You’ve probably heard the term “catfishing” – where someone creates a fake persona to use online (often for abuse, fraud, trolling, wish fulfillment or other nefarious dealings.
But there’s a new term in town…
Kittenfishing.
And, if you use any sort of app to find dates, chances are you’ve done it yourself.
If you’ve used excessive filters, outdates photos, lied about little things like your age/height/weight, or even posed next to a nice car or boat to pretend it’s yours … and you participated in kittenfishing.
I know what you’re probably thinking, “I’ve just been calling it lying.”
And you would be correct. It’s just now we have a proper term for it (at least in relation to dating apps). It also might be confusing compared to the little white lies we’ve told in chat. For example, if someone asks what you’re doing and you say “I’m out with friends” instead of the truth of “sitting on the toilet with bad stomach cramps”, it’s not kittenfishing.
When you paint a picture that is very different from reality (with just enough truth sprinkled in) then yes, you’re guilty.
So why do people do this?
I’m guessing you probably already know.
With the competitive nature of app swipes, people feel they need to brighten up their glow in order to snag that first date – then they hope their true colors will win the day. They rely on deception to get through the door and pull out their charm, intelligence, wit, and other gambits to try and get a second date (or at least some pillow time).
The problem with this is…
A lie is a lie.
And when someone sees their date has bent the truth to nearly breaking, there’s a very high percentage the other half is going to ditch the liar. The smaller percentage that doesn’t care and stays … it shows they might be someone who will fabricate the truth as well.
It’s a slippery slope.
So many people say, “there are no good men/women left”, it’s probably best to just be honest and get fewer swipes, but ones that are going to be a better fit.
What about you? What details have you “fudged” on dating apps?
