🤔 What if months of cold approaching strangers kept you single and frustrated, but making new friends got you numbers? That's exactly what happened to Mrinal, a past client of mine 🤓 He's a nerd who plays D&D, learned Japanese to watch anime without subtitles, and spent months following mainstream dating advice that made him feel uncomfortable and inauthentic 💀

🌐 When we started working together, the first breakthrough was realizing that "real life is NOT a subreddit." While online spaces amplified his fears and made him think everyone would judge him, the real world was completely different. He joined an improv group's WhatsApp chat (terrified his first message would be ignored), went contra dancing, and discovered board game nights just minutes from his home. Places he'd convinced himself didn't exist or weren't for him 🎲

But here's the real transformation: Mrinal went from isolated and desperate to getting invited to 4 Halloween parties within only a couple of months of us working together 🎃 He's no longer afraid to left-swipe on dating apps for fear of missing out on a match. He's not desperately trying to get "whatever he can get." And most importantly? He stopped waiting for the "perfect fit" and just started showing up. Because those "imperfect" activities led him to the right people 🎯

💤 If you're tired of feeling like dating advice is keeping you single, or if you've been brave enough to try everything but nothing feels right, listen to Mrinal's story. Because sometimes the world is so much bigger than you think! 🌍

🎧 Press Start and learn what's possible when you Date Like A Nerd! 🤓

👾 WONDERING IF COACHING IS RIGHT FOR YOU?🕹️

Book a FREE Discovery Call!

https://www.datelikeanerd.com/player2/

📱 Have questions? Join me on Discord! https://www.datelikeanerd.com/discord

Related:

• How to Find Groups and Socialize as a Shy, Introverted Nerd (Step-By-Step Guide)
• I Surveyed 273 Nerds in Canada: Here's The Dating Strategy That Worked
• "You're Nice But I'm Not Interested" After Every First Date, Aaron's Nerd Dating Transformation
• The Hidden Cost of Finding Love With Red Pill Dating: John’s Nerd Love Story
• 'I'm Cooked' (Where to Find Dates After College), with Single Player Brandon

Timestamps for lazy nerds:

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:35:12 What Makes Him a Nerd
• 00:01:34 Life Before Coaching
• 00:06:04 Ashamed of Being a Nerd
• 00:08:34 Why Coaching
• 00:12:17 What Coaching Was Like
• 00:16:34 Starting to Socialize
• 00:20:40 Real Life Isn't a Subreddit
• 00:25:40 Dating Achievements
• 00:30:46 Socializing as an Introvert
• 00:37:28 Having Dating Standards
• 00:43:08 Stop Waiting For Perfection

#datelikeanerd #datingtips #datingadvice #dating #nerdlife #nerd #gamer #single #socialskills #podcast

Contact:
dm@datelikeanerd.com or
@datelikeanerd on social media

🫣 Meeting new people can be scary. That's why online gaming communities are a great way to start if you have Level 1 Social Skills and want to farm some XP! 👾

In this episode, I bring back Kaylee Lopez, an anthropologist who writes about gaming and game communities. We discussed why communities are important and how you can use them to level up your social skills IRL 💬

🏰 From self-esteem to safety, communities can serve many different purposes. Fortunately, whether they're online or in-person doesn't dramatically change the impact they can have on you. Having a group of people who want to be with you and support you can help you become more secure in yourself and with others 😎

🖥️ You can use online social spaces to try new social skills that you're too afraid to test in the real world. By giving your avatar the behaviours you'd like to have yourself, you can safely test what it would feel like to be someone different 🦸 Someone you want to be 🫅

You'll even get to see how people react, and how you can react to those reactions (and so on) 🤩 After rinsing and repeating, you'll start incorporating those characteristics into your real life. There are forms of therapy (including TTRPGs) that are based on this model. The fact that it's not "the real you" is irrelevant. You'll still grow and develop into the person you want to become 🙌

As time goes by and you start feeling more confident both in your skills and with the people in your community, you can go from text-based interactions to audio, video, and maybe even in-person meetings! 🤗

🫡 So what are you waiting for? Are you going to accept this new Quest? 🙂‍↕️

🎧 Listen now and start leveling up your social skills online! 🦾

👾 FREE GUIDE: WHERE NERDS REALLY MEET THEIR PLAYER 2 🕹️

Based on hundreds of surveys of nerd couples and singles. Download it at https://datelikeanerd.com/reality

📱 Have questions? Join me on Discord! https://www.datelikeanerd.com/discord

Related Episodes:

• Find Love Through Online Games, with Kaylee Lopez
• The Tolkien Association: Where to Meet Nerds, with Vir
• Gamify Your Dating Anxiety, with Michael Berger
• Find Your Nerd Community: Where to Meet Nerds, with Jose
• The Twitch Streamer on Discord, the Nerd Love Story of Luna and Jason
• Beat the Fear of Rejection Through Your Gamer’s Journey, with Dr. Daniel Kaufmann
• IRL Lessons from Video Games, with Dr. Daniel Kaufmann
• Dating In The Tolkien Association, with Jose
• How to Make Nerd Friends, with Pete “Belmont”

Timestamps for lazy nerds:

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:01:19 The Value Of Communities
• 00:03:46 Becoming Secure Through Communities
• 00:06:09 IRL vs Online Communities
• 00:08:09 How to Meet People in Online Games
• 00:10:35 Developing Social Skills
• 00:13:19 Who You Want To Be
• 00:15:00 Staying Safe
• 00:21:05 Contact

Contact:
dm@datelikeanerd.com or
@datelikeanerd on social media

🧐 How can you find a partner at a convention? The Date Like A Nerd surveys showed that conventions are one of the top places to meet nerds, and that real relationships do come out of those connections. In fact, Bimini and Riv's story proves that a convention crush can turn into something real, even when you think they're already taken, even across long distance, and even after starting out as friends 🤝

🎭 Bimini and Riv interacted briefly during a Hazbin Hotel cosplay sing-along. Riv had impressed Bimini with his cosplay and theatrical skills, so when she found out he would be attending the next day, Bimini bought a ticket just to see him again. But when she showed up... Riv mistook her male friend for a boyfriend! Both were disappointed after seeing the other's reaction 😱

📱 After the event, they stayed in touch as long-distance friends, unclear as to the others' feelings 🤨 This is a story of how misunderstandings can create unnecessary challenges, and how good communication can be the Special Skill to beat that Boss!

💕 If you've ever had a convention crush, worried about misreading signals, or wondered if you can be friends without getting friend-zoned, this episode is for you! Because sometimes a crush at a convention stays just that: a fun memory. But other times, if you're brave enough to take action, it can turn into something real 💘

🎧 Press Play and learn how nerd couples can form at conventions! 🦸‍♂️

👾 FREE GUIDE: WHERE NERDS REALLY MEET THEIR PLAYER 2 🕹️

Based on real-world nerd data. Download it at https://datelikeanerd.com/reality

📱 Have questions? Join me on Discord! https://www.datelikeanerd.com/discord

Timestamps for lazy nerds:

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:00:55 What Makes Them Nerds
• 00:01:36 The First Approach
• 00:05:14 "She Has a Boyfriend"
• 00:08:53 Not Reading The Signs
• 00:12:11 Clarifying Misunderstandings
• 00:13:19 Maintaining the Long-Distance Connection
• 00:14:45 Friendship and Attraction
• 00:18:18 Planning the First Date
• 00:21:09 The First Date
• 00:27:59 The Second Date
• 00:32:00 Keeping Online Connections Alive
• 00:36:47 Couples from Conventions
• 00:38:38 How to Meet Cosplayers

Contact:
dm@datelikeanerd.com or
@datelikeanerd on social media