Curious if this is a common scenario or I'm doing something horribly wrong?

[PrismOfLove]

Lately, I've been trying to absorb any positive insight I can and have really felt a sense of improvement over the last few months. I've been thriving at work, meeting a lot of new friends (male and female), had new experiences I wouldn't normally. I've still felt that emptiness inside, even if I try to ignore it, it's there.

 

I've gone on a few dates in the interim; a few women I liked, who seem somewhat interested then nothing. Another in which on the second date, she told me she was moving to another country literally the next day (not a fabrication either, believe it or not). I've been asking out more women, getting numbers. Only to find out they have a boyfriend and only to get no response or a brush off.

 

Yesterday at college, I was with a male friend and I met a woman in the cafeteria and talked to her a bit. Turned out to definitely be the type of woman I go for, so I got her number before she left for class. To my surprise, my male friend who was observing the conversation started gushing about how impressed he was with my interaction with her and was thinking I already knew her. One of my previous worries was perhaps my personality or something was off putting to women (I knew deep down it wasn't though as I am quite witty and a decent conversationalist), so it was nice to have a witness of this sort of interaction. I texted her today only to find out she has a boyfriend.

 

There is a woman at work I fancy quite a bit, we've done our fair share of chatting and flirting (I think?) when we have the same shifts and are adjacent. Last week I asked her out for coffee (I'm getting better at this). She replied positively, or at least I thought. It ended with her telling me she'd get back to me the coming week when she finds out her school schedule. I gave her a piece of paper with my number on it (we were busy at work and didn't have time to exchange numbers). It gave me a bit of hope but for all I know, it's another brush off. I have yet to hear from her again. Not sure when the next time I'll see her at work is, since we usually have different shifts.

 

Words, I feel like that's all I get lately. Actions, not so much. As much as I love words, being a writing and English enthusiast, I'm tired of them when it comes to romantic en devours. As someone who also enjoys psychology, I've studied Maslow's Hierarchy in the past. I can't help but feel there is some truth to it. Is my lack of relationships keeping me from reaching my potential in other aspects of life? Self-realization shows some merit in this. I appreciate all the feedback in this thread so far and I feel I've changed for the better however have still had lackluster success (I'm also an avid reader of other threads and try to apply the advice to my own life in a positive manner).

 

A few questions I've been pondering:

Should I ask women if they are single before getting their number? Shows I'm romantically interested and stops myself from getting pointless numbers. My phone is full of numbers that resulted in nothing.

 

Should I try *paid* online dating again? I've tried match.com a few times and while I didn't really have any relationship success, it did yield more dates. Perhaps I should try a different one, is E-Harmony worth it?

 

If I don't hear from the woman from work, how do I approach it next time I see her? Do I ask her out again in a different manner? She seemed somewhat receptive to my question the first time.