Dating Salon

Last updated: September 13, 2024

I’m in a group of hot single people and we’re talking about dating.

One of the women asks “How can I be approached by men more often?”

I’ll tell you 2 things I heard that amazed me:

1. She was shocked to find that wearing headphones at the cafe makes guys less likely to come talk to her
2. Women want guys to give their number so the women have the option to text

For example the guy would say “Can I give you my number?” and then if the woman was interested she would text him.

But some women hated this idea.

They felt like it put too much pressure on them to text first.

I wonder what’s best?

Then my friend Courtney told us 3 things women can do when they’re walking around town to get approached more often.

I will tell you what she said.

But first let me tell you what’s going on.

We’re meeting to talk about dating and relationships.

My friend Cody is hosting us at his home and Courtney is my event cohost.

These dating conversations are my new favorite event format.

Think of our Dating Salon as a lively discussion meets group therapy for singles.

A salon is traditionally a gathering for intellectual discussion.

But my Dating Salon takes this concept and applies it to modern romance.

It is a safe space where singles can openly share experiences and learn from each other.

For example, if you’re a woman who wants to get approached more often when you’re walking around the city…

My cohost Courtney says you can do these 3 things:

1. Don’t wear sunglasses
2. Walk slower
3. Smile and make eye contact for a few seconds

And guys can compliment a woman on something they’re wearing. The women generally said they appreciate that.

My biggest problem right now is that I’m still figuring out how to describe these events to people.

Calling it a “Singles Event” or a “Singles Salon” or even a “Dating Salon” is a bit confusing.

So I have a branding problem. I don’t really know what to call these.

Any ideas are appreciated!

But here’s what I do know:

People LOVE these gatherings!

One woman sent me a Thank You message this morning.

She said “That was incredible—I opened up, learned so much, and can’t wait for the next one”.

I get tons of these messages whenever I host a Dating Salon.

I think that is because finding a romantic partner isn’t easy.

And a lot of folks are burned out with dating apps.

But they’re still lonely and they want to get married.

So these dating salons create some neat new dialogue.

They foster real connections too.

My events aren’t intended to be matchmaking events but a lot of people swap info.

Some even go out on dates later.

After the dating salon we hosted a Happy Hour and invited a bunch of other people to come hang out.

That’s where we took this group photo.

But back to the dating stuff for a minute.

I split everyone into small groups for discussions and put a moderator in each group.

Here are the 5 topics that people voted to talk about:

1. Vulnerability: How to communicate feelings
2. Green Flags: Ideal Partner Qualities
3. Meeting People IRL: How to confidently approach someone in public
4. Assessing Emotional Maturity: Looking for empathy and self-reflection
5. Intention and Relationships: Do you know why you’re dating?

Good topics right??

The conversations were raw. Honest. Sometimes funny and vulnerable.

If you want to try hosting your own dating salon, I wrote a step-by-step blog post about everything I’ve learned from hosting these.

I will host a few more of these events.

And if these catch on… 

The next chapter of your love story might just start at a salon like this.

You never know who you might meet or what you can learn.

Special thank you to Alexander Scott Felice for these amazing photographs.

THE END

Hi from Nick! Originally published on Twitter / X. I’ve been doing these interviews/events with people and posting them on my Instagram and Twitter / X. I’ll add some others into the Profiles category. Leave me a comment if you liked this and I’ll try to add some more.