While we have strong opinions about people we interact at home or at work, you will be surprised to know that people find it quite challenging to describe themselves. Describing yourself on paper is especially important when it comes to creating your online dating profile or profiles on matchmaking sites.

You are not only expected to describe yourself but do it in such a way that it attracts the right people to show interest or respond positively when you reach to people you are interested in.

Here are some of the 4 common mistakes you should avoid when describing yourself.

1. Blowing your own trumpet

The purpose of your online profile is to describe your personality, lifestyle, interests and expectations. The idea is to sound like a real human being with the emphasis on sounding genuine. Avoid filling up your profile with adjectives or try to project an exaggerated view of who you are. Nobody likes people who take themselves too seriously. Even if you really are a God’s gift to mankind, project a little bit of humility when you write about yourself.

2. Beating yourself up

While humility is always appreciated, there is no need to berate yourself in an attempt to sound genuine. Calling out every little physical flaw, personality quirks, family issues (even if it is a passing reference), fears or frustrations, past failures, and failed relationships should definitely be avoided. There is no point in turning people away by sharing a lop-sided view of all the things that did not go well in your life.

3. Focussing too much on your material possessions

While the world around is materialistic and money does indeed attract people, restrain your urge to show off your wealth. Having a profile photo with your fancy supercar in the background or on your Million Dollar yacht sends all the wrong signals and will probably attract people who may be interested more in your wealth. If you are wealthy, there is no need to call it out either through your profile photograph or in your profile write-up. You always have the option to screen people depending on the criteria offered by the matchmaking or dating site you may be using if you are particular about dating or marrying people with a similar social status.

4. Not paying attention to spelling and grammar

When you write about yourself, pay attention to spelling and grammar. Having a well-written, coherent profile free from spelling and grammar mistakes is a fundamental requirement to create a good first impression. That’s not all, filling your profile description with slangs, acronyms, truncated words will convey to people that you are not a serious party worth responding to.

Start treating your online profile seriously and invest time and effort to avoid these common pitfalls if you are serious about creating a compelling online profile for dating or marriage.