This quote from the movie 'Must love Dogs' sums up deeper than dating guidance for first dates.

He says " Let's forget the small talk.  I have this theory that the first time you meet somebody that's the time you have to be totally honest - because you have nothing to lose. Five or ten years down the road it gets a little harder.  You can't just wake up one morning and say "This is the real me". It doesn't work that way. This is it.  We're never going to see each other as clearly as at this moment.  THIS moment. I had my heart broken by a woman I really loved.  You know what - your heart grows back bigger.  Once you've had the shit beat out of you.  That's the function of all this pain and heartache we go through.  You've got to go through it to come out to a better place."

So...... in a nutshell, be honest & straightforward, be yourself. It's the best start - and who knows where it might lead.

(click here to read the latest research on relationship chemistry).

After that .....

It's good to follow up your initial date - even if there is no obvious attraction.   The question to ask is 'Would I like to get to know this person better?" If you would then why not meet up again. The experience of individuals who meet through agencies and enter long-term relationship (and marriage) is that the attraction often doesn't arise until maybe the third or fourth date.  Remember, you're going outside the square, maybe moving away from the old way of meeting where intense sexual attraction is predominant.  Clearly physical attraction is part of the chemistry of relationship but don't discount someone just because it isn't immediately obvious.  Allow the potential of relationship to unfold.