Lower Your Standards and Learn What Actually Matters

I often see posts where people rant over really small things. A recent example was that post about "good morning" texts being a turn off. I think people need to realize and accept that nobody will ever be perfect. You'll never meet someone who checks all of your little boxes—and if you did, you probably wouldn't check all of theirs.

As Dan Savage is fond of saying, you won't find the "one." You should look for someone who is close to the one and round up.

A lot of this comes from the "paradox of choice" that is a hallmark of dating today. So many people here seem to throw in the towel at the slightest sign that a potential partner doesn't meet all of their requirements, because there are so many other people to "try." But ask any person in a happy, long term relationship, and they'll tell you there are things about their partner that irritate them. That's just how human relationships work.

My advice: figure out what actually matters to you. What are those things that are legitimate deal breakers? Accept that there will be some things about a potential partner that aren't exactly what you want. It's like buying a house: maybe you don't like kitchen counter tops, but everything else is great and you have a budget so you make it work.