If you’re thinking about “fading out” communication with someone you’re seeing, just be up-front instead.

Occasionally I see people who have definitively decided they’re not interested in seeing someone anymore and choose to “fade out” communication with that person until they get the message (e.g., saying that they’re really busy with work and can’t meet up, or just being slower to respond to texts generally). Under most circumstances, this way of communicating is ultimately unkind—you’re not sparing the feelings of the person on the receiving end; you’re distancing yourself from feeling like you’re hurting someone. Even though it’s not easy, it’s much more respectful of someone’s time and energy to be up-front and say that you don’t see the relationship going anywhere.