There are so many "dating guides" out there that tell you to just "be confident", saying that the mere acting of going up and talking to someone does most of the work for you. Yet that still fails for many guys because they're nervous about approaching complete strangers.
Here's the thing: THEY SHOULD BE. I've come to the conclusion lately that the standard advice given about asking people out assumes that the person of interest is someone you don't (or barely) know. And that's really stupid. I've met people of girls who I found attractive until the moment the opened their mouth, and I lost interest because of how much of an idiot they were. Even if they aren't a complete idiot right off the bat, that's no guarantee you will get along. Religious and political views can be a massive dealbreaker. Maybe they're busy with school or a difficult project and don't have time to date. Hell, even if you two do have a lot in common, there's plenty of little things that might mess things up.
I've heard dating advice of "find someone you're attracted to, then find out what they like and try to get involved". Isn't that the opposite of how it should be? Shouldn't you first find activities you like and use them to meet people you're more likely to get along with? The approach of "ask out a complete stranger in the hopes that you might be compatible no matter how low the odds are"? Not to mention, "Call Me Maybe" is a popular song that glorifies the stupidity of it. Grr.
Captcha: Who, what, where. How does it know?