A prevalent complaint many people on dating apps have when they meet someone of interest for the first time in real life, is that the person’s dating profile photos don’t represent what said person looks like.

Sometimes, as a person who is looking to upload photos to a dating profile, you aren’t thinking about how representative your photos are of you in present day.

You are primarily concerned with uploading the best looking photos of yourself even though you aren’t realistically representative of those photos.

Please take a moment to look over your photos before uploading them to your online dating profile.

Doing this saves you from misrepresenting yourself to a prospective date, leading to a colossal waste of time for both parties.

I know, it feels good to post photos of yourself from a few years ago when you were less heavy, younger and had better hair.

Don’t do that.

Even a photo from a year ago isn’t guaranteed to be representative of what you realistically look like in present day.

Look at your photos very carefully.

Only post photos to your dating profile that are representative of what you look like now.

Have a neutral person look at your photos.

This is someone who doesn’t know you that well or a complete stranger.

Unlike a family member or close friend, a neutral person is less likely to be influenced by emotions.

You have a better shot at getting an honest answer from them as far as how representative your photos are to what you look like now.

Your photos are the most influential part of your dating profile.

Most people don’t bother reading a dating profile before looking at a person’s photo.

Deceptive photos that make you appear to be more attractive than you are in present day gets their attention, but won’t keep it, once they discover that you no longer look like that.

No, it doesn’t matter that you spent several weeks chatting with them online building rapport.

The moment they meet you in real life and discover that you are heavier, shorter, older, etc., than your photos, they aren’t going to care that they spent the last several weeks getting to know you online, they are instantly disappointed by your appearance.

If you are worried that you don’t look as good as you did when your photos were taken, consider whether this is something fixable.

Having gained a few pounds since those photos were taken, would you be open to losing those pounds over the next few months and setting online dating aside for now?

Having visibly aged since those photos were taken, would you consider consulting a dermatologist who has the expertise to put you on a skin treatment that rejuvenates aging skin?

None of this is a must.

Regardless of your weight, age, height, etc., someone out there among the myriads of people on online dating apps is going to connect with you romantically.

But be realistic.

If you are looking to connect with someone who looks like a supermodel, they expect you to look the part in kind or bring something else of equal value to the table, whether it be in wealth or status.

Online dating isn’t a miracle worker.

As in real life, when you are online dating, you attract people on your level.