How can you tell if you qualify as a great first date? Are you a good listener and do you give off positive vibes? While it’s unlikely that anyone will ever take the time to give you the feedback, you can try and decipher it for yourself. Ask yourself these six questions and see if you are in fact great first date material.

1. Would you consider yourself to be a generally happy person? Do you try not to take life too seriously? On a first date, it’s best to leave any negativity at home and only give off your best and most positive vibes. It’s true that happiness can be contagious and people tend to respond better to someone if they’re smiling.

2. Do you have healthy ties to your family? While it’s great to be close to your family, it’s also important to grow up and become the person you were meant to be. If you can’t make any decisions (even the smallest ones) without first consulting your parents, it’s time to start thinking about pulling away from the nest. On the other hand, if you have zero relationship with your family because of a falling out at a party five years ago, it might be time to work through those old issues.

3. Are you a good listener? Being a good listener is more than just knowing when to keep quiet. It also involves engaging yourself in the conversation to keep it flowing. Remember to ask questions and show that you are taking an interest in what the other person is telling you. Wait until it’s your turn to talk and do your best not interrupt.

4. Do you maintain a strong interest in your own hobbies? Keep yourself busy with your own interests so that when someone special does come into your life, you’ll still be your own person. As enamored as you are, it’s probably not a good idea to allow the other person to become your whole world. Stay involved in your hobbies and you won’t end up losing your own identity in the relationship.

5. Do you talk too much about your exes? The first date is definitely not the right place to be airing your romantic history. Think about how it makes the other person feel that they’re here on a date with you and you’re choosing to talk about someone else that you’ve dated. Even if you know that you aren’t still pining away for that past love, it will certainly come across that way.

6. Have you established your deal breakers? Before you go on your date, take a few minutes to think about what’s important to you. It’s perfectly fine if you decide that you’d prefer not to date people who are more than five years younger than you. That way, if you arrive at your date to discover that this person is in fact ten years younger, you’ve already made your decision. If you discover early on that your goals are not in line with those of your date, you can both save yourselves a lot of time.

Jeff Cohen - About.com Dating Guide  From meeting someone new to getting serious, breaking up, or engagements, you'll find it all from your About.com Guide to Dating, Jeff Cohen. Jeff is also the author of the "30 Minute Guide to Online Dating" eBook. 

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