Having problems courting your princess? You obviously didn’t pay close enough attention to the Disney animated film Aladdin. Re-watch it, or watch it for the first time, and take notes. Because everything you need to know about what a woman wants, you can learn from Aladdin.

But first, a brief synopsis. Jasmine, the raven-haired Sultan’s daughter, is on a time crunch. It is three days before her sixteenth birthday and the law states she must be married to a prince by that time. She has turned away suitor after suitor, disliking the stuffy-headed, pompous princes that have come to call on her. She decides, of course, to run away and finally see something outside the palace walls.

Unaccustomed to “normal” life, Jasmine gets herself into trouble for giving an apple to a hungry little boy. Accused of stealing, she is about to get her arm cut off when (enter Aladdin, the street rat, diamond in the rough) saves her. He shows her around town until she is found by the guards and taken back to the palace.

Long story short, Aladdin happens upon a magic lamp with a genie inside who has to give him three wishes. He wishes to be a prince so he can marry Jasmine. Some things don’t work out so well, mostly due to an evil sorcerer, Jafar. But in the end, Aladdin and Jasmine end up marrying after the sultan changes the law to state that the princess can marry whomever she deems worthy. An action that would have saved a lot of heartache and distress in the first place, but hey, then there wouldn’t be a movie.

So what do we learn from Aladdin? First off, women do not like pompous show-offs. All the suitors Jasmine turned down tried to impress her with their wealth and good looks. Yes, Aladdin had some skills up his sleeve too, but they came out when the moment was appropriate. So stop walking up to girls in bars and trying to impress them with how much you can lift, your high-paying promotion, or how many celebrities you know. Maybe you can lift a lot, maybe you do make a lot of money, and maybe you have a lot of important colleagues. But all of these things send up red flags that say “pompous ass.” And none of them tell a girl who you really are.

Secondly, women are curious about what they can’t have. Jasmine is supposed to marry a prince, so naturally she is drawn to the street savvy diamond in the rough. Women want to see “a whole new world” or learn something new. They want to be taken out somewhere different. Be creative with dates. Flashy or expensive is not always the way to go. The best dates are well thought out and actually mean something or show her something about what you like to do or who you are.

Thirdly, Women DO NOT like to be deceived, lied to, or manipulated. This will likely make them very angry. Not so much because you lied, but more because of what it says you think of them. If you think you can get away with something, you are telling the woman you think she is stupid, or incapable of figuring things out.

Lastly, BE YOURSELF. You can only fake for so long, and sooner or later the real you will have to come out. Chances are, she liked the real you to begin with, so why change? If you try to change your basic personality you risk losing her because she fell in love with you. 

Of, course a magic carpet (or fast car) never hurts.

And never forget, a girl’s best friend will always be her cat (or dog).