Super Practical and Useful First Date Tips, According to 10 Men

First dates are The Worst. It's likely you’re both nervous, you’re both awkward, and you’re both sussing out whether or not you’ll need a friend to “call with a major emergency” in the next 30 minutes. But the good news is that a great first date makes all of the bad ones worth it. (Most of the time.)

So what is it that makes a first date great? Depends who you’re asking. It really is all relative, meaning what works for you might not work for your bestie or sister. Even more so: What you say to one dude might not be what you want to say to another. So yeah, consider first dates to be a hard thing to navigate.

But personally, I think one of the biggest issues with first dates is we never know what the other person is thinking. My thoughts are always like: Are they into it? Will they be offended if I ask them this personal question? What will they think when I tell them I ate an entire pizza yesterday? Etc.

So to help with the first-date jitters, we asked men on any and all first date advice they can provide for women. Because sometimes a peek into the male brain is all we need to feel relaxed.

But just as a helpful disclaimer: Know that you don’t need to change or do anything different when going on a date. Look and feel however you feel most confident, and don’t change that for a man, no matter what they say their preferences are.