Pimping Yourself Out

That's what it feels like, this whole dating thing. Not in the Xzibit, pimping out rides kind of way. I'm talking street walker, fishnet wearing, smeared mascara kind of way.

I've had quite a few discussions on this topic, and the opinions on it vary quite greatly. But generally there are two camps when it comes to this, and of course both are widely apart from each other. While they both sound good in theory, neither are both flawed in their own ways.

1) Sell Yourself
Basically you're going to do your best to show yourself in the best light possible. Hiding all your flaws, and exaggerating all your strengths. Selling yourself to somebody how great you are. You're trying to get somebody to like you. In this form, you're treating dating like a competition that is to be conquered.
I don't really like selling myself, it just feels gross. It feels too much like a sales pitch, like some sleazy used car salesman trying to get one by the customer. And why should I "try" to get somebody to like me? Aren't they suppose to like you for who you are regardless? And really, is this act sustainable long term?

2) Be Yourself
You don't really try too hard, no real song and dance, just let things happen as they may. Things will work out if they're suppose to, the thinking being that somebody will like you for just being you. This is more the "letting nature take its course" approach.
This seems more utopian and idealistic, but in some ways, highly unrealistic. Will anything really get done if you don't really try? It feels like you're waiting around helplessly for something to happen. People are also generally not super interesting if you really think about it, we're different, but mostly we're in a large group of average. We all eat, sleep, drink, have friends, hobbies and so on. Can anybody get excited by that?

Is there a right way or a wrong way? Is it an individual decision? Is it really a matter of effort?
Thoughts?