Yet another depressing aspect of modern day dating is how transactional the whole thing can be. It seems like every other singleton is obsessed with the traits possessed by "high value" women or men, or insist on asking the dreaded first date question "so, what do you bring to the table?". While I am the number one advocate of having high personal standards for yourself, from my perspective most of it boils down to just trying to be a decent person. A regular texter with a six figure salary is only a worthwhile catch when they have the level of emotional maturity to match.
If dating apps are anything to go by, those who are capable of being decent and mature are few and far between. Their whole human meat market schtick is what helped to popularize love as a transaction, too. It might be the easiest way to meet a partner these days, but you're never more than a couple of misguided swipes away from situations like the ones below.