The Cheating Man: The Ways Men Cover their Tracks

67
rate or flag this page

By mattcastle12


Cheat on me will ya???
Cheat on me will ya???

Do you sometimes get the sneaking suspicion that your man is cheating on you? Does something always seem out of place or you're trying to piece together a puzzle yet can't find all the pieces to make a complete picture? Depending upon the sensitivity of your "cheater radar", you could be overreacting entirely but that lingering doubt in the back of your mind will haunt you and follow you until its resolved. If only there were a way to know for sure. First, lets talk about why a man strays then we will discuss 10 great warning signs you will not likely find anywhere else.

When a man takes on the responsibility of a girlfriend, they occasionally begin to hear their inner caveman voice that tells them to take on the hunter-gatherer mentality. All men hear this to some extent, but some can drown out the caveman voice while other men's caveman voice is literally howling at the moon. We can further classify the players into the blatantly obvious stooge just begging to be caught compared to the master technician of clandestine affection. Meaning, some guys are really good at being a cheater and some guys aren't. I won't insult you with examples of "running into the next room to answer a phone call" or "pretending to get offended by your accusations of cheating". No, this is not amateur hour.

The masters will tell you a dozen lies without stumbling for a microsecond so some serious homework and observation will be necessary if you suspect your guy to be cheater. Knowing that I'm probably going to be kicked out of the Brotherhood of Man for writing this, I better make this one count, so here are a few lesser known tricks that always go unnoticed.

  1. Does your man have a meticulously clean home? Men often implement a policy of cleanliness that often masks what we call "girl proofing" the house. This means we remove any and all evidence of any female visitors other than your belongings. Don't bother checking the top drawers or obvious places for contraband, but go for the back of the closet or buried deep into a dresser drawer. Occasionally, a man will keep souvenirs as trophies or a girl will accidently leave something behind that we must dispose of quickly. Also, check the bedside tables for jewelry or hair scrunchies as this is a place where men find random surprises and its the quickest place to hide the evidence.
  2. Does he often turn the phone ringer to the off position? This is a way of preventing someone from calling where he would have to run into the next room, so its more like a second generation fix for the unwanted phone call. If so, he's got someone calling and doesn't want to leave you suspicious and inquisitive. Players hate to tip off their girlfriend that something might be up, so this is a great warning sign he is using his full defensive guard to keep everything as quiet as possible.
  3. Does he have a tendency to change his bed linens 1 - 2 times each week and blame it on his love of clean laundry or germaphobia? Even better, does he have a certain pillow for you? If a guy has other girls for "sleep overs," he is adding extra insurance that you will not be able to detect the other girl's perfume or hair shampoo from the bed linens. A lesser known secret is to change out the bed linens, always use a separate pillow for each girl, and flip the mattress on the bed. It sounds silly but trust me, it works flawlessly.
  4. Does he seem constantly busy or claim to be a workaholic? One of the easiest ways for a guy to keep a girl hanging around is convince her that he is a workaholic. Granted this could be true and most women know about this excuse, but when its 11pm on a Tuesday night and he's "working" but doesn't answer his office phone, you might have trouble. An added degree of certainty we use is to park our car in our work building parking lot, and have a friend pick us up. This calms your fears that we're really working when we aren't. If he is a business traveler, then it will be very difficult to catch him so tread cautiously.
  5. Does he claim to have a hobby that takes him away for a weekend? Yet, you notice none of the equipment needed for this hobby is ever used, or that he doesn't own any of the proper equipment? Chances are he's seeing another girl in on the other side of town, or he's staying in town and keeping a low profile. I'm not saying you should camp outside his place, but keep an eye out for the out of town boyfriend problem.
  6. Does he turn his laptop away from your field of view, or quickly slam the laptop shut when you surprise him? The internet is a great invention for information sharing, but its also a great tool to reel in the ladies without devoting a large amount of work. In financial planning lingo, its what we call "passive income", meaning we setup a product (the profile) and rake in the dividends. Its a poor choice of an analogy, but the true cheater will look at it precisely in that way. As some insurance, checkout the local dating sites and see if he pops up. Even better, check his myspace or facebook profiles. If he has 20 girls and 2 guys as friends, the warning lights should go off.
  7. Does he shy away from taking you to dinner or to a local hangout? If so, he's trying to keep from his regular circle of friends (especially his girlfriend's friends) from catching him with a different girl. Every amateur player knows that he has to introduce you to his friends at some time, because most girls know that if you don't meet his friends, you're a secret bootie call and that's it. However, we get around this by allowing you to meet certain friends who are doing similar things or at least, tolerant of the behavior and cover for us. Therefore, if you're only meeting his guy friends at private events chances are likely that you're being played.
  8. Does the passenger seat in his car seem like its been raised, shortened, or changed in some way? Even worse, after his car has gone unused for a weekend, where you were the last one to ride in it with him, and yet something still feels out of place? This is a huge warning sign. Most men do not allow others drive their car unless he's had too much to drink, so this is a great sign to detect cheating. Remember, even the best cheaters will overlook a minor detail eventually.
  9. Does he constantly obsess about your schedule, or require that you show up at a precise time just to hangout at his place? Good players are excellent at time management. They commonly divide up their time on a daily basis to maintain contact with the "other girls" in their life, so this is a very good indication something is going on. Try showing up late a few times to throw him off, but if you really want to test his loyalties, show up an hour early to find out what he is really up to.
  10. Does he have some type of new knowledge or behavior that is outside of his normal behavioral patterns? If your guy is your average everyday guy and he suddenly knows very specific details about say, Polynesian cooking, when his normal dinner includes something frozen accompanied by a 3 minute wait and a "Ding" noise, he might be playing the field. The worst case scenario, you notice a change in "bedroom behavior" where a new trick was learned or styles have been altered.

These are just a few warning signs of a master player. There are many more, but now you have a chance of spotting some of the 2nd and 3rd generation warning signs. Like Darwin predicted in his most controversial theory of evolution, those creatures who can adapt the quickest will flourish in a changing environment. The changing environment is now, and just like many other species, men still have to adapt when women figure out our best tricks.

I caution those of you who might arouse some inner paranoia applying what has been written here. There are some guys out there that are naturally genuine, and if he's completely satisfied, wouldn't leave you in a million years. Well... unless HeidI Klum shows up but that is never going to happen. Right?

Personal Note: I encourage questions/comments/concerns on anything I write, so if you have an alternate theory or agree with me, please drop me a quick note.

Recent Posts

  • Internet Access for Travelers: Solutions, Tips, PLUS a Free Wireless Card and $50 in your Pocket.

    Obtaining internet access on a laptop while traveling has gotten much easier over the years. There are far more efficient and cost effective methods that are available than 5 years ago and its improving just... - 2 years ago

  • How to Invest During a Downturn in the US Economy?

    Downturns, recessions, stock market crashes - all words that terrify the average investor. However, if you are prepared for a downturn in the US economy it is entirely possible to survive and even flourish... - 2 years ago

  • AMT Patch - Does it apply to you?

    After months of political banter and posturing, Congress has finally signed off on the most recent Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) Patch. The question on everyone's mind is blatantly obvious... Am I getting... - 2 years ago

  • Car Trading: Getting the Most Value for Your Used Car.

    Looking to get top dollar for your car trade? Do not trade it to a car dealer! The best financial advisers in the US will tell you that you are losing money the instant you trade in your used car for a shiny... - 2 years ago

  • The Ethanol Debate: Boom or Bust?

    Ethanol has essentially been one of the great snake oil cons of the new millennium. It is nothing more than a band aid fix for the US energy markets. Unfortunately, a band aid only covers up an "ouwie" for a... - 2 years ago


Comments

RSS for comments on this Hub

Elisha  says:
2 years ago

I caught my man on Craigs list searching for hoes through his email. He says he didn't go all the way but he cheated on me before. Should i kill him or stay with him and make his life miserable?

Matt  says:
2 years ago

Well I wouldn't recommend killing him, but it doesn't mean you can't have fun with him. Make up a fake email address and respond to the ad. Show him a fake picture that he would like from the internet, then bust him in the lie.

Get him all excited by hyping your new "false" self over IM. Ask him to meet up somewhere and see if he shows. Or you could pretend its a bootie call. Then you def got him. If you give me your IM I can walk you through it.

Sarah  says:
2 years ago

I have been seeing a married man for nearly 5 months now and things aren't getting any better, it's worse. When we first started seeing each other he claims he was in the process of leaving her, but he hasn't nor do I think he will. The more he tells me the more I realize that he has been doing this to his wife for the past 10 years of their marriage. I have decided quit seeing him because he is obviously a loser and I deserve better. However my main thing is I want her to know that he is lying and cheating on her, not with just me but with numerous women. I don't know how to tell her without showing my identity. I want to keep my identity anonymous for my sake that I am worried that he will either come after me or worse she will. What should I do?

mattcastle12 profile image

mattcastle12  says:
2 years ago

I'm not really sure w/out more details. Dating a married guy was obviously problem #1.

If he's screwing around w/ multiple women, just break it off with him on a very good note and drop the bomb a month later when he doesn't expect you to be a threat any longer. There are many devilish tricks to pull if you want to get creative.

isabella  says:
16 months ago

my man stopped calling me saying he is in some kind of trouble. i know he is lying becausee wud soon go back to skool.what can i do to get over him

lisa  says:
14 months ago

today my man was checking out craigslist missed connections

i noticed he opened up a craigslist account today .

is he cheatin or am i paranoid/

mattcastle12 profile image

mattcastle12  says:
14 months ago

@ Lisa

I can't tell if he is messing around or not from this info, but I can certainly say he's intrigued with the thought of doing so he's doing this sort of thing. Or, to err on the side of the guy, maybe he was checking something else and just clicked on this accidently.

This type of behavior generally means he is interested in seeing what is on the market. Whether he is cheating or not would take further investigation, but if you think he is, start sniffing around and see what you turn up.

elle  says:
10 months ago

my husband was cheated on by his ex-wife. He told me that he would be completely offended if I accused him of cheating on me because he thinks cheating is the worst thing you could do to someone, yet said he would almost prefer i cheat on him before I accuse him of cheating on me. It didnt make any sense to me. What does this mean?

mattcastle12 profile image

mattcastle12  says:
10 months ago

Sounds like he is overly sensitive about his sense of honor being attacked. There can be some hidden issues behind feelings like that, so you can gently ask to explore that statement further.

I suppose his statement could be a deception to throw you off track, but that would be one of the most extreme lies I've ever heard. Sorry I can't be more help.

CJ  says:
6 months ago

I have been dating a guy for one year and 2 months. It has seemed really wonderful...soul mate like stuff. But, I keep having this gut feeling something just isn't quite right. The word, player" keeps crawling into my mind. So I searched on sites to see what kind of signs there would be. Your site has hit almost everything he does. His house is really clean and he keeps it really clean. He is a workaholic..he has two jobs. He is a director of an accounting firm for businesses and he is an engineering consultant for areo space. He owns lots of properties and rentals. He keeps his main phone unplugged most of the time, however he seems to keep most everything in his home unplugged. He keeps his cell phone with him (at all times). He doesn't answer some calls. When he goes to take a shower, he locks the door and takes his cell phone in with him. I seem to revolve more around his schedule than anything. I have met all of his family, he comes from a really big family. He introduces me as his GF. Everyone in his family seems to be excited about "me", from what I hear them say. He doesn't normally bring woman around his family. He has admitted using woman in his past but says he has learned from that, and it took a piece of himself away everytime. He is 47 and has been married once when he was in his 20's, never remarried, but has lived with at least one woman that I know of. He owns everything, he doesn't owe money for anything, not even a mortgage. He seems to be frugal. He is building a new home and is telling me that it will be "ours". He tells me he wants to marry me, but he hasn't asked. He says we should date two years first. He has held parties in his home for my family, mother, father, etc. Everyone seems to love him. I just have this nagging feeling...it isn't exactly the way I think. I don't know how to know for sure, with out riding it out. I am in love with him or at least who I think he is, but I am not in love with him if he is dishonest. Understand?

My question: is there a way to really find out? Also, why would a guy go through all of this trouble in the first place? He is attractive, rich, successful, a good lover, there are more than a handful of woman out there who could care less if he is faithful or not. They would consider him a "catch". I am attractive but I am not a blonde bomb shell either. I am petite, feminine woman who is, kind, giving, honest, not rich, going to school at 45,a single mom, and old fashioned any many ways. I have not had many sexual partners, because I chose not to. Why would a "player" go through all this trouble for someone like me? I just don't get it! Could you shed some light for me?

-CJ

mattcastle12 profile image

mattcastle12  says:
6 months ago

@ CJ,

Seems you have a great guy, so kudos to you.  As you suspect, perhaps you're just being overly cautious. Sometimes we create issues out of thin air when we've been burned in the past, things seem too perfect, or we can't just drop the idea that's lurking in the back of our minds.

As far as frugal tendencies, I behave similarly to reduce my vampire power drains, but I can't recall cutting off my phone just to save cash.  That's a bit on the extreme side, but it is possible.  Tough call here.

Then again, taking a cell phone into a locked bathroom also seems suspicious.  Maybe it's just out of habit he's locking the door or he's such a workaholic he doesn't want to miss a call, but it does seem like pseudo-aberrant behavior.  Unless, of course, he's got something going on the side.

I can tell you from experience that I've known guys to act in similar fashion around their GF's family, while being a cheater.  I really don't put a lot of value in family & cheater interactions since he can lie to them as easily as he can lie to you.  

As far as confirming your suspicions, there really isn't a great way to do so without taking the risk of him finding out that you're suspicious of his activities.  If he finds out, then the damage is done and then the relationship is in salvage mode.

You could potentially try to locate his cellphone bill for suspiciously repetitious calls or maybe checkout his Facebook page (if he has one), but other than that, you're beginning to enter the realm of personal privacy invasion.  Or as we men sometimes call it -- "psycho chic" territory. 

So you can see my reluctance to publish such advice for the world to see.  If you want to discuss it privately via email, perhaps I could give you a few more suggestions off the record.

All in all, it sounds like a tough situation. I wish you luck whatever you decide.

CJ  says:
6 months ago

Thank you for your reply. I have such a strong core belief that I either trust or I don't, either way that would be on me not him, unless he proves to be dishonest. It is not really fair to me, to him, or to our relationship if I am not trusting. Why would I want to live my life that way? I imagine that the truth always surfaces eventually, if he is honest or if he isn't. If he is a "player" then my stance is he is the fool, not me. He is the one who will end up hurting in the end. If he is not geniune then he will see the world through those eyes and the world will never seem genuine to him. He misses out on life, love and joy. Those who live a life of dishonestly and hurting others really only bring suffering to themselves in the end.

I think I have answered my real question which is, how do I want to be in this world? How do I want to live? I don't want to feel the need to "spy" or "snoop" on anyone. I still want to treat others the way I would want to be treated. It is true that I don't want to get hurt, and reality is sometimes I do. I guess the little girl inside of me wants to say, "please don't hurt me". Like most of us I want to be loved and cherished by a "soul mate". But, I guess ultimately that would be my job...to love and cherish myself. I can't really ask someone to love and cherish me if I don't love and cherish myself. And... when my head is spinning with thoughts that he could be a "player" I am not loving and cherishing him. I miss the experience, and the only thing that can take away the experience is me telling myself it wasn't real. Even if he is a "player" I still experienced love, romance, joy, a beautiful dream. I always have a choice, I can either stay and see what happens or not. I can trust or not. I can believe everything he tells me or not. So, I guess it is really on me. One thing that I have learned from this is that I can love someone without having to give away my power. I have heard this expression before and I think it applies here. You see a cute dog in a fenced yard and you enter through the gate to pet the dog. The dog bites you. You now know the dog bites. If you go back into the fenced yard to pet the dog again and the dog bites you, it is really you that bites yourself. You don't have to hate the dog, you can even love the dog...but you don't have to go into the fenced yard either. Make sense?

Thanks-

CJ

mattcastle12 profile image

mattcastle12  says:
6 months ago

@ CJ,

I agree, I think you have answered your own question. Your analogy seems appropriate so it's really a question of giving the cute dog the ability to bite you a second time. Some do, some don't. In your case, you haven't figured out if your man bites... yet.

Sometimes, questions like this are best written out so that you can actually wrap your mind around the problem. Some will also say it's cathartic to express what's bothering you. Hope you found some peace.

Drop a comment if something happens in the future. I'm sure there are others going through a similar situation that could benefit from your experience.

CJ  says:
6 months ago

Well.. that didn't take long. LOL. He was in fact a liar. It was confirmed to me today. The good news is...I now know I can trust my "gut". The bad news is...I loved the dream.

-CJ

mattcastle12 profile image

mattcastle12  says:
6 months ago

@ CJ,

Sometimes the truth works that way. It can set you free but also make you hate reality for a while. Best of luck in the future.

Submit a Comment

Members and Guests

Sign in or sign up and post using a hubpages account.


optional


  • No HTML is allowed in comments, but URLs will be hyperlinked
  • Comments are not for promoting your hubs or other sites

working