What makes a man creepy?

If you're a woman, you've probably experienced your fair share of getting creeped on. Whether dudes get too close to you on the subway, or someone yells exactly the wrong thing to you on the street, women everywhere are familiar with the characteristics of creepiness. 

Redditor Surfincloud9 posed the question: What makes a man creepy?

Gentlemen, take note:

A major indicator of a creepy dude is when he goes from 0 to 100, real quick. 

When a man approaches a woman, it's best to let her decide for herself if she's interested, instead of expecting one answer and getting aggressive if you don't get your way.

For many women, this happens more than you think. 

Redditor Kronkspinachpuffs wrote, "When you politely decline any advances and they turn into aggressive or insulting mode really quickly. Major red flag right there. Showing up at my place at weird hours without being invited. No, I will not let you into my house at 1 a.m."

Unfortunately, Theaftstarboard could relate all too well, saying, "The sudden switch from amazingly polite to incredibly rude ... I don't care how rich or 'hot' you are, if you behave like a toddler but have the capacity to snap my neck if you want to, please leave me the f*ck alone ASAP."

A non-creepy alternative? Learn to accept rejection, and reassess how you view women.

It's not your right to approach women, let alone expect her to respond with your preferred answer. If she's not feeling you, she's not feeling you. Be respectful of her decision and move on with your day. 

This one is an absolute no. 

A truly creepy dude will try to make everything about sex.

Are you talking breakfast choices? He'll turn bagel talk suggestive. Are you admiring the weather? He'll talk about how it affects his libido.

For iwishforstrength, this is a common issue: "Immediately talking about sexual topics in response to everything you say, every single time you are within communicating distance of each other while you two barely know each other to drop a 'hint.'"

Sorry fellas, but women don't need hints. Let her take the lead; if she wants to talk about sex, she'll talk about sex.

Take your signs from her body language: If she's got her headphones or sunglasses on and is giving curt answers, she's not looking for a way to take this conversation to the next level.

If conversation is progressing, take cues from her about if or when to heat things up.

Another major sign of a creepy dude is well-known to every woman of color: exotification.

Redditor Fairieee described the experience perfectly: 

"As a Chinese girl, it's coming across the few non-Asian guys who have big obsessions over Asian women.

There's a guy at my uni who, after just meeting me (and after me mentioning I have a boyfriend), tried taking me to a football game. Just me and him. I said no—twice. I told my boyfriend about it, and he discovered the guy was apparently very public about his love of Asian women, as seen on Facebook. He constantly shared images of provocative ladies, sometimes nearly naked, with his own captions like 'Damn, this is why Asians are the best!!!!!' or 'Asian women are so fine, I'm going to take her to my room.'

The f*ck?"

Exotification is absolutely creepy because it's deeply problematic. Desiring women based only on stereotypes of their race is not just creepy, but sexist, racist, and downright dumb.

To challenge your own perceptions of race, ask yourself if you're using creepy qualifiers. For instance, notice that saying "I like your eyes" is a lot less disgusting than "I like your Asian eyes."

There are infinite red flags for creepiness, but the best way to check yourself is to ask: Is this unsolicited behavior? Did she give me permission to say what I'm about to say? Would I be comfortable if this happened to me?

If you're someone who unfortunately can't understand objectification until it's thrust upon someone you care about, ask: If someone did this to my mother, sister, or daughter, would I feel differently?