If you’re wondering about my qualifications (as you should before you hire any self-professed “coach”), here’s some information about my background and training.
I’ll start with my full name and title, so I can get the braggiest stuff out of the way. (Who are we kidding? This whole page is gonna be braggy.)
Dennis Hong, PhD, MS
I have a PhD in Biology from the University of California, San Diego, and an MS in Counseling (Marriage and Family Therapy) from San Diego State University. For details, here are my résumé and LinkedIn profile. I also have a Yelp page for Social Savvy Sage.
I currently straddle two careers, as both a social skills coach and a Marriage and Family Therapist. As a therapist, I specialize in relationships that fall beyond the stereotypical norms dictated by our society. You can read more about my practice by clicking here. And if you’re wondering what the differences are between a coach and a therapist, here’s a blog post I wrote about it.
Throughout my professional life, I have worked in capacities where interpersonal communication is vital. I’ve also picked up a bunch of relevant skills and knowledge from my various professional endeavors.
As a research scientist working towards a PhD in evolutionary biology, I learned about the biological basis for many human behaviors.
I taught for eight years at a school for at-risk teens. During this time is when I picked up my teaching, curriculum design, and counseling skills.
While working towards my teaching credential, I played poker professionally for a year. Through that endeavor, I learned quite a bit about … well, let’s just call it applied human psychology. I think of poker as the “dark arts” aspect of social savvy.
I left teaching to take a job at WordPress.com for four years, where I authored a bunch of writings and presentations on customer service and communication. You can check them out here.
I am also a comedy and relationships writer, which can be either an oxymoron or redundant, depending on your perspective. In 2008, I started blogging about relationships, originally as a way for myself to learn from a breakup. That led to a considerable amount of freelance writing on dating and human behavior, a well as an invitation to be a dating advice columnist (see below).
Eventually, I launched my own crowdsourced dating advice site. That became my impetus to get a degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, as I wanted to be actually qualified to help people with relationship issues more serious than, “Well, how do I talk to her on a date?”
If you really want to throw yourself down the rabbit hole, here is a list of my internet writings on dating, relationships, human behavior, and basically anything relevant to Social Savvy Sage:
Cracked
- 5 Tiny Things Secretly Determining Who You Have Sex With
- 5 Things You Won’t Believe Can Brainwash You on Election Day
- 5 Bizarre Studying Hacks You Won’t Believe Improve Learning
- 5 Traits You Think You Control (But Totally Don’t)
- 5 Things Everyone Hates (Science Says You Secretly Enjoy)
- 5 Mind-Blowing Ways Your Senses Lie to You Every Day
- 5 Ways Your Brain Tricks You into Sticking With Bad Habits
- Mathematical Proof That the Media Is Sexist and Bad at Math
- 5 Scientific Ways the Internet is Dividing Us
- 5 Creepy Forms of Mind Control You’re Exposed to Daily
- 6 Reasons Professional Poker Is Way Harder Than It Looks
- 6 ‘Wuss’ Behaviors That Were Once Badass Survival Instincts
- 7 Psychotic Pieces of Relationship Advice from Cosmo
- 5 Personality Flaws That Science Will Cure in Our Lifetime
- Should You Post That Status Update?
- Online Dating Dictionary
The Frisky
Note: In the early 2010s, The Frisky was one of the hottest women’s lifestyle websites on the internet. Unfortunately, the site was sold in 2016, and over the next several years, its budget was slashed and the site itself effectively gutted. Eventually, all of its original articles were taken down and replaced with clickbait. Fortunately (for me), I saved all the articles I wrote and have republished them on my own blog.
- How To Spot An Asshole Pretending To Be A Nice Guy
- I Was The Angry Boyfriend
- 6 Harsh Online Dating Realities That You Should Be Aware Of
- Consent Isn’t As Simple As “No Means No”
- How Do You Handle Your Relationship Issues?
- Our First Date Was Nothing Spectacular
- I Don’t Regret Cheating
- No Man Is Worth Waiting Around For
- I Date Outside My Race Because My Race Doesn’t Want To Date Me
- The Real Reason Women Shouldn’t Make The First Move
- Why I’ll Act Like A Jerk If I Break Up With You
- Why You Never Heard From Me Again After Our Amazing First Date
Dear Wendy
Guest Columns
- Women, Want to Attract a Man? Wear Makeup!
- I’m Tired of the Pornification of Marriage Proposals
- Please Tell Me If I Stink!
- A Little (Ruthless) Mocking Only Made Me a Better Person
- How I Get a Girl to Break Up With Me
- We Weren’t Having Sex, But I Was Still Getting Screwed
- “How Can We Get Our Sexy Back?”
- “He Poked Me, So I Mocked Him”
- “I Kicked Him in the Balls and Now His Friends Think I’m Crazy”
- Wasting Away In The Friend Zone
- “Is He Really Too Busy, or Is He Just Not Into Me?”
- “In Three Years, He Never Slept With Me Once!”
- When Did “Trying Too Hard” Become A Bad Thing?
“His Take”
- “Do I Have a Shot with my FWB?”
- “Am I More Than Just His FWB?”
- “I’m a 28-Year-Old Virgin. Does That Scare Guys Off?”
- “He Stopped Sexting Me”
- “Am I Just His Booty Call?”
- “Should I Remain Friends With My Ex?”
- “Did He Just Want Me for Sex?”
- “My Ex is Gloating about His New Girlfriend on Facebook”
- “What Do Guys Think About First-Date Sex?”
- “Am I Really His Fantasy Girl?”
- “Am I Too Intimidating for Men?”
- “How Can I Broach the Topic of Marriage?”
- “How Do I Put the Moves on a Woman?”
- “What Do These Relationship Red Flags Mean?”
- “Will He Ever Quit Drinking So Much And Settle Down?”
- “Should I Tell The Next Guy I Date That I’m A Virgin?”
Your Tango
- 5 Devious Ways To Get Dumped Fast
- Is Your Compassion Self-Serving?
- 10 Reasons Men Ask You Out Via Facebook
If my professional background checks out for you, click here to learn about my coaching services, or sign up for a free consultation below:
Social Savvy Sage 