University Chronicle: David Coleman the Dating Doctor

Disclaimer: Originally published on the St. Cloud State University campus paper, the University Chronicle, on the March 26th 2009. Written by Kai.

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David Coleman, the “Dating Doctor,” gave free tips and advice on relationships and dating at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Ritsche Auditorium.

Sponsored by R.E.A.C.H. Peer Educators and Residential Life, the night proved to be a success as the auditorium was filled with an engaged and enthusiastic crowd.

Coleman has been giving relationship advice for over 15 years. He slowly became a dating doctor when he was in college and realized he could meet people easily, especially women.

Later on he became a college activities director and did programs on relationships and eventually became the dating doctor he is today.

“The movie ‘Hitch’ is basically my life,” he said.

Coleman said it is important to find someone who complements a person rather than completes the person. He said everyone should be complete on their own.

He kept the audience interested by giving advice on how to narrow down people with potential to be dated. He said the four factors to keep in mind when finding potential dates are attraction, believability, chemistry and desire.

The audience was taught how to read the signs people use to show interest and the ways to determine if a relationship is healthy.

When asked how he is able to understand something so complex, Coleman said he “believes he has been blessed with an ability to connect with people.”

“Also I have a photographic memory for more words and feelings and thoughts,” Coleman said. “So it’s almost unfair. One audience teaches me what I need to know for the next audience.”

Throughout the show he challenged the audience to come up with pickup lines he had not heard of and also gave the audience the opportunity to ask him any questions they wanted during a “Five Minute Frenzy.”

Coleman said the most common problem in college relationships is the different sexual primes between men and women. He said, “guys are looking to date half the campus and then go ‘maybe’ while women are looking for someone kind of nice that they can go ‘hey, this is my boyfriend.’”

“The number one complaint to my Web site last year from women was ‘Why are men such horrible physical lovers?” Coleman said in his talk. He then listed some advice he had for men and had the women in the audience cheer to the tips they agree with.

The number one factor women look for in a man is if he can make her laugh and not the car he drives or the money he has, Coleman said.

Marise Oyouba, an aviation major at SCSU, said she does not think she will rely on everything he said completely but that it was a fun event to attend.

“He didn’t even say anything that I didn’t know,” says Catarina Kirchner. “It’s just things that everybody knows.”

Coleman does about 200 shows a year, about 150 which are in colleges. He speaks in all 50 states per year and does a lot of programs for the military service as well.