Bex and Balls: Relationship No-Go's

As a marketing professional, I dedicate most of my 8 to 5 life to making decisions. The first stop for many of our projects is the "Go/No-Go Decision." I can't help but think that most women would benefit immensely from applying this method to dating. Let's face it: it's a jungle out there. Trying to find a normal guy worthy of valuable face time is as easy as Jordin Sparks or the Jonas Brothers. [Read: it's not.]

Just because a guy is funny, smart, dreamy or wealthy does not necessarily mean he is the right dude for you. I mean, I like hysterically funny guys but I'm not about to jump the next comedian I meet (hopefully) just because he tells jokes for a living. Here are some steps to applying a "Go/No-Go Decision" to your love life:

1. What are the benefits of dating [Dude]? Just as an architecture firm focused on healthcare probably wouldn't pursue a project at a major university, you should only be seriously interested in guys that complement you and your strengths. I learned this with a recent ex. He was so obsessed with jump-starting his career and making bank that our time was more about discussing his hours and bonus pay then doing anything fun. So not what I needed. As someone that is a bit more established in my career, our values were different. He told me I didn't understand his job, and he was probably right. I didn't understand why it was so important to him. Breakup followed.

   
   

2. How much time & energy are you willing to fork over to win [Dude]? Seriously, ladies, do your homework. Ask acquaintances -- is this guy a player? Did he just get out of a multi-year relationship and does he now want to spend the next year screwing everything with a vag? Better to find out now before you start wasting your cute new summer dresses and double length mascara on him. Do you know what happens to firms that don't do research like this on potential projects? They waste their money and resources and go bankrupt. And one word that I don't want used as a descriptor for my love life is bankrupt.
   
   
3. Who is your competition and do you have (or want) a fair shot against them? I inserted the word "want" here because sometimes it's just not worth it to go head to head with a crazy bitch who would strip herself of all dignity just to get in some dude's pants. I recently made out with a cute guy who seemed nice and played the guitar (this is very important -- guitar players are like crack cocaine to me). Shortly after, a mutual acquaintance started emailing, chatting, basically going semi-Glen Close in Fatal Attraction on him. Seriously? Fail. Not only do I pity this poor clueless girl, I am so not interested in guitar player due to the fact that he doesn't care that this girl is multiple shades of crazy. Who wins? Me. I have disentagled myself from this messy triangle and am now free to pursue other cute men (ahem, Irish).

Scary

I've gotten better at weeding out quality guys from the losers with age, but I'm still not there yet. Hopefully I'll take my own advice and start taking time to seriously consider my dating choices. Will you?