In marketing, one often talks about segmentation.
On a high-level perspective, a segment of people or potential customers are a group of people that seem to value a number of the same attributes in a specific product or range of products.
Ok, I’m not going to consider a man as a product, but for arguments sake, let’s try and have some understanding on what could differentiate a woman:

1) Physical appearance: this is the easy one, i.e., it is the one every man has a clear and specific opinion on. It’s the first thing you see. Even before talking, you are already evaluating a woman on her looks (mind you, the probably… stupid me… they definitely do the same to us). The most important attributes come in a specific order. Studies have shown that in Latin countries such as Portugal, men typically value 1) Breasts; 2) Bottom; 3) Face. Of course, this changes from man to man. Some could value 1) Face; 2) Eyes; 3) Hands (got me on that one).

2) Intellect: I would separate sheer intellect from other attributes. Intellect is about intelligence. Ability to think, ability to communicate (some would argue that’s part of other attributes… but hey, this my Blog). It is a common stereotype that men don’t value this attribute that much. They do. I just think some (not many actually) value it as having a negative impact on the overall “evaluation” of a woman (hey, maybe Natalie Portmann is right after all). Other things lie under intellect such as cultural knowledge and even common sense (if there is one).

3) Personality: often mistaken for intellect, but actually a different thing altogether. How sensitive is the woman? How does she project herself to others? People looking for what I would call the “Motherhood signs” and give a significant importance to this attribute. Me? Well, take a guess.

4) Poise/posture: extremely different from physical appearance. In analogy, it is for physical appearance what personality is for intellect. It is the way the physical appearance is projected. A woman with “élan” but regular beauty can become more attractive to a man than a simple stunningly beautiful woman with no “élan”.

5) Cultural background: typically defined by geographic origin and upbringing. A lot is said about Latin girls, but I would say that from my experience an average Portuguese girl is as similar to a Spanish one than to an English one. Of course, a Spanish girl that has lived all her life in Spain is different from one who has lived all her life in England, so there are few patterns here. Social background has influence, and so do many other things.

Probably you could give a list with more, much more attributes, but it really doesn’t matter, because the real problem is that it all comes down to your own view on THAT specific woman.
Some even go through the process of mentally imagining the woman they are looking for, but as I typically say the biggest risk is not that you won’t find that woman, but that you DO find her.
As Nike put it so well, “Just do it”. Don’t think, act. But don’t be stupid, don’t get trapped in the illusion of perfection. Unfortunately, insensitivity seems to be a good way of dealing with it. As a friend of mine put it, I prefer calling it “getting rid of the pedestal syndrome”.
As I (not too gently) put it: “No woman deserves that I disrespect myself by putting her in a pedestal”.
“Extreme” – you might say.

Maybe, maybe… just, just maybe.