So I have a friend who I have known since I was 14. I am convinced she has not changed one tiny bit since our teenage years. She is one of those girls who is overly concerned with what everyone else is thinking. Questions like; ‘Do you think he is cute?’ ‘Would you date him?’ ‘Do you think he dresses nicely?’  ‘Do you think he makes enough money?’ Blah, blah, blah.  The list could go on for pages, but I won’t bore you any longer.

 This got me wondering, how important is it to have our dates accepted by our friends and family? Sure, we all want everyone to like our dates, but should that be the criteria? No way! Generally, our friends and family can spot things we are unwilling to see, but they don’t have to date the person, we do. I once made the mistake of telling my life-long friend that it didn’t really matter what I thought, it mattered what she thought. She became paralyzed by this statement. I genuinely feel badly for her, without some sort of approval she cannot date. I guess the moral is no one else has to approve of anyone we choose to date. Forget about what everyone else wants and go with what you want. After all, it is your dating life.