Bad dates: we’ve all been on them. In fact, with 15% of U.S. adults having used dating apps and websites, more people are connecting than ever before — that means more bad dates than ever before. A bad date can feel like wasted time and energy, even discourage people from dating altogether. You can’t avoid a date going wrong, so here are some tips for an exit strategy in case you get stuck with a dud.

How to Leave a Bad Date

• In a shameless plug, and as a vet in the dating industry and CEO & founder of the bod (Bad Online Dates) app, I have to say the best tip that I can now give to leave a bad date is with the bod app as it turns bad dates into new possibilities for love, that have never been there before by giving people a dating plan B and the OK to leave.
• There is also the ol’ “I have a friend or family member text or call with an emergency”, however, this has been played out and may just make you seem immature and cliché by not just keeping it real.
• With the above being said, remember when you were told that honesty is the best policy? It still remains a golden life rule. By just saying that “you don’t feel a match and wish them good luck” in most cases allows for a graceful and mature way out.
• Climb out the bathroom window and have a getaway car ready (just kidding)! In my experience within fifteen minutes you will know if you ever want to see that person again — let alone a passionate kiss good night and in that moment you could bring up the value of time, and mention that based on our “busy lives, how about we call it a night, shake hands and send each other off with well wishes”.

In the end, when a date that does not go well, your knight or knightress of shining armour is more like a rusty nail in your tire, which is bound to bring up emotions, and potentially hit a nerve or two. Much of dating and love is timing, so keep your heart open and the possibility of who you may connect with each day because you never know when love is just around the corner.

About the Author: Jennifer Kelton, Founder & CEO of bod

The new bod (bad online dates) app is a geo-location-based mobile dating app that revolutionizes mobile dating by offering new opportunities, choices, and — most importantly — hope, all while on a bad date. With the bod app, users can move on from a bad date and potentially meet someone new, in real-time, by enabling their discoverability in “Date Mode.” bod is the mop-up crew for all the other dating sites and apps by giving the dater an OK to leave and find someone that’s a better match – a plan B. As our slogan says: “Seriously, nobody likes a bad date. Change your odds with bod.” The app has been in beta and has officially launched to the public for both iOS and Android.