When you want a date,  

Sometimes I'll get really horny and want to schedule a date but I won't schedule one with someone I'm not attracted to just to get laid.  There are so many beautiful women on here I always seem find someone I'm interested in seeing.  However, I do have a list of women I want to see and our schedules just don't sync up so it's hard to cross them off my bucket list.

I wait, I wait, I wait, I wait.

I know what I like and look for in a woman and I make sure I do my research and get it.  Don't have time to waste just "settling".

It hasn't happened often, but clients have told me that they were trying to see someone else but couldn't, and since I'd been on their radar for awhile, they saw me instead.  Because I was available.  Sometimes they wind up becoming regulars so it's a win-win.

it really depends on ones definition of "settling"...

but yes, at times when a gal cancels last minute, I'll generally go to a massage parlor

Had a call for dinner booking at 9.20pm last night!! He admitted he'd rung a few

He was very open about the fact he'd been blown off and let down by a couple of other ladies so he'd been googling to find someone else. He was already in the restaurant when he called me!!!
I laughed and said dinner time for me was about 7pm and that I was in my hotel bed with my makeup off watching TV

well, my ATF have something RL obligation yesterday so she couldn't see me (well, it' happen to all of us when RL event comes up, that takes priorities).  I also couldn't get in touch with other provider that I wanted to see so I decide to hit up an agency who i know their girls have good review and good looking so I called them up and i had a great time with one of them who has stellar review.

I just keep a rotation of about 3 women going, and usually have things planned a few days in advance.

Why would I "settle?" I'm never that desperate. I see providers who I want to see, who are within my budget, and who are available when I am available. I can go very long stretches of time without seeing anyone.

I always have a number of girls on my To See list.  

If I'm in the DC area, where I live, I don't settle. I'll wait for my ATF or someone I want to see (or see again) is back in town. My first appointment was canceled by the provider last minute, I waited 3 months for her to return to town before scheduling another first appointment. I may be willing to settle when I'm hobbying away from where I live. But still, I haven't really had to settle on the road.

a couple of times I've really regretted it, but I can remember one lady in Phoenix that I contacted at 9:30 after a last minute cancelation, and she rocked my world....so, yeah, I'll take a chance on a "last-minute fix".

Good questions (I think)  
Most of the time I like to plan my dates at least a few days in advance.  Starting with a friend text or call saying "hey, so and so, how have you been..."  Usually that leads to setting up a date.  Some times I will plan a date a week or two in advance, depending on who I want to see.

I routinely go several hours, or even days at a time without seeing anyone. lol

I try an set things up a few days in advance. Call one, no response, call the next. But they're all the ones I want to see so I don't consider it settling

Once told me, sometimes it's not about who is or isn't available, it's about who answers the call.  He was referring to his personal business of course.  He alluded to the fact that he got a plethora of his business because he simply answered the phone or returned a voicemail.  Sometimes "settling" works out for the best.  I find it best not to get your hopes up for someone who you really want to see, because shit happens.

Can't speak for anyone else but I usually go for my own "type"
However, and this is a biggggg however, as the old saying goes: a stiff dick has no conscience. Meaning when I'm in the mood I'm looking for the first available consenting adult when I can't find exactly what I'm looking for.

i have more than once in my hobby career been suddenly left high and dry by my booked appointment, for one reason or another...