Me, not you. Online is no better or worse than meeting people in real life - you still need to actually meet them in person and to assess their compatibility with you, just like you would with someone you met at the book store or in the lineup at Starbucks. The difference is that meeting someone online is way more work. It's like a job. You sit there and read profiles like they were resumes, send and respond to emails, arrange mutually convenient meeting times and then do the in-person interview. It's exhausting.

For you to "get scared and retreat" is a waste of your time and of the person you've met with. Get your shit together before you even think about going out and dating. Either that, or put on your big boy/girl pants and open yourself to rejection like the rest of us have.

Are you sure you are using Tinder and POF? Because last time I checked there's nobody there who actually wants to date. Just people looking for you to boost their ego for the day. You are far better off just going places in real life to find Like Minded people. Just watch how once you think you have a good thing going... that person will delete their account so their boyfriend/girlfriend doesn't find out because its getting too hot between you two. Or they'll just straight up stop replying because you've fluffed their pillow up enough for them. Another good one is when they say they're going out of town tomorrow although you'll see them online on Tinder and/or Pof every night for the rest of time. It may feel good now, but just you wait till you see the fake people in their fake environment pretending to live glamorous fake lives in all of it's glory till you become frustrated and say f*** it!