[riffraff]

FWIW, I do think there are similarities between dating and RPGs that I wish I had understood before

* you can improve your character: confidence is important, if you feel ugly sometimes you can do stuff about it (i.e. go to gym). Ditto if you are a boring talker, or if you are a poor listener.

* grind. If you are, like I was, a guy that has a couple hours on a weekend to meet a new possible date it's hard to find the "right" one. Try to increase the chances (go out more, frequent new places) and do try more.

[gargarplex]

This is fair enough and true. Back when I was in my early twenties and late teens I used to grind all the time (going out to bars and talking to women). And although I experienced more than my fair share of rejection/disinterest, I achieved plenty of success and abundance.

These days I am just lazily sending out messages on OKCupid. And when I do go out to bars, I almost never approach.

So the "grind" reminder is totally fair.