Ok so the title of this thread was meant to attract attention to it because I'd like serious input here....

I'm not saying a person shouldn't be picky because spending your life with someone is too big a deal to just go with anyone who comes along. What I think is that women might not be willing to accept a man for who he is as much as what they want him to be.

All I hear is how when you meet a woman she has a mental checklist and she has tests she's going to put you through and as a man trying to meet women I'm told what to wear, how to do my hair, how to smell, how to stand, how to talk, how to walk but.... I should just be myself. What

I feel like I'm going to sing in front of Simon Cowell rather than just trying to meet a new person...maybe make a new friend and possibly date if we have a connection.

Another HUGE thing I hear about is this thing called status. Men should have status. Which is the polite term for money. Everyone knows that, but it sounds too shallow to say it so we cover up our true intentions with pleasant/politically correct language.

My impression of all this is that with all this talk I hear about checklists,tests, and status makes me feel like women don't want you for who you are...they want you because of what you can do for them.

This is fine. A person should go after what they want no matter what that is...to each his own. But it doesn't work for me is the thing.

Just being myself: I have 2 degrees, good job, financially independent and stable but not wealthy, I am healthy and fit, like the outdoors and learning new skills blah blah blah...is middle of the road/average and doesn't exactly reek of "STATUS". So I'm never going to pass a checklist or test.

I would like women's thoughts on this...why do you seem so displeased with the average man?