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Men, I’ve got bad news for you: women are judging your direct message game hard. They’re showing their friends all of your messages. They even have their friends sitting around them, watching your exchanges live, analyzing everything you say and helping the woman you’re talking to formulate her response. Women, I’ve got news for you: stop that sh*t. Some poor guys don’t even stand a chance in the online/dating app game because they just aren’t good at cyber banter. But if you think about it, you probably know a lot of guys—good, sociable, normal, likable guys—who actually wouldn’t be very good at direct messages, either. Some personalities just don’t translate into direct message. And you wouldn’t want them to! So, unless a guy says something blatantly mean, rude, or creepy, we shouldn’t be so judgmental. Here are reasons you shouldn’t judge a guy for his direct message skills.

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The witty DMers can be too much in IRL

The DMers who always have a funny store to tell, meme to send, or witty comment to make can be too much in real life. Think about it: if they talk as much as they DM, then they are always on aka never shut up.

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If he’s really skilled, he’s probably a player

Don’t be too impressed by the guys who are great at direct messages, either. If it seems like this guy knows all the right buttons to push to get you to hang out, it’s because he does. And he does it every day with plenty of women.

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Some humor is best understood in person

In fact, the humor that is best understood online can be rather hacky in real life, don’t you think? Here’s another time in which you have to ask yourself, “Don’t I know a lot of really funny guys whose humor wouldn’t translate online?”

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He may not realize DMs are important

A lot of men just don’t realize the importance that women put on direct messages. Some believe that, if you’re willing to DM with them, that you’ve already decided to go out with them, so they can save the banter for the IRL encounter.

No Love On Tinder

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And honestly, DMs aren’t that important

Ladies, you can drag out the DM process a bit too long. Obviously, you need to feel safe and comfortable with a guy before meeting him, but some of you develop month-long pen pal relationships with guys before meeting them. Naturally, many men will give up at that point.

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He might just talk about himself IRL

Here’s another problem you can come across with guys who have plenty of fun things to say in DMs: they talk about themselves constantly in real life. In the DM world, you don’t notice it—you’re just happy to read their witty stories when you have the free time to do so. On a date, you’d never get a word in edgewise.

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He may have been out of the game for a while

It’s also quite possible that this guy has been out of the dating game for a while. Maybe he was in a long-term relationship—so long that he never really did the app dating thing before. At least he knows how to be in a committed relationship.