You're looking for the man of your dreams...tall, dark and handsome, right?

Now, what about you?

Are you willing to be yourself around everyone, even "the man of your dreams?" Or are you destroying your future relationship already by pretending to be someone you're not?

Truthfully, the worst mistake a woman can make when trying to find a partner is lying about who she is and pretending to be someone she's not.

You might be thinking something like, "but he loves skydiving!" When truthfully, you probably hate heights. Or maybe you think you can change how he does his finances and help him control his excessive spending habit.

If you learn to be the things he loves he's bound to love you, right? Wrong.

Pretending to be someone you're not will only damage the current relationship you're in. Your lying might even keep you from the partner you would thrive with the most.

So, how can you stop lying about who you are and stop pretending to be someone you're not while you're trying to find a partner? You can do so in 4 easy ways.

1. Be Yourself

You're the only one out there in the world. No one will ever replace you. Now you need to ask yourself, why would you want to change who you are for someone you're not?

As you look for a partner, be you. If he doesn't like you, don't stress over what wouldn't work. Keep moving forward and live life to the fullest. Be honest with who you are and what you want in a partner. You want to find someone who will love you for you, imperfections and all.

2. Be Where You Want to Find Your Partner

Be honest with yourself before going into a relationship about what type of partner you are looking for. The physical traits of another person should never dominate over their characteristics.

Once you think you found a compatible partner, learn about their likes, dislikes and who they are when no one's watching. Observe them when they become angry and watch how they respond to certain situations. Notice how they handle and budget their money.

What you think and how you respond to your partner in these situations will make or break your relationship in the future. Be honest from the beginning about how you feel and express yourself openly to help facilitate communication.

3. Liars Never Prosper

Lying about who you are and what makes you happy might work for a little while. You might even see the relationship progress to where you want. But eventually the lies will catch up with you.

Your relationship might be great on the surface. However, by not giving yourself permission to be who you are and express your own likes, dislikes and life experiences, you're pretending to be someone you're not.

The lies we tell ourselves and others will eventually catch up with us. It's only in honesty and being true to who you are that you will find a compatible partner. Don't give up on the opportunity for a wonderful relationship in the future for one that you hope might work today.

4. Don't Change You Unless You Want To Change

If you want to work on self-improvement, experience new adventures and ultimately change something about yourself, do so because you want to. Never change who you are for someone else hoping that they might like the "new you."

These types of changes and relationships ultimately fail. The changes in life that help you thrive are those changes you want to make for yourself because it's what you want.

As you focus on doing these four things, you will set yourself up for a successful relationship in the future.

Partners will come and go over time. The one you want to hold close is the partner you will thrive with the most. And you can only have this type of relationship if you're willing to be honest with yourself first.