While I am not loving the think pieces on “if” Taylor Swift has been good for the game of football, I am, perhaps regrettably, here to offer my own hot take on the frenzy her (alleged) romance with an NFL player has wrought. And that is: Travis Kelce is a good dating role model for guys.
The Kansas City Chiefs tight end is putting on a masterclass in how to attract a woman in 2023, and I hope every guy who’s single and looking pays attention.
“Sure Megan, lemme just go win the Super Bowl—twice—and I’ll woo Beyoncé away from Jay Z.”
That is not what I’m saying!
In fact, I’d bet that Kelce’s day job was actually a romantic hurdle for Swift (“Allegedly allegedly allegedly,” she chanted to her lawyers to avoid a defamation suit). Blondie’s told us before, she loves a London boy, and her dating track record shows she leans theater nerd, not jock.
So, how did Kelce manage to romance the record-breaking pop star who has spent more weeks at No.1 than any other female artist in history? Let’s break it down with lessons you can apply to your own dating life.
4 dating tips for guys, from the Travis Kelce Taylor Swift romance:
1. Learn to dance
Yes, really. Have you seen this man in the end zone? It is, and I can’t stress this enough, so attractive.
If you can’t dance, the good news is, there’s only one direction you can go from here and it’s up.
The first step is to gain more body awareness. To do that, sign up for a yoga class, or a Pilates class (both great places to meet women, not incidentally!) and start getting comfortable being uncomfortable.
From there, get out of your physical comfort zone even further. Try a cardio dance class where you follow simple steps. Don’t worry, these classes are about getting your heart rate up, not learning complicated choreography.
You can attend a class in person if you’re feeling brave, or sign up for a class online that you can take at home.
From there? Shimmy to old Usher music videos. Jam out in the privacy of your bedroom to your favorite tunes. Anything to get your body moving to music.
On his podcast Armchair Expert, Dax Shepard has said more than once that he was never the best-looking guy in the room but he could dance, and he wasn’t afraid to get out on the dance floor, going all the way back to middle school. He’s adamant that this enthusiasm played a pivotal role in his always having a girlfriend.
And while Shepard has said some things recently I don’t agree with, this is one I definitely do.
Because when it comes to dancing, guys don’t even have to be that good!
No one is expecting you to break out into NSync’s “Bye Bye Bye” choreography (though if you know it…don’t hold back). Enthusiasm covers for talent on the dance floor. Just being a guy who’s excited to get on the dance floor is enough to gain favor from women.
THE TRAVIS TAKEAWAY: Be the first guy on the dance floor, not the one who has to get dragged onto it.
2. Have fun with your style
Plenty of athletes have turned their game entrance into a fashion show and Kelce is no exception. Do I like everything Travis Kelce wears? Nope. Do I look forward to seeing what he wears on game day? Absolutely.
Plenty of guys, even in 2023, seem to believe that caring about what you wear isn’t “manly.” They turn their backs on expressing themselves through style, as if being anti-fashion isn’t just as much a pronouncement about who you are and what you value.
Everything you wear says something about you. Swift’s look changes with her mood (and her albums!); it’s no surprise that she found herself drawn to someone who expresses himself through clothes as much as she does.
THE TRAVIS TAKEAWAY: Embrace style as a form of self-expression! Need some support in figuring out the clothes you look and feel best wearing? Team SG is here to help.
3. Try new things
Recently, a sketch from the Saturday Night Live episode that Kelce hosted last year popped up on my TikTok feed. I forgot how funny it was!
Will Kelce be hanging up his football cleats to act anytime soon? Probably not, but he can hold his own among the pantheon of athletes with surprisingly good comic timing (looking at you, Peyton Manning).
I’ve heard good things about his podcast, too. So, does Kelce want to start a skincare company? Take up pottery? Whatever he does next, these hobbies and pursuits will continue to make him a more interesting, well-rounded guy.
Aka, not “just” a professional athlete…even though that’s a pretty time and labor-intensive thing to be).
THE TRAVIS TAKEAWAY: Be more than your day job, even if it’s awesome. Women gravitate towards men with a full, interesting life.
4. Shoot your shot, with class
Honestly, I’m not a Swiftie to the degree that some people are, so my broad knowledge of how these two crazy kids got together (allegedly!) is that he said something on his podcast about giving her a friendship bracelet with his phone number on it and the rest is history.
He wasn’t gross about it. Or lewd. And he also wasn’t jokey or overly self-deferential. Instead, he simply said, “This is a woman I’m interested in. I’m going to let her know it, and we’ll see what happens.”
Apart from the podcast part, that seems like a pretty accessible, mature way of making your romantic interest known.
And had she not shown up at Arrowhead Stadium however many months later, we all would have assumed she (gracefully) shot him down and that would have been that.
THE TRAVIS TAKEAWAY: Don’t beat around the bush. When you’re interested in a woman, respectfully ask her out. If she says no, respectfully move on.
