by Annaleise Getley

Created on: February 05, 2009   Last Updated: February 14, 2009

So you've finally found someone that you REALLY like, but you can't read the signals between the two of you and you don't know if and when you should ask them out... so what do you do? Close to all of my 'taken' friends tell me that they hate dating, many of them have never been on a date before and hate the idea of ever going on a date! Don't let this deter you, dating is as important to your love life as it is to your confidence and self esteem. So, If this special someone you have your eye on isn't connected to you via a circle of friends or a family friend, if they don't work with you or live in the same suburb it can be incredibly difficult to get to know them! Regardless of what anyone tells you, if you are even moderately worried about being rejected my advice would be do not ask a complete stranger out unless you have spoken to them at least once or twice before! The practical way to approach asking someone out (Think of how you would ask your perfect stranger out, and what you would say, then imagine that in real life they actually said and did that to you?". If that idea frightens you or makes you uncomfortable chances are that's how your love interest will feel when you ask them out).

Personally I am someone who will draw a situation out until I know that the odds of receiving a 'yes' or a 'no' are equal in chance! It is unlikely however that you have enough time to do this, especially if you only see your man/woman once or twice a week and your conversations are restricted to "hi" or "thanks, have a nice day". A good way to think of it is, as humans we love to hear nice things about ourselves, it doesn't matter how attractive you are or feel if you muster up the courage to ask someone out regardless of who they are, the fact that you showed that kind of interest in them will be flattering guaranteed. No one likes being rejected, but sometimes the person you like is more afraid than you are, and if your too proud to make a move chances are you'll miss your chance!

You've probably been given the advice, 'Don't mention the word 'date' when you ask someone out'. Whilst this is actually good advice as it allows you to begin your relationship with your stranger on a friend basis, allowing you to get to know them before you enter a romantic situation, it can also backfire. I used the "would you like to have a drink with me sometime" line once and it got a positive answer, what everyone wants to hear 'yes'... then a week later after no date I received the

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