It’s the age-old question: how do I get more girls to notice me?

The venue may have changed, but the principle is the same! Whether you’re meeting barmaids in medieval pubs, disco girls in singles bars in the 1970s, or on dating Russian girl websites in the 21st century, these tips can help!

So I have a friend, let’s call him Steve. He’s always complaining about girls. Back when we were kids, the cute middle school girls never paid attention to him. He used to sulk in the corner of the playground and watch while blond Allison flirted with the more outgoing boys, the jocks and class clowns who would endlessly vie for her attention.

And nowadays he’s pretty much the same. He’s tried his luck on countless dating sites–he especially has a thing for sexy Russian women, but who doesn’t, right? Still, he just never seems to have any luck.

Finally, after one of way too many nights of sitting at the bar drinking with him, listening to him bitch about how no one ever wants to date him, much less sexy Russian girls, I got fed up.

“Okay, fine. Show me your profile,” I said. “I can’t stand listening to you whine and complain any more. Let’s see what’s going on, and let’s see if there’s something we can do about it.”

Well, it took a while to convince him to show me his profile on one of the better-known dating sites, but once he finally showed me, I was immediately struck by a few things.

“How old is that picture, Steve?” I asked him. He stammered and stuttered for a while, but finally he admitted it was a picture from at least five or six years ago.

I didn’t say anything, but instead asked to see his profile on another dating site.

Guess what? Same photo.

I asked him to show me one more–and I think he was embarrassed to show me this time because it was an international dating site to meet Russian girls for marriage and we’re kind of young for marriage (hell, nothing wrong with young Russian brides!)

But guess what? This idiot was using The. Same. Picture.

On all of his dating profiles, he used the same tired photo of himself from some barbecue in the ancient past, along with maybe one or two other pics that were unremarkable in every way.

Let me ask you something: do you remember that photo of Russian President Vladimir Putin riding a horse shirtless? Now, no matter what you think of him, you remember that photo, don’t you?

Let me tell you something else: so does every pretty Russian girl who saw it–hell every American girl too!

I’m not saying you should go pay a photographer to take shirtless shots of you behind the wheel of your Camry. In fact, let’s say that shirtless is probably not the way to go for most of us. I’m looking at you, Winter Man-Boobs.

But, man you gotta freshen your look every now and then! And make it interesting! Have you gone anywhere since that barbecue back in 2009? Surely you have more interesting photos of yourself.

And remember this: we’re all carrying around miniature cameras in our pockets 24/7! Make it your goal to capture different parts of your life in photos, and use them to tell the story of who you are. Especially when it comes to international dating sites featuring sexy Russian brides, you’ve got to grab their attention.

Another must-do is to make your profile inviting. Use a joke, self-deprecating humor to talk about your geekiness–you have to make girls feel comfortable with the idea of a conversation with you.

One last item: Be really clear about what you want. My friend Steve may want to meet hot young Russian women for marriage, or he may only want to date them casually. Let them know! Whatever the truth is, let them know.

You might be surprised at how many Russian girls respond to honesty!