Call Her Daddy – “Make Dating Fun Again”

Host: Alex Cooper
Date: April 5, 2026

Episode Overview

In “Make Dating Fun Again,” Alex Cooper gets real with the Daddy Gang about the state of modern romance and dating in 2026. Reflecting on her own journey from singledom to marriage, Alex delivers a candid, empowering, and hilarious pep talk. She explores what’s changed for singles, why dating feels overwhelming, and offers both motivational advice and practical tips to reinject playfulness into the process.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Reflecting on Her Own Relationship Journey

(Starts at 04:15)

• Alex is celebrating her two-year wedding anniversary with Matt, noting they’ve been together for almost seven years.

• She reminisces about her single days, emphasizing the importance of being “really happy when I was single, too.”

• Quote:

  “One phase is not more meaningful or important than the other.” (06:30)

• Suggests that independent self-development before entering a relationship made her connection with Matt healthier — “I didn’t need Matt, Matt didn’t need me.”

2. What’s Changed in Dating (2026 vs. Before)

(11:00)

• Commentary on how dating apps and social media have “taken a lot of curiosity and spontaneity” out of dating.
• Singles today feel “numb to dating” due to repetitive disappointment and high standards.
• Dates feel “like another disappointing job interview, another waste of time.”
• Alex’s Mission: Restore the fun to dating.

3. Mindset Reset: Celebrate the Possibilities of Singlehood

(20:00)

• Alex encourages singles to shift their mindset to embrace upcoming “firsts” — first sleepovers, the big ‘I love you,’ first trips, meeting the parents, etc.
• Quote:

  “If you’re single today, that means that all of the best relationship milestones are still ahead of you.” (21:02)

4. Flirting is a Lost Art… Reclaim It!

(25:00)

• “Flirting has turned into story likes, fire emojis, swiping right... No. In person. Somehow flirting has become a rare art form.”
• Cites a study: “45% of men ages 18 to 25 have never approached a woman in person for a date.” (26:00)

Alex’s Iconic Bar Story (30:15)

• Tale of approaching a hot guy in college, giving him her (fake) number on a napkin.

• Takeaway: “Who cares if you go up and get rejected?... It just takes one.” (36:02)

• Quote:

  “It’s embarrassing for them to be so socially awkward that they can't, like, engage in a conversation with you and not be a fucking dick, right?” (37:00)

5. How to Embrace Flirting and Social Skills (Without the Pressure)

(39:00)

• Shares NPR article wisdom: take the focus off yourself. “One way to ease the fear of rejection is to view flirting as being more about the other person than about you.”
• Remove outcome obsession; focus on pleasant interactions instead.
• “Shift the flirting mentality from worrying, ‘do they like me?’... That is going to be such a game changer for your headspace.”

Practice in Low-Stakes Ways (44:20)

• Suggests practicing casual conversations everywhere—in line, at the coffee shop, with coworkers—because “social muscle” is real and needs exercise.

6. Bemoaning Modern Barriers

(46:10)

• Social media has “completely taken over our brains.”

• “It’s on us to retrain our brains of how to engage with someone face to face.”

• Advice: If you’re messaging a guy on Snapchat and have never met, “knock it off. We’re done.” (50:20)

7. First Dates: Bringing the Excitement Back

(54:10)

• Approach first dates with the mindset of romanticizing the experience, not just “getting through it.”
• “Take a boring, normal weeknight [and] turn it into something to actually look forward to.”
• Tips to make the process feel fun (get ready with friends, plan a pre-date drink with a friend, get a killer selfie).

8. Debunking the Internet’s First Date ‘Rules’

(59:30)

Alex reviews (and trashes) popular TikTok dating rules:

Rule #1: Go to the same place for every date –
Disagrees. Trying new places keeps things interesting!

Rule #2: Never get food, only drinks –
Strongly disagrees. “Eating is fun... If he doesn’t like you with a little bit of spinach in your tooth, he's not gonna like you when he splooges all over your face.”

Rule #3: Set a 2-hour time limit –
No. “If you're having a good time with someone, you're like, ‘clocked it, gotta go’?”

Rule #4: No kissing on the first date (01:09:00) –
Absolutely not. “If a first kiss feels right, it feels right. The first kiss at the end of the date is seriously what they write movies about.”

• Memorable Quote (on kissing/sex):

  “How about I let him eat me out on the first date and I married him? No, just kidding. He didn’t eat me out… that was like the second time.” (01:09:50)

• Advice: Don’t be ruled by arbitrary restrictions—do what feels right for you.

9. Why All the Good, Bad, and Crazy Dates Matter

(01:14:00)

• Alex recalls wild and even painful stories from dating—“Even if they did end in tears or heartbreak, that's the s*** I remember now.”
• “When you find your partner… it’s so much better than being like: I was too afraid to take that guy out of the dating app or to go up to that guy at the bar.”
• Quote:

  “The effort you put into being single… builds and builds so that when you do find that right person, you’re ready for them, they’re ready for you, and you know what you’re ready to accept and what you’re not willing to put up with.” (01:17:30)

10. Encouragement: Get Out There & Reframe Your Attitude

(01:23:00)

• Take breaks if you need—hiatus is fair!

• “Get off your fucking phone and just go and try and try and try and try because I promise you, something good is going to come of it.”

• Final Pep Talk:

  “You are smart and brave enough to weather the storm, ladies… I know it's not easy out there. I also know men suck right now. But I promise you, there are some good ones out there.” (01:28:00)

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• On singleness and marriage:

  “One phase is not more meaningful or important than the other.” (06:30)

• On modern dating fatigue:

  “Every date you go on just feels like another disappointing job interview.” (13:43)

• On embracing flirting:

  “Flirting has turned into story likes, fire emojis… No. In person. Somehow flirting has become a rare art form.” (25:12)

• Iconic bar story:

  “Who cares if you go up and you get rejected?... It just takes one.” (36:02)

• Social skills practice:

  “Social muscle… is something that we do need to practice at this day and age.” (45:15)

• First date “rules” rant:

  “No wonder dating feels like a chore. We're stripping out all the excitement and the joy when we start overanalyzing…” (59:46)

• On the magic of a great first kiss:

  “The first kiss at the end of the day is seriously what they write movies about.” (01:10:30)

• Do it for the plot:

  “When I look back, so much of my fun nights, even if they did end in tears or heartbreak or whatever, that's the shit I remember now.” (01:15:10)

• On the value of dating disasters:

  “Those losers are literally the best thing to continue to build your backbone and to continue to build your arsenal of exactly what you want.” (01:19:45)

Engagement & Final Thoughts

Alex’s tone throughout is direct, funny, and uplifting. She wants her listeners to reclaim agency and joy in dating, to practice real-world social confidence, and to ignore defeatist narratives online. Her blend of storytelling, practical advice, real-talk, and humor serves as both a motivational kick and a permission slip to embrace all facets of single life.

**“Change your attitude… Nothing fucking great is easy, okay? You got to work for that shit.” (01:26:15)

For singles feeling jaded, overwhelmed, or stuck, this is a rallying episode: make dating fun again, reclaim the thrill, connect for real, and don’t let pessimism win.

Relevant Timestamps

• 04:15 – Alex reflects on her marriage and single years
• 11:00 – How dating culture has changed
• 20:00 – Celebrate the possibilities of being single
• 25:00 – Flirting as a lost art (+ Date Psychology study)
• 30:15 – Bar story: confidence & rejection
• 39:00 – Reshaping flirting mindset, social “muscle”
• 54:10 – Romanticizing first dates
• 59:30 – TikTok dating “rules” debunked
• 01:09:00 – First kiss (and more) on first dates
• 01:14:00 – The value of wild, bad, and crazy dates
• 01:23:00 – Encouragement to get back out there

Summary Table of Top Advice

| Segment | Takeaway | |----------------------------|----------| | Reframe Dating | Don’t treat it as a chore; focus on the fun. | | Romanticize First Dates | Get ready, make it a night for yourself. | | Don’t Follow Rigid Rules | Follow your intuition on places, food, time, and physical boundaries. | | Practice Social Skills | Talk to people everywhere, not just in dating scenarios. | | Embrace All Experiences | Bad dates build resilience and clarity; do it for the stories. | | Let Go of Outcome-Obsession | The process matters more than any one result. |

Daddy Gang: You’ve got this. Go flirt, try, fail, laugh, and, most importantly, have fun finding your story.