.

Listen, whoever you meet online, once you finally meet offline and start dating you’re not going to be able to hold back who you really are. So why try to be someone you’re not when you’re in cyberspace?

We highly suggest that you avoid vulgarities or off-color jokes. Be considerate of other peoples’ feelings and opinions. And anytime you fear your dating humor will fall flat, don’t be afraid to throw an LOL or LMAO or ROFL in there for good measure.

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