If you can't comfortably say no to a partner or accept when they say no, you're not ready to date. Starting relationships before you can set and communicate clear boundaries leaves you vulnerable to being exploited for sex, money, or emotional labor without realizing it.
So one of the biggest mistakes people make is they start dating before they feel confident about declaring their boundaries. So what happens is you have partners who see that opportunity and think, oh, I can get what I want from this person sexually, intimately, whatever else, emotionally. And so what happens is that person is being preyed on by their dating partners and they're totally not aware of it, of what's happening. So the first thing I would say to people is if somebody asks you for a kiss, are you comfortable? Somebody you are attracted to. Somebody that maybe you look up to on a date, are you comfortable saying, no, not tonight? If they ask you for more than a kiss, are you comfortable saying, you know what, I was good with kissing, I'm not comfortable with that? If you're not comfortable saying no to a partner, it's not time to date yet. You want to be really comfortable to say no. And here's the other part of this. You want to be really comfortable hearing no.
