| Hi Brad, I'd be happy to give you my two cents.
I don't teach guys formal PU, but I do give them social advice. I am familiar with the theories and terminology, as I have been curious to learn more about guys and also apply my own "game".
I think that some of it is great: particularly the stuff about how to be self-confidence and basic social/relationship skills as well as general advice. There are, however, parts of it that make the guys who use it seem like tools. Some of the openers, for example, such as the porn-star-name one that I was reading about in one of the other forums, are lame and make it seem like the guy is trying too hard.
Also, even though we are animals, a lot of pick-up theory tends to oversimplify social situations, when every situation and every person is different. (For example, "If the PUA moves his arm to the right and the HB9 turns away from him slightly, he should get his wing-man to humiliate the alpha male, and then drop a neg so that he is the most viable option..."). There are certain patterns to social behavior but it still varies from situation to situation. In my personal opinion, a person that is that easy to manipulate, no matter how hot he/she is, would not be worth my time. Then again, I am not a guy, and I would like to even connect to people with whom I have a one-night stand, but I don't know if this is the case for everyone.
I also think that PUA culture encourages people to be too manipulative. As a girl, if I sense that I am being manipulated, I am immediately turned off and can easily move onto the next guy. Many (smart) girls can tell when guys are being insincere, and will want nothing to do with them. I believe that at heart most guys are pretty sincere, and if they were confident, they would not feel the need to manipulate a girl into bed with them. There is a difference, however, between social skills, and manipulation. It is a thin line, but I think that working on one's pick-up skills as a social talent is perfectly fine, but lying, having ulterior motives and deliberately affecting all of one's behaviors will ultimately bite you in the ass as well as the girl (not just literally). I suppose the key difference is that in the social skills approach you are on the girl's side and ultimately you want to be her partner, not her competitor. In the end, it is not you vs. her, not you trying to overcome her resistance, but you trying to figure out a way to best get to know her.
Another thing the PUA community needs to do is realize that, especially in this day and age, girls and guys really aren't that different. Girls do the same types of things at parties to try to pick up guys, and they also don't always want to be "in love" before they fuck. Guys are not simply sex-crazed shallow manipulative serial one-night stand enactors. One key to being a good PUA is to throw away stereotypes. Then picking up a girl might be easier than you think. Believe me, a lot of times I go to clubs just expecting a guy to approach me. And he doesn't until he's really drunk and he tells me that it's because he was afraid I would get creeped out. No, you're supposed to have balls and come up to me.
I could probably write a whole lot more about this, but I'll wait to hear what other people have to say.
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