Hector wrote:
If you're not experienced in talking to women, you might have trouble expressing interest without making things unduly awkward. Some bad things include making eye contact for a long time without saying anything, talking about sexual things in front of the opposite sex (some people can pull this off but it is tricky), and being very forward very quickly. This is by no means an exhaustive list - young women are on the look-out for predators, and anyone who presents mixed signals in body language or a strange attitude towards women may show what to them are red flags. The issues these raise are amplified with women who don't really know you (as a friend, family member, or long-time colleague, say).
If you take certain precautionary measures, and become a good active listener and conversationalist (gradually, with practice), some women will still think of you as kind of creepy, but it would be saying more about them than about you.
"young women are on the look-out for predators, and anyone who presents mixed signals in body language or a strange attitude towards women may show what to them are red flags."
You mean if you do not show effective communication skills they will think you are a predator? What kind of predator?