#Datingquestion: Is it better to date your friend?

Last Update : January 31, 2020 by Zoe

Is there a secret for a perfect relationship? and do romantic relationships based on an initial friendship start with an advantage?

Indeed, that’s a very popular dating question.

Friendships can be amazing, but would you endanger it by mixing it with romance?

Many people claim that romantic relationships that started with a solid friendship can turn into meaningful long-lasting love relationships. Hence, the popularity of serious dating sites.

Let’s delve into it!

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Mixing friendship with love: the secrets of dating a friend

What does it really mean to have a meaningful relationship?

If we understand that a romantic meaningful relationship is one based on trust, understanding, respect, and knowing each other, then it becomes easier to see why a friendship can be quite similar to a great romantic relationship.

After all, a successful relationship is one in which both partners know each other at their best and…at their worst.

Knowing the flaws of your partner can have lots of benefits: you can be more supportive, you can also understand why sometimes your partner might react in a certain way, you can anticipate the needs of your relationship, and most importantly, you can avoid falling into toxic criticism.

One of the most important keys for a successful relationship is to avoid changing the other person, but rather trying to grow and evolve together.

It might be easy to say, but it’s not so easy to do….

However, the basis of a great friendship is: respect, acceptance and support. Those are the three main characteristics that make a romantic relationship great.

Sometimes, the problem, when people start dating, is that they do not show at first their true face. After all, it’s the game of seduction.

But by not showing all the parts of your persona, it can have a direct effect on the nature of your relationship: it means that arguments can be harder and that certain characteristics of your partner can suddenly become a surprise.

How to date your friend

If you’ve got a great friendship that you feel could evolve romantically speaking, that’s great news!

However, the first steps you will take towards romance will be very important to avoid losing that friendship.

That’s why I recommend you to check certain signs to gauge if your friend might be ready to discover romance with you:

1.Flirt and gauge reactions

One of the best ways to know if you really want to start to date your friend and/or if your friend might be interested in something more is to flirt.

Indeed, flirting can be very subtle, but if you are attentive, you can start to analyze if the other person is responding well to your flirting.

If you see that the flirting goes well (your friend flirts back), then you’ve passed the first step!

Flirting should be really subtle at first, and the more positive the attitude of your friend is, the more you should gradually increase your flirt.

2. Be honest about your feelings and expectations

As I mentioned before, one of the main pillars of friendship is honesty. While it can be a bit abrupt to suddenly tell your friend that you’d like to date her/him, if you’ve done some flirting and it has worked, it could be the time to start speaking openly.

The best way to do it is to share your love expectations, generally speaking, to gauge if you two seem to share the same thoughts.

It is also great to share how comfortable your friend makes you feel and how you enjoy spending time with him/her.

By being honest, you’ll make sure that you’re both on the same page.

3.Create your own rules

One of the best things about dating your friend is that you already know each other. So there’s no pressure to get to open yourself to another person. You don’t need to pretend, you don’t need to hide your feelings or your emotions.

However, it is important if you decide to start to date, that you both create your own romantic rules. It means that you shouldn’t try to change your previous dynamics as friends.

On the contrary, if you manage to keep those same dynamics and you add an extra layer to your friendship (the romantic one), you’ll be able to enjoy a wonderful experience.

As such, if you’re lucky enough to be able to develop a great friendship into a romantic adventure, you’ve already achieved a great journey.

That’s exactly why so many serious dating sites have become so popular. They give a great opportunity to singles to get to know new people: to chat, to share their interests and to develop a friendship before even going on a date.

Friendship is undoubtedly one of the most important elements of a romantic relationship.

So if you already have that on your side, my friend, you’re already on the winning side of love!