I am 26 years old and I always get brother or friendzoned. I honestly don't know what I do wrong. I guess it's the fact that maybe I don't know if I like a girl until after I become friends with her. And by that time she already just sees me as a friend or we're really good friends to the point that she sees me like a brother. Keep in mind it's multiple girls saying this, it's not a bad thing, it just sucks that girls don't see me in the romantic light. I was telling one of my best friends (I like her and she knows I does) that another girl that I once talked to said that she couldn't date me because I reminded her of her little brother. So I told my friend that I kinda see why, I'm sweet, funny, and adorable but I don't see how that doesn't make me datable, what else could it be? My friend told me that "all everyone wants to do is pat me on the head." And I get that because I look like a 16 year old (I look hella young for my age) i'm 5'1(hella short for my age) so maybe that's another reason why? I'm not a girly girl, but I don't dress completely like a guy, so maybe tomboyish? I just wish girls would actually give me a chance; I would say I wish that they would see me, like I see me, but to be honest I don't know how I see me. But I do know it's not someone's little brother, I might lookout and protect them like one, but that's not the end goal. How do I fix this?
I don't have a lot of good examples in person because I'm in a conservative area, but I would say using a dating app or website can help filter out people only wanting to be friends. I've made several friends, but I would say the vast majority are using dating apps for romance, whether short or long term.