Okay, there are plenty of really great guys out there who are 100% honest and themselves on dates — but let’s get real, there are definitely some jerks out there as well. And the worst part is, you can’t always tell right away — some of the tricks guys pull are pretty obvious, and end up fooling women because of our own issues. But, some of them are surprisingly sneaky and will catch you unaware. They learn of a little trick from their friend or in a men’s magazine, and all of a sudden, they’re using it on some woman they’re trying to pick up at a bar. Now, we’re not saying you have to be suspicious of every move your potential partner makes — that just seems exhausting. However, you should probably be aware that there are a ton of guys out there who would pull just about any trick in the book out of their back pocket if it meant getting a little action. So, from playing with your emotions to playing with your self-esteem, here are 16 most cruel tricks that many women have unfortunately fallen victim to. Keep them in mind so you don’t get caught unaware. After all, you know what they say — fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.
Cruel Tricks That Women Have Fallen For While Dating.
“I’ve never met anyone like you”: flattery phrases that aren’t sincere
This is yet another trick that we’re pretty sure guys picked up from romantic comedies. Now, there’s a small chance that your guy may be sincere when he uses this line, but come on — it’s far more likely that he picked it up from a romantic movie scene and is trying to use it to get the same response that the actor got on screen. It’s always nice to pay someone a compliment, and sincere flattery can be really lovely, but more often than not, flattery like this just doesn’t ring sincere. However, when you’re a little blinded by a crush or are having a bad day or anything like that, sometimes it can come across as sincere and you’ll find yourself melting — which is exactly what he was trying to achieve.
“I’m totally cool with being just friends”: an attempt to get from friend zone to end zone
There are a lot of people who say that men and women can never be just friends — and to be honest, we totally don’t agree with that. However, it does help prove this particular trick. There are a lot of guys who want to date a woman, but will try to befriend her at first and assure her that all they’re interested in is being friends. Secretly, though, he absolutely wants to get with you — he’s just hoping that once he manages to make it into the friend zone, it’ll be easier to take the few steps required to get to the end zone. Meanwhile, the woman may be happily living her life, just thinking he’s a friend. It’s the premise of so many rom coms because it often happens naturally, when you suddenly realize you have feelings for someone you’re close with, but guys capitalize on that to try to manufacture that Hollywood happy ending.
“I’ve been going through a rough time lately”: playing with her sensitive side with a sob story
Okay, no woman is going to hook up with a guy just because she feels sorry for him. However, a lot of guys use this trick to excuse any questionable behavior. Perhaps they flaked on a date, or they want to skate over a particular area in their life. Perhaps they’re hoping that your mind will conjure up some rom-com worthy tale where the tortured soul and the bright, sunny woman fall in love and she changes him. Whatever the case, the guy using this trick isn’t telling you his story because he wants to be totally honest with you — he’s telling you his sob story because he’s hoping it will have some sort of impact that might sway you in his favor. It’s just playing with your emotions.
“I’m a one-woman man”: trying to sell the serious relationship when he just wants to hook up
Okay, this one is tough because there definitely are guys out there who are done with casual dating and hooking up and are absolutely looking for their soul mate. If that’s what he’s looking for, and that’s what you’re looking for, fantastic — you’re on the same page already. However, most guys know that the average woman doesn’t just want to be another hook-up on his list, and they’re obviously not going to tell you that they’re just interested in a night or two of fun. So, they’ll lie and say that they’re the kind of guy who loves being in a committed relationship, who loves being devoted to one woman, even if it couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s yet another lie that he’s using to try to get you.
“Girl, are you hitting on me?”: turning the tables
This is a major way to mess with a woman’s mind, and it’s just not cool. Now, for a really long time, it was kind of accepted practice that the guy would make the first move. Women were to be pursued — men were to be the pursuers. Things have gotten a lot more equal, and women are often comfortable asking a guy out themselves or being the one who steps up at first. However, if you’re the type of woman who thinks a guy should be the one to make the first move, this trick can be super sneaky. A guy, even if he’s interested in you, will be aloof and try to make it seem like he’s not, simply in order to get you to seek his approval and impress him. It’s basically making you jump through hoops, and it’s awful.
“Who, her?”: provoking some major jealousy
Again, the easiest way to manipulate someone is by playing with their emotions, and this tactic definitely does that. Now, there are some women who may not be that affected if their crush mentions he totally digs the hot bartender at the restaurant you’re at. However, many guys use this tactic to engage a woman’s competitive side a little bit, and to jar her into realizing that she doesn’t want another woman to have her guy — she wants him for herself. So, while jealousy can be hugely toxic in an actual relationship, many guys use it as the firestarter to get things going if a woman is kind of on the fence about dating them, or perhaps just hasn’t really taken the time to consider them an option at all.
“We can just watch Netflix”: famous last words
Look, the phrase ‘Netflix and chill’ was invented for a reason — this is one of the oldest tricks in the book. In an earlier era, guys may have taken a girl to the movies and tried to put the moves on them there; in the modern day, he’ll invite a girl back to his apartment under the ruse of just checking out a movie on Netflix. The problem is, many women don’t want to be presumptuous — they’ll tell themselves that he might actually just be talking about watching a movie, and you don’t want to shut down his pure intentions. Let’s get real though — he’s never just talking about watching a movie. That may be how it ends up if you shoot him down, but if the possibility of getting even cozier arises, you know he’ll ditch that movie in a heartbeat because his plan worked.
Three words: “I love you”: making you think things are more serious than he thinks they are
This is a particularly horrible trick because these three little words have a lot of meaning, and can really impact your relationship. There are some couples who take a year or even more to exchange these words because of what they mean and what they say about your relationship. Guys know this — so sometimes, he may bust out these words as a trick to get you to think the relationship is more serious than it is, and thus get you to do some X-rated things that you may have been withholding until you felt you were in a more serious place. You just have to read the context — usually, when a guy says these words and means it, it feels right, even if it takes you by surprise. If you’re shocked at him saying “I love you” it may very well mean he’s just using those words to get something he wants.
