Want to catch the man/woman of your dreams? Let's talk about some helpful profile & dating tips...

First, build a winning profile.

Your profile is one of the two key elements that will determine if a person emails you. Thus it's important to make sure that your profile is lively, fun, and positive. Avoid negatives (I'm lonely, I can't believe I'm doing this)and other "regretful" statements (I only made a profile because so-and-so told me to) at all costs. If someone is here looking at your profile, they're here for the same reasons.

The first step before editing your profile would be to examine other existing profiles and determine what about it makes you more or less interested. Modify those things to fit your profile and really showcase yourself (personality, things you enjoy doing, things you want to learn/experience).

Make sure to make a great first impression via your text. Not to go back to our grade school days but be sure to use proper capitalization, grammar, punctuation and spell check your work! You can always type your profile in Microsoft Word and then copy and paste it into the blank fields. If you have a broken CAPS LOCK key please fix it (don't type in all capitals or LiKe ThIs, NoT oNlY iS iT AnNoYinG tO rEAd but really doesn't reflect well upon you). Make sure to really put effort and thought into what you're saying to your potential mates. You want to write enough that someone has interest in getting to know you yet not too much that they already know your life story. Read over what you've written at least a few times to make sure it reads well and doesn't have any errors.

If a person finds your profile interesting and not generic then you have increased your chances of someone showing interest in you. Make yours interesting! Don't feel overwhelmed - you can always go back and edit!

An interesting profile ALWAYS includes recent photos.

Let's face it and really be honest here... when doing a search on an online dating website (such as the one you're currently on) the first thing that grabs your attention is the photo. This is the single most important element to getting people to view that great profile you've written.

These days, generic photos won't cut it. You need to determine what colors look best on you, dress nice, and have someone take various photos of you that are fun and lively. Pick the best out of the bunch and keep updating them so you always have a current photo. General guideline on when to update is when you drastically change your look or at least once every so many months. Don't put all posed shots up though... make some of them candid and if you're given a chance to write what's going on or where you were in the photo - you should! Interesting photos and captions also provide for a great ice breaking opportunity to those who may be shy and not sure what to talk about.

Something so common sense but it needs to be said: always be respectful of others.

By learning to respect others, you enhance your character. Being respectful means not being lewd in communication and not "dropping off the face of the earth" when you move on. One of the biggest complaints received from online daters is from people who say the person they were communicating with just "disappeared" and stopped communicating. It's very disrespectful when you don't send a polite message letting other people know that you are moving on. Even if the message just says "thank you for the interest but I don't feel we're a great match," "thanks for your interest but there isn't a spark there for me" or something to that effect. Nobody likes to be rejected but rejection is a part of dating life. As long as you are courteous and gentle about the situation, all will end well with the least amount of feelings hurt.

Last for today's list is: avoiding all types of lies.

In the world of online dating, white lies take on many forms, including: posting a photo more than nine months old without having an updated one; lying about your age; lying about your income; lying about your job. The simple fact is that you are likely looking for your soul mate, so at some point in the dating relationship, those lies will come back to haunt you in some shape or form. Always be honest and truthful in everything you say and post. By always telling the truth, you'll never have to remember what you said!

Now, go get yourself caught or find a good catch! ;)