Quote:
Alright, let's take a look:
First, congrats on your decision to go alcohol free. Secondly . . . isn't it's amazing how habitual we can be?. . . You haven't told us exactly how you interacted with women before but man, you seem to have a knack for building barriers between you and the women you meet. - More on this later.
Hey Ksabi, thank you for taking the time to read through my journal and give such a detailed response! I've read a lot of your posts on the forum and in AFC Daniel's journal, and you give great advice. I'm still only about halfway through his journal.
Well, I used to 'pick up' girls in the bar when I was drinking. When I first started going to bars, I would barely drink, as I drove quite a lot. It wasn't until I started going to the bar already buzzed, and continued drinking when I got there that I had any success. I would basically stand around the dance floor, and try to get eye contact with a girl I was interested in. Even then, as drunk as I was at times, I would still never do a 'stone cold' approach. I would always wait for eye contact or some type of IOI. From there I guess I would move closer to her (or wait until she moved closer to me), maybe dance a bit if I was buzzed enough, and we would start to talk. To be honest, a lot of it was a blur, but that's more or less how things would go.
There were other times I'd meet girls at small house parties or gatherings, but again I was always drinking and would be more social. But that was pretty much it, most of my 'success' came from drunken nights that I barely remember and are mostly a blur in my memory now.
That's very interesting that you said that I seem to have a knack for building barriers between me and the women I meet. I couldn't agree more, and I don't know what I'm doing to make that happen.
Maybe part of it is that I'm too 'afraid' to push things and take it to the next level, so I stay in the 'interview' LJBF type of interaction. Or I'm too 'afraid' of being turned down, so I wait too long for more IOIs, or I just don't take that 'risk' of turning the conversation to a more attraction/sexual nature. I really don't know.
EDIT: I think another reason is that let my 'attitude' or ego get in the way, and I don't try enough or put myself out there enough.
I'd love to hear what you picked up by reading what I've wrote so far.
Quote:
You're in school . . . if you have the time, take a class in oral communications, drama, creative writing, etc . . . This forum will offer you some ideas but those classes will give you opportunities to exercise those ideas.
That's a good idea, I could really benefit from any type of public speaking practice, even though it usually 'terrifies' me.
Quote:
In terms of pu related goals, it seems you've already tackled AA. And I don't think your assertions of all your 'fears' are correct. Reading through your entries, I think it's more likely that you suffer from 'phobo-phobia' rather than 'rejecta-phobia'.
I am getting better with the AA, and at least I seem to be able to do it now, so that's some improvement. But, all my 'approaches' have been 'indirect', as I have never said anything like "I just thought I'd sit down here and talk to you because you're cute". I don't think, at least right now, I could do a direct approach like that.
I'm not sure what you meant by 'phoba-phobia'. Do you mean I just have a fear of fear itself, or I'm just afraid of being in situations where I"m afraid? That would make sense, and there is probably some truth to it. But I do still fear the rejection though. I'm just being very honest here, and I think part of my fear is just the damage the rejection would do to my ego.
I know I shouldn't think that way, but I guess part of me just hates to "lose", and if a girl gets bitchy or rejects me, then she "wins" and I'm forced to walk away the loser. I know that's a bad way to think of things, and I know that holds me back, but I guess I need to condition myself somehow to stop thinking of it in that way.
I don't mean to come across and say that I'm arrogant, but I guess, just being brutally honest, there is a side of me that does let my ego get in the way. It's hard to describe, I know I have lots of faults, as everyone does, but I guess I think too highly of myself? I don't know, I'm having difficulty putting it into words or describing it.
Quote:
Don't fight it. . . make it work for you.
That makes sense.
Quote:
We're too old to be playing the wishy-washy "I want to be the best person I can be" game. I know you already mentioned 'fear of failure' but by creating non-specific goals, you're setting yourself up for a non-project. Try to be more specific . . .
Yeah, I know what you mean. I'll try to think up more specific goals.
Quote:
You're already too good at ^this. There's a time and situation for it but not giving a shit is an awful thing to be doing all the time. The point of the game is to create attraction. If you don't give a shit whether you do this or not, what's the point? It's 'giving a shit' that rewards you with positive emotions when you succeed. It's 'giving a shit' that inspires to analyze, strategize, learn, and execute better the next time. It's NOT GIVING a shit that gets you stuck in a ball of negative emotions. Give this some thought. Give a shit.
Again, that makes a lot of sense. It's interesting that you said I'm already too good at it. I'm a strange one perhaps! lol... I guess I can operate on either extreme of the spectrum at times. Sometimes I care 'too much' to the point of not wanting to say anything because of that 'fear' I have of failure or being judged by my peers, and at other times I'm not at all afraid to give a girl the 'fuck you too' type of body language, attitude or vibe if I get attitude or negativity from her.
But you're right, I have to care about what people think because the name of the game is attraction, and I need to care enough to make sure I'm building that attraction. I need to work on this aspect. I think that's a part of my game that I need to work on a lot -
how to build the attraction. I guess in some ways, I'm not sure how to do that. I guess at the bars, things just seemed to happen naturally, and it all flowed together. But being sober and during the day it seems like a completely different game, and it's one that I'm not very good at playing yet.
Quote:
Game:
I realize that your goal with these 'approaches' is to tackle the AA issue but since you are now able to converse with these girls, I think it's important that you set some general pu-specific goals. Interacting with girls is like the economy, if it's not getting better, it's getting worse. If you are not creating a stronger connection, you are creating a barrier; you're only fortifying your 'stranger' status.
Exactly. I seem to be able to 'approach' now with directions, asking if they're in a certain major, or other types of things, but I need to get better with the next stages. That's for sure.
I really need to make a stronger connection. I think I'll need to do some more reading or get a bit of advice on how to build that stronger connection. It seems that I can open now, but now I need to move on to the next level.
Quote:
Your goal should be to get a number but you already knew that. . .
Definitely. I'll read that link you gave me. Again, I guess for me I took the 'easy way out' by just giving her my #. That way I save the awkwardness of her telling me 'no'. But, I need to do it anyways, and 'break out of my comfort zone' as I've read about here on the forum several times.
Thanks for the link, I just read it. And those 2 things you wrote about make a lot of sense. Damn, I wish I had just done that last week instead of just basically dropping my number down then hoping for the best. Ah, live and learn I guess!
Quote:
1. Open.
2. Connect.
3. Seed future fun.
4. Get number.
5. Go out.
6. Fuck.
That's pretty much it.
Yea, that's pretty much it broken down into what it's all about. Now I really need to work on the connect part. Thanks again man for all your help and insight, I really do appreciate it!