Every woman has that one friend (or two or three) who’s done it all when it comes to dating and is constantly giving her friends advice. And naturally, you love your friend, so you respect her opinion and value her input.
However, taking dating advice from friends – especially when you’re dealing with a unique or sticky situation – can actually do more harm than good. Here’s a closer look at some of the biggest reasons why you should transition to thinking your way through dating situations on your own instead.
1. Everyone’s different
This is something everyone technically knows but doesn’t always remember in practice. Even if your friends have a lot in common with you, they’re not you. They don’t have the same exact dating style or set of needs when it comes to dating, so what works for them isn’t necessarily going to work for you.
The same goes for the men you each date. For example, if your friend is still into dating party boys who have yet to get serious about life and you prefer well-to-do sugar daddies, her advice will naturally not work for you.
2. Only you really know your situation
Even if you have the kind of relationship with your friends where you tell each other anything and everything about your love lives, it takes more than that for someone else to really understand where you’re coming from. Your friends haven’t “been there” to the extent they probably think they have.
You’re the only one living your exact experiences with the sugar daddies you date. Your friends don’t hear the inflection in his voice when a man talks about your relationship or the look in his eyes when he talks about the future. Their gut can’t get that feeling when things just aren’t working out the way yours can, either.
3. Your friends might have chips on their shoulders
Of course, your friends mean well, and it’s unlikely they’d deliberately give you lousy dating advice. But sometimes, people unintentionally project their sour feelings about bad dating experiences onto others.
Relying too heavily on dating advice from your friends puts you at risk of turning your back on a genuinely great sugar daddy prematurely before your relationship really has a chance to blossom. After all, no one’s perfect. It’s simply human nature to view other people’s situations through our own lenses.
4. It’s not fair to you or the men you date
Everyone knows how it feels to date someone who always falls back on listening to their friends or relatives instead of making independent decisions of their own. At best, you feel like you’re constantly being measured against a yardstick held by people who don’t even know you. And if the situation’s dire enough, you’re pretty much always the last to know about big decisions your partner makes that involve you.
You owe it to yourself, your relationships, and the sugar daddies you’re trying to get to know to do things differently. Letting your friends take your spot behind the wheel when it comes to relationships that don’t involve them is a huge mistake you’ll eventually live to regret.
5. Independent women run their own lives
If you’re like most modern young women with bright futures ahead of them, you consider yourself to be an independent woman of the world. Independent women think for themselves and make their own decisions. They listen to and respect others – especially those they love and care for – but they don’t allow anyone else to make their decisions for them.
At the end of the day, you’re the one in charge of your life. You’re the one who has to live with the consequences of your decisions, and you’re truly the only one who knows what’s best for you, anyway. Trust yourself. Even when it probably doesn’t feel like it, you know what’s best.
6. Mistakes are inevitable
Love, dating, and relationships can be wonderful in so many ways. But they’re scary, too, as is anything that involves your heart. It’s natural to be afraid of making mistakes and to hope there’s a way to ensure you never make any, especially when you’re dedicated to being the best sugar baby possible.
But mistakes are just part of the experience. You’ll make them, and you’ll keep making them at least occasionally for the rest of your life. Taking advice from your friends isn’t going to protect you from that. If anything, it raises the likelihood that you’ll make a decision you regret.
Ultimately, you’re the only one who knows what’s best for you, your partner, and your relationships – especially if you’re into sugar dating or any other alternative approach to dating that other people might not understand. For that reason, your judgment is always the best judgment.
