Showing posts with label School Paper Project. Show all posts
Showing posts with label School Paper Project. Show all posts

Sunday, April 8, 2007

More comments from readers

I've received several comments from my blog readers. Since they are scattered in comment section of topics unrelated to their comment, I'm going to address them here in their own post.

"Ana,

Just curious how you ended up doing on your project. You get a good grade? What did the professor think of it?"


Matt,

I don't know what grade I got on my project (yet) but I know I got a B- in the class. Which leads me to believe I got a good grade on the final and the paper because I did very poorly on my mid-term.

I'm going to email that professor and see if I can meet with him this week to discuss my project and to get it back from him and also to discuss any publishing possibilities with him. When I was I spring break I found a "free" book by Noam Chomsky (an author we studied in class) called "Profit over People". I may mention that to him because he seem interested in those sorts of things.

More importantly to me, I'm wondering what you think about my project. I've received very little feedback regarding it. So far, only two of my female friends have mention that they are very interested learning more and that they enjoyed my project. But other than that, I have NOT received very much feedback at all. So what do you think?

HeroiC said...

"Hey this is just a shot in the dark but were you at one of the LA bootcamps in February? I was one of the students and there was this girl that Savoy invited there to help out. She was real cool and winged me in a bunch of sets. I can't remember her name though. But you seem to fit the bill. Me and her were both from the same Bay Area town and your from the Bay too from what I've read.

Anyway, I like your blog. I'm trying to write my own but I am REALLY bad at keeping it updated. I have a ton of blogs that I need to finish. Oh and while I'm leaving a comment on this blog I just want to say that I totally agree with you on the hair. I don't know how too many guys I know let that shit go out of control. I'm debating on whether to do the eyebrow waxing thing though...Well that's all I got to say. Let me know if that was you at Privelege. Later!

H"

Hey Heroic,
I'm not trying to ignore you. I'm just very sensitive about keeping my identity concealed for the time being. This blog is very public and anyone can read it, so I avoid giving away information that can used to track me down, specifically. With that being said, I can't answer your specific question regarding my identity. I hope you understand.

However, I would encourage you to write a blog about your bootcamp experience. I would love to read it.

I'm also very interested in learning how to become a wing girl. There's so much to learn, it gets to be overwhelming at times. But I have learned "Have you seen Michelle?" Ha...and I think that's hilarious. I tried to explain this to my friends, we all had a laugh about it.

ITotem said...

"Inner Game is the set of beliefs you hold about yourself and the world around you. Without a strong set of core beliefs, you are easily influenced by the world around you. You can call inner gamer your "self-talk" if you will.

As far as calibration goes, I like that concept but to be honest with you, I prefer to think of being more socially self-aware, or even being more socially intelligent. Calibration implies that you are adjusting/reacting to someone else's reaction to you. This is what leads to reaction-seeking behavior when taken to the extreme because the PUA tries to meet the woman's approval.

Confident men don't calibrate per say. They just talk in ways that makes you feel comfortable with their values. They introduce things in a "situationally relevant" way. You both don't have to agree with each other's values but the fact that he can present his persona confidently to the woman in a non-offensive way makes him more attractive."

Hey ITotem,

Thanks for posting such a detailed comment on my blog. I appreciate your efforts. Since I've moved to L.A. I've been working on my own "inner game". I've been learning about core belief systems, self-talk, managing stress, relaxation, and other helpful things. The aspect of the community that interest me most would probably be intergame, then lifestyle, then fashion, and so on.

You're insight on calibration is interesting. My interest in this area topic is based mainly on what I've experienced and I've seen very little written about it (so far). I think my calibration post was also inspired by Sinn's Microcalibration post.

My personal experience with calibration was when I was with a guy and I asked him why he kept restricting my arm from moving while we were snuggling on the couch watching T.V. His first comment was "Because you need to be restrained." I found this very unique and intriguing and the look on my face must have tipped him off to the fact that I was not expecting such an answer (although I was fascinated by it). So he quickly said "I just want you to know I'm paying attention to you." That comment fascinated me just as much as the other and it really helped me understand calibration.

To me calibration is less about changing who you are as a person but it more about being "in the moment" enough to recognize small clues (facial expressions, eye movements, etc) and using those to help build more comfort. If something is said or done that makes a girl uncomfortable and the PUA doesn't mind making an adjustment to make the girl feel more comfortable, than I see nothing wrong with it.

I see it as an assertive thing ("I count, you count") not a approval-seeking thing. Although I can see how it could be used in a way that is not productive for the PUA (in the way you described it).

I've seen confident PUAs calibrate. I understand your comment and agree with parts of it. It was not specifically what I was referring to in my post but it's still a good comment nonetheless.

Thanks again for leaving a comment. I look forward to hearing more from you regarding different PUA related stuff.

Now, I really need to study. I know it's Easter but I don't want to fall behind in my studies. I hope you all have a great Easter and if you don't believe in Christ or celebrate Easter, I hope you have a great Sunday. Take care.

Friday, March 16, 2007

It's been a long day and an even longer week

I don't want to dwell on the negative so I won't. So I'll dwell on the positive. Although, today has been a long day, it's been a productive day. I got a lot of things done.

I got up early to to proof read my Communications studies project one more time before going to school early enough to get it printed before class. I proof read and edited my paper again. Made some adjustments and had a lovely bus ride to school.

The computer lab was open and I started to print my project section by section, title page, project, reference page, appendix content sheet, and the 5 parts to the appendix. By the time I was done printing it, I had probably about 40 pages to turn in. I had to staple it into two sections, my 18 pages that I created and the 20 odd pages to the appendix.

I was happy. I felt like I really accomplished something. It wasn't perfect but it was clean and crisp. I felt like I met the assignment requirements well. I'd been working on this for weeks, when I know some students started their paper last night. It felt exciting. Like I gave it everything I could, time, energy, effort, dedication, persistence, and I was proud.

My teacher said no one ever asked him to the do this subject before. I have been working with him for the last 10 weeks to make sure I was doing it properly and even though I think he'll find areas for improvement. I feel like I met most of his requirements.

Every time I've met him he's given me feedback and helped me sculpt this into a better project. He kept me focused and guided me well through the project. He pushed me and challenged me to do something, I've never done before and it felt great.

I've never done anything like this before. I've known for years that I've been interested in social sciences and scientific research into social and gender dynamics. Especially in regards to dating and sex.

I saw that movie Kinsey with the guy I was dating at the time and I was fascinated by it. I think that would be a cool job to have, sex scientist. And that movie was so well written. I loved the way the story devises were used. The question section adding to the narrative. The interweaving of the two parts. I remember just loving the writing and the editing and the acting. It was great.

But I've always (or at least for many years) been interested into television shows that discussed the science of love, sex, and/or dating. Even if they are reality based and that aren't necessarily written creatively but definitely well and some what witty at times.

I've never really been that great at sciences like biology, or chemistry, or the such. In fact, the sciences that I have taken in college have been either the physical sciences (geology, anthropology, etc) and social sciences (psychology, etc). I really like the social sciences, especially this communication studies class.

I sorta wish I could be a communication studies major, but I can't it's too late. It's an impacted major and I'd don't have enough time to go back and take all of the requirements and graduate in the amount of time they require me to. I wish I did. And I wish they weren't so eager to push me through to graduation.

I really like school and I love being there on campus learning. I sorta wish I could be a student forever. I just love being around the thriving learning environment. It's has a strong vibe to it.

My professor told me some of the research he's working on and it all sounds so interesting. Studying imagination and trying to prove the current theory wrong or proving your own theory. There's all kinds of research available, it's just too bad I am an English major.

I guess there's nothing stopping me from being an English major and assisting in other departmental research or outside classroom learning. But it's time consuming to be a full time student.

I was away from home for 12 hours today. And most of that time was spend doing something that had to do with the classes I am currently taking.

After I turned in my Communication Studies project, I went to edit and print another paper that was do 2 hours after I had turned in my commstu project. But my second paper was an English paper. It's funny, how difficult I find my own major.

I've also been working on this English paper for several weeks. I'm not as proud of that paper, so I am not going to post it. The topic I choose was Faustus. And I struggled to come up with a thesis. I came up with great ideas and interesting observations about the text but I struggled immensely with formulating a proper thesis for the things I was observing.

I saw my T.A. 5 times about the paper in the last two weeks. I probably emailed him more than twice that many times. I also saw my teacher twice and probably emailed him about the same amount of times that I emailed my T.A. I am sure both of them were happy that the papers were do today. It meant they wouldn't be hearing from me about the satirical parallels in Dr. Faustus by Christopher Marlowe.

So I turned in the paper at 1pm and sat through a lecture about Books 11 & 12 in Paradise Lost. Before grabbing my first real bite to eat all day and checking my voicemail to find out that one of my girlfriends was dumped last night. So I spent part of my lunch trying to help her feel better.

Today must have been a female energized day because I got about half a dozen calls from females in my life today.

My girlfriend that lives in L.A. was calling to give the weekly run down of weekend happenings. While updating me on her love life and most recent exploits.

My mom called to confirm my flight information, since I text message her this morning "Oh Shit, I just realized I have a final Friday 2-23 in the morning, I can't fly out until Saturday."

Then I spent an hour in a very haphazard discussion section that was supposed to help us with the preparing for the final. My T.A. is a nice guy (and I hate to use that word) but he's pretty clueless when it comes to actually facilitating the learning process. And I have no doubt that he needs to learn some of this PUA stuff.

And after that I studied in the library for 4 hours for my English final that is on Monday....

And while I was studying I got another call each from my girlfriends and mom. On the way home, I called my friend from the Bay Area who just got dumped last night and spent a good 2 hours on the phone with her, while I was getting home on the bus (which takes about 40 minutes to do).

I really tried to help her. I tried to give her advice and techniques for dealing with this. She said she felt better and she seemed a lot less emotionally upset and she had a good outlook by the time we were done. which makes me feel good.

By the time I was done talking to her I was exhausted. And my L.A. girlfriend called. We both decided to stay in tonight, thankfully. It's a good end to a long day.

This week has been pretty long but I've also gotten a lot of things done. Like yesterday, I got my medical marijuana prescription/card. So now, I am set...I don't have to deal with hassling to find medicine anymore.

It was sorta time consuming to go out to Hollywood to see the doctor and I was in the office for 2 hours but at least it gave me a break from my papers. Plus, it could have been a lot worse. I was on my medication when I showed up and it was really funny to read the disclaimer that they have you sign. The funniest parts were when the form was describing some of the side effects of the medication.

Euphoria....hahahahaha. Talkativeness, loss of conceptual time, short term memory loss, lack of concentration, etc. The list was hilarious. I asked for a copy but they refused.

It was completely different than the first experience I had with a friend in Northern California. She asked me to go with her to renew her prescription and it had to be the strangest thing I've ever experienced.

First it wasn't in a doctor's office, it was in some Jamaican woman's apartment in Berkeley but it was more like Oakland. There were people just laying around freshly baked. She had banana bread that just melted me my chair.

We had to wait a long time, and she kept saying that the Doctor would be up in just a little while. And the whole time I'm expecting a doctor to walk through the door. Then she finally says that the Doctor is in New FUCKIN' Zealand and a goat on his farm just ate through his internet cable and he had to run to the store in town to buy a new cable so that he could teleconference via video internet.

Eventually my girlfriend went into a bedroom turned into an office and spoke to the Doctor, who was in New FUCKIN' Zealand and she got her prescription from the doctor, while I was smoking the fastest Jay I'd ever smoked with the others who were waiting in the living room.

It was the trippiest thing ever.

But it was cool, she got her script and I was happy from the banana bread and free bud they were sharing with me. I'd say sharing is caring and a friend with weed is a friend indeed.

This time I just sat in a plain office, there wasn't any banana bread or jays, just a bunch of folks waiting to see the doctor.

Medical marijuana doctors have it made. That doctor works 4 days a week for 5 hours a day (20 hours total) and brings in mad cash and has time to be with his family. And the doctor in New Zealand has it made too. Shit, If I could live in New Zealand on a farm with a goat to eat wires, It would be cool.

It was a good break, since before that I was having a heavy session with my psychologist. She's tough on me. And she really gave me so good advice and basically didn't go easy on me at all. Which was something I really needed. Tough love. I like working with her. She's really done a lot for me.

I also heard from my brother yesterday and he's doing well with the Style 505 thing. He says so far all the challenges have been self-improvement stuff and he wishes it had to do with meeting girls. But I told him that, I like all the self-improvement stuff. He told me about all the challenges.

He said the first one dealt with approach anxiety. He says he doesn't really deal with AA that much and I believe him. He doesn't have a problem going up to strangers and just talking to them.

I remember one time we were out and someone stop to give him a bible and he got into a discussion with the person and kept just asking really engaging questions. We've always been really social. I think I've become less social though over the years. I definitely seem to go through my day with my defenses (bitch shield) up a lot more. I am trying to break from that and still be social without being bothered by random men bugging me. It's hard though. Cuz I hate being bugged but at the same time I like being social.

I also signed up for my class reunion mailing list and saw Jealous Jason was already on it. I am sorta surprised because he always acting like he would NOT be interested in going to the class reunion.

It was cool to see updated pictures of him. He still looks the same, or at least I can still see the guy I used to love in his face. And he's making feature-length films from where he lives in the Bay Area, so that's cool. He always said he didn't want to move to L.A. to be a film director. And it looks like he's doing it now.

It would be interesting to see him again and caught up. I know he as a kid and I think he's married. I doubt his wife would want him to see me though. She's started dating him right after we broke up (he could never stand to be out of a relationship for very long) and they were pregnant within a few years. And I am sure they got married.

It was weird, she was a lesbian when he met her, or at least dating a girl. Oh well. I always just thought that he would have double the jealousy issues with her.

It was strange. He dumped me because he said I was selfish. And I realized I was being selfish because I had given him so much and wasn't getting the same in return. I wanted to pursue business opportunities for the business we had started together and he didn't want me to advance in the direction I was going.

At the time, I remember thinking that I'd be able to find another guy to fall in love with easily. Boy was I wrong. If I had known at the time that love was so difficult, I may have handled it differently. But because our love seemed so easy and because I was so naive, I had no idea how difficult dating could be.

I'm glad we separated because we were having communication problems and being single for the last 5 years has really given me opportunities to develop myself, independently and probably more thoroughly then I could have done in a relationship with him.

I am getting tired....This blog is going to have to continue when I have more time and when I am not exhausted. And it will also remain unedited until I can get around to finishing it up.

I am a radio of different sorts tonight.

(partially edited)

Some comments on my Communication Studies Project

I am very proud of my project. I put a lot of work into it. I have never written a social science paper or a research paper of this kind before and I am happy with the way it turned out (for the most part). I've just turned in my project to my professor.

It may not follow scientific protocol exactly but I did my best to meet the guidelines set forth by my professor.

It's very long, fifteen pages double spaces. I don't really like the way it looks double spaced so it is single spaced on my blog.

Some of the formatting was lost in the transfer from word to this blog post. For example quotes of forty or more words should be aligned differently but the blog formatting does not allow for such accommedations.

This is not a pick-up artist guide or manual. It is a content analysis of existing sources. The concepts discussed are well known concepts in the seduction community.

The quotes are used here under fair use and academic regulations. If you were quoted in this project and feel your rights were violated, please seek legal counsel. I've been advised that the sources used are not in violation of copyright laws.

Parallels in Seduction and Advertising regarding Evolutionary Arms Race

I. Introduction

This project explores the parallels in the evolutionary arms races of advertising and the seduction community.

The seduction community is defined as:

A loosely connected world-wide subculture of (mostly) men who strive for consistent success with attracting and seducing women. This overriding intention is facilitated with improvements of self (inner game), skills, and lifestyle. “It's about developing your self. Your skillset. Your social intelligence. Your 'alpha qualities'. Your lifestyle. Your natural attractiveness to women.” (Roman_be, 2006). This collection of attributes and abilities is what is sometimes referred to as one’s “game”.

In addition, members of this community seek greater understanding of male, female, and social psychology and dynamics. Within this community, there are individuals, businesses, and organizations with varying fundamentals, strategies, and philosophies, that offer advice, products, and services that help assist their diverging objectives.

This community is networked “together through internet forums and groups, as well as over a hundred local clubs, called ‘lairs’” (Wikipedia, 2007) and other similar local groups and gatherings. The seduction community is often referred to by its members as “the community”.

Pseudonyms are often used in the seduction community to protect the identification of members and targets. Pseudonyms are used throughout this project for the same reasons. Except in the case of the author, Neil Strauss; he uses the pseudonym Style in the seduction community. His real name and pseudonym are well known and used in the community and mainstream media coverage. This project refers to him as Neil Strauss in all instances.

The members of this community are often referred to as pick-up artists (PUA). A pick-up artist is someone skilled in the arts and non-exact sciences of seduction. For the sake of this project, seduction will refer to the following definition:

“Seduction is the use of temptation and enticement, often sexual in nature, to attract or influence the behavior of another. Traditionally, the word implied leading someone astray, as when a man lures a woman into a sexual relationship without the need to resort to force. In contemporary usage, however, seduction is used more broadly as a synonym for the act of charming someone.” (Wikipedia, 2007)

This project aims for an objective comparison of two separate but similar groups. The project will not attempt to address the morality or integrity of advertisers or pick-up artists. I do not believe that either the advertisement industry or the seduction communities are innately corrupt or dishonest. As in most groups within given societies, there are varying degrees of ethical practices with both seducers and advertisers. It would be an injustice to label all advertisers and pick-up artists as fraudulent. “Being a PUA doesn't make one inherently manipulative or dirty.” (Illpapinyc, 2006)

In regards to whether or not this community really exists, Neil Strauss, author of The Game and renowned pick-up artist, said it this way, “It really happen[s]. Men will deny it, women will doubt it. But I present it to you here, naked, vulnerable and disturbingly real. I beg you for your forgiveness in advance.”(2005)

Theoretical Frame Work of this Project

This project appears to be the first scholarly attempt to look at the seduction community, let alone to compare the seduction community practices with procedures from the advertising industry. Other sources referencing this community comes from media reviews of individuals, products, and services from the community, or from members of the community, none of which are academic in nature. This is due, in part, to the seduction community’s attempts to remain somewhat covert from mainstream media and audiences. There is a rampant fear in the community of being exposed. The reasons for which, tie directly into the topic of this paper, evolutionary arms race. Members of the seduction community fear, probably rightfully so, that wide-spread exposure would cause insurmountable competition and resistance from targets. Their schemes would have to radically evolve to continue their current status.

Both the seduction community and advertisers rely on psychology and sociology. This project works within in these related fields as it applies to its scope.“Some of the concepts in the [Seduction] community are borrowed from other disciplines, such as the concept of social proof from the psychology of influence, and various concepts from sociobiology and evolutionary psychology (such as the term 'alpha male').” (Wikipedia, 2007)

This project explores the evolutionary arms race that takes place in the seduction community by exploring tactics utilized by pick-up artists to stay ahead of competition, strategies to minimize opposition from targets, evolutionary and biological mating research, and techniques called peacocking and social proof. In addition, this project will briefly explore one reputable company utilizing these concepts in its program, The Mystery Method.

Competition is fierce in the dating world and pick-up artists take this competition against other men to its highest level. Once opponents are disarmed, members of the seduction community focus on their targets, usually highly sought-after women, and they use their knowledge to minimize any refusal to go along with the seduction. Seduction is accomplished in various ways. Knowledge of mating research is used by seducers to create and maintain attraction with women. Social proof and peacocking are methods employed to increase the desirability of the pick-up artists in the eyes of women. The Mystery Method is a highly respected company that has created the M3 Model which incorporates the strategies outlined in this project along with other proven practices. These strategies are just a few of many ways the seduction community takes advantage of the evolutionary arms race of love (and sex).

Due to the fact that there is no academic research on the seduction community, there is vast array of possibilities for further investigation that could be done. Both the advertising industry and the seduction community could learn a great deal from each other. The seduction community already uses advertising and sales techniques to their advantage. However, it is highly unlikely that advertisers pay any attention to pick-up artists. Though, if they did, they might learn important concepts that could be utilized within the advertising field.

Correspondingly, there are some very powerful concepts within the seduction community that could ultimately be beneficial to the advertising industry. One of the most powerful of which is a seduction community concept called “framing” or “frame control”. This concept is fundamentally different than the communication theory, and sociology, process of selective control over media content. (Wikipedia, 2007) It resembles more of George Lakoff’s political framing concepts. (Lakoff, 2006) It would be interesting to see research on the parallels between both pick-up artist and political framing theories.

This project was originally going to include comparisons of parallels with Ries and Trout’s positioning concepts and the seduction community. Positioning is a key concept that would ideally fall under the evolutionary arms race topic of this paper. However, due to the limited scope of this research project and time restraints, that comparison was not included. Further investigation into these comparisons could be beneficial to both the advertising industry and pick-up artists.

In addition, this project was going to have sections on “concealing the hook” and “staged surrenders”. However, proper sources were not secured in time to appropriately detail the seduction community used of these concepts.

Abstract

When concepts in the advertising industry are compared to similar concepts in the seduction community there may be parallels. The author of this project has researched numerous publications, books, articles, message boards, blogs, and other resources to collect the data that is presented within this project. The data shows evidence that members of the seduction community are aware of biological and evolutionary theories that effect seduction. This evidence further shows how that information is put into practice by pick-up artists. This project’s focus is on the less-studied seduction community as opposed to the exceedingly investigated advertising industry. Members of the seduction community exploit concepts that are also used in advertisement, to get women into bed.

Hypothesis

The dynamics of the seduction community is that of an evolutionary arms race that shares features of advertising evolutionary arms race.

II. Methods

I have done a painstaking content analysis of various websites, blogs, articles, books, message board forums, and other relevant resources to locate the information presented. Resources were selected based on their significance to the over all topic of evolutionary arms race in the seduction community. Complications arose when the scope of the project was being considered to include positioning, concealing the hook, and staged surrenders. Although, it seems apparent that there are parallels in positioning, concealing the hook, and staged surrenders in advertising and seduction it was difficult to pin point specific data from the seduction community regarding these concepts. This difficulty is probably due in part to the deviations in terminology in both groups regarding these theories. Such comparisons could be their own research project because of the amount of data that could be presented and the time it would take to gather the data.

Additional complication occurred when attempting to find graphics to add to this project. Some of the concepts presented in this project, such as peacocking and social proof, are not easily transferable into visual representations.

III. Results and Discussion

Evolutionary Arms Race in Advertisement and Seduction

The purpose in both advertisement and the seduction community is to, “learn to adapt and evolve faster than anybody else.” (Hysteria, 2006) Hysteria’s statements get at the core of what an evolution arms race is and the open-ended goals of the advertisement industry and the seduction community. “Stay two steps ahead at all times.”(Hysteria, 2006) But what is an evolutionary arms race?

The biological definition is as follows: "An evolutionary arms race is an evolutionary struggle between to competing sets of co-evolving genes that develop adaptations and counter-adaptations against each other, resembling an arms race." (Wikipedia, 2007) Metaphorically speaking, this is what happens amongst humans in both advertising and seducing. This struggle to stay ahead of competitors’ advances and prospects’ defenses is symbolically an evolutionary arms race.

However, staying ahead has no specific end points or conclusive destinations. "Arms race is also used to describe any competition where there is no absolute goal, only relative goals of staying ahead of the other competitors [and prospects]." (Wikipedia, 2007) Advertisers and seducers have to continually evolve their strategies because the tactics that they develop quickly lose efficiency when their targets develop resistances to those strategies.

"There is an arms race between advertisers and their potential customers." (Steen, 2007) As advertisers’ prospects develop opposition to ad tactics, the advertisers upgrade and innovate strategies to counter those resistances. "In a co-evolutionary arms race, audiences gradually learn to resist advertisers' techniques." (Steen, 2007) Professor Steen is currently researching and developing further work regarding the evolutionary arms race in advertising. This project takes a focused look at the evolutionary arms race in the seduction community. "Sex is an evolutionary puzzle." (Wikipedia, 2007)

“The male’s goal is seduction: He is trying to manipulate the female into falling for his charms, to get inside her head and steer her mind his way. The evolutionary pressure is on him to perfect displays that make her well disposed toward him and sexually aroused so that he can be certain of mating.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 161)

The seduction community is aware of evolution and its effect on the seduction process. The community aims to stay ahead of competitors (other single men) and targets (desirable women). “Fact is, being successful with girls (or at least better than the average Joe) is about adapting your own [behavior],” (Borris, 2006) Pick-up artists seek out resources, such as existing research, that will aid their over-all seduction efforts. "Books such as The Red Queen by Matt Ridley, Sperm Wars by Robin Baker, and The Mating Mind by Geoffrey Miller are frequently cited in the community.” (Wikipedia, 2007) As demonstrated in the following quote:

“For the aspiring pick-up artist, The Red Queen is an invaluable text that provides useful information on how our social interaction has evolved over thousands of years. And how it continues to evolve. The Red Queen not only tells you how we got here, but provides solid scientific evidence that you need to constantly improve your game.” (Strauss, 2006, p.2)

“Game” is a term used to reference pick-up artists’ attributes and abilities. The seduction community works towards advancing its skills and strategies to stay ahead of their competition. “The struggle for seduction never gets easier. However well a pick-up artist may adapt his game, he can never relax, because the hard bodies and alpha-males [competitors] are also adapting their tactics. Seduction is a zero-sum game.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 2) The pick-up artists take into account other economically-desirable (available) males and adopt strategies to make themselves just as valuable. “The technologies of seduction have been developed to help even the playing field.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 5)

However, other men are not the solitary concern of members of the community. Pick-up artists also are anxious with the evolutionary advances of their targets, attractive ladies. As stated below:

“You must constantly refine your game. Seek to grow beyond just spitting out canned routines and pick-up techniques you’ve memorized. Always be learning, and then challenge yourself to grow beyond what you’ve learned. Become your own guru. Because you can bet that whatever technique you’re memorizing, someone else is working on the antidote.” (Strauss, 2006, p.2)

The evolutionary arms race defenses that women adapt in response to the pick-up artist‘s routines are a worry many in the seduction community are concerned with. “If women start to get bombarded with "the game" [pick-up artist’s routines] then you had better believe they will adapt defenses against it.” (Merlin, 2006) Some of these men are worried that they will not be able to develop co-adaptations to the oppositions women form. They realize the divergent goals of the genders.

Male and female aspirations in seduction are evolutionarily different. Female intuitively seek a solitary-quality mate, whereas males viscerally try to find multiple partners, as discussed in this passage:

“Ridley explains that the instinctual goal for every female animal is to find a mate with the genetic makeup necessary to be a good husband, a good father, or a good sire. Male animals, on the other hand, have a goal of locating as many wives and mothers as possible.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 3)

“While it’s easy to think every human being is idiosyncratic and unique, the book [The Red Queen] explains how our mating choices are the result of evolutionary and biological pressures over thousands of years.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 7) There are natural reasons for the discrepancies between the genders’ pairing-off preferences.

“In 1972, Robert Trivers explained why the genders have such disparate goals. The gender that invest[s] the most in children (such as the way women carry a fetus for nine months) is the one that has the least to gain from an extra mating. The gender that invest[s] the least has extra time to spend searching for other mates.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 3)

“Therefore, broadly speaking, males invest less and seek quantity of mates, while females invest more and seek quality of mates.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 133) These diverse objectives create very interesting sexual dynamics. “Because of those different goals, scientists define a reality that every man who has ever entered a singles club immediately learns.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 3) “Males compete for the attention of females.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 133) Women therefore choose and men do the best they can to be chosen. Leaving the men to figure out what choices women prefer to make. In other words, what women find attractive. The seduction community has a large arsenal of knowledge regarding attractive traits women are drawn to.

“In a monogamous society a woman often chooses a mate long before he has had a chance to become a ‘chief’, and she must look for clues to his future potential rather than rely only on past achievements. Poise, self assurance, optimism, efficiency, perseverance, courage, decisiveness, intelligence, ambition--these are the things that cause men to rise to the top of their professions. And not coincidentally, these are the things women find attractive.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 298)

Women have to be perceptive when evaluating the possible successes of would-be suitors. A man’s previous triumphs (or lack of) are not always a clear indication of imminent value. So women often look for characteristics within budding beaus.

“If you [the pick-up artist] exhibit the right traits, then women will take a bet on you. They’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, even though you may not have the corner office just yet. They’re guessing that, based on your personality, you will some day.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 6)

This evolutionary knowledge is used by men in the seduction community to their advantage in various ways. Two such ways are strategies called peacocking and social proof.

"In addition, males and females must spend resources to attract and compete for mates." (Wikipedia, 2007) The usage of these assets is onerous to both the sexes. “Females choose; their choosiness is inherited; they prefer exaggerated ornaments; exaggerated ornaments are a burden to males. That much is now uncontroversial.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 138) The pick-up artists have a term and technique for using “exaggerated ornaments” and the intrinsic burden of these ornaments. The strategy is called peacocking. “Peacocking means dressing for attention” (Urban Dictionary, 2007)

“The term is derived from the courting rituals of the peacock. The male peacock grows an exceptionally long and colorful tail to attract a mate. The long and colorful tail is at best useless and at worst a hindrance (it gets in the way and attracts predators). What a male peacock with a great tail is communicating is ‘I am so good at surviving and protecting myself that I can afford the disadvantage of this tail‘. Female peacocks are attracted to the underlying strength of this kind of male peacock.” (Savoy, 2005)

The seduction community uses “peacocking” as one of many weapons in its armoires to stay ahead of their competition and to advance in the seduction of their target. “Inherently, peacocking, like all pick-up techniques, isn’t meant to be easy.” (Strauss, 2006, p.3)

“We tend to think it’s the woman’s place to be uncomfortable. High-heels, push-up bras, tight shirts, and waxed eyebrows (and other body parts!) are just part of being a fashionable, attractive woman. But to be a successful pick-up artist, you have to be willing to carry some of that burden yourself.” (Strauss, 2006, p.3)

Pick-up artists take on these extra obligations to appeal to female evolutionary desires and to separate themselves from other men. They do this as an act of poise, control, and uniqueness.

“It may feel uncomfortable or not cool sometimes, but it conveys confidence and leadership and individuality when you’re wearing those clothes (as opposed to letting them wear you). And though we [pick-up artists] weren’t born with antlers or colorful tail feathers, fortunately we can purchase and adorn the equivalent.” (Strauss, 2006, p.3)

Peacocking is a delicate art that takes a lot of self-awareness and skill to master. And it is not the only item in the seduction community’s cannon of evolutionary-seduction knowledge. Another instrument that is influenced by evolution and used in the seduction community is “social proof”. “The concept that when you [the pick-up artists] are seen with other women your social status is raised in the eyes of Hbs [hot babes] in the near vicinity.” (Fast Seduction, 2007) This concept has been proven in guppy fish.

“In guppy fish, females that have been allowed to see two males, one of which is already courting a female, subsequently prefer that [already attached] male to the other even if the female that was being courted is longer present.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 146)

“Obviously, social proof is effective, even in the animal kingdom.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 4) “Social proof is basically a synonym for being ‘popular‘; if a lot of other people like me, you will probably like me too.” (Steve, 2006) “If you're with a good-looking and charming person, it raises your esteem in the eyes of others.” (Dolly, 2006) Social Proof can be further explained with the following quote:

“Social value of unfamiliar people is ambiguous and requires a lot of effort to assess accurately. Given limited time and motivation, other people will often evaluate others based on how surrounding people behave towards them. For example, if a man is perceived to be in a company of attractive women, or is associated with them, then his perceived social value and attractiveness will be perceived to be greater. The implied cognition in this case would be ‘All those girls seem to really like him, there must be something about him that's high value‘. If he is seen to be rejected by many women, his social value will be judged negatively. The implied cognition is then ‘I just saw him being rejected by many women, there is probably a good reason why they don't like him‘.” (Wikipedia, 2007)

In the above example, a man does not have to be rejected by “many women” to suffer the consequences of negative social proof; it only takes one female to reject a man to taint the surrounding women’s social impression of that man. A similar cognition to the latter one made in the above quote still applies.

Beautiful women are not always readily available when needed in social situations. So, “some men use photos of themselves surrounded by attractive women to enhance their perceived social value.” (Wikipedia, 2007) This social value can be aided with the help of a digital camera, which some pick-up artists carry with them to show photos to women they meet. In addition, social proof can be achieved without a camera or beautiful women on one’s arms, by using storytelling to sub-communicate that desirable women are already apart of the storytellers life. “Storytelling is a crucial tool in your [pick-up artist] arsenal.” (Savoy, 2005)

“Seduction techniques such as peacocking, social proof, and projecting confidence work in the animal kingdom as well as among humans.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 7) In addition, members of the seduction community use the evolutionary methods to stand out from the competition and seduce the target.

The Mystery Method Corporation is a well thought-of company in the seduction community that offers products and services that make the most of the evolutionary arms race concepts discussed in the project, as well as many other field proven fundamentals and strategies. The M3 model takes trends normally found in sexual relationships and creates an easy to follow method for successfully achieving seduction consistently. “It normally takes 4 to 10 hours of time with her to build enough comfort, connection, and trust in order to have sex.” (The Mystery Method, 2005) This model suggests superior ways to progress through to the final stages of seduction and outlines important concepts for over coming resistance. There is even a stage within the model that addresses the targets’ refusal to go along the seduction, called last minute resistance. The Mystery Method has evolved their M3 model to stay ahead of competition’s developments and targets’ opposition. Unfortunately, the new model’s release corresponds closely to the completion of this project and was not made available to be added in time. Nonetheless, it includes important advances in transitions, relationship management, and other conceptual areas.

Finally the hypothesis of this project is proven with the data presented above. More reliable resources would have been helpful to explain further the concept of social proof. However, the information detailed in the project is significant for the purposes of this research paper. The implication of these parallels could be exploited by both the advertising industry and the seduction community to further progress their strategies. Further parallels between the two groups could prove even more beneficial.

IV. Conclusion

Both the advertising industry and the seduction community participate in evolutionary arms races. Pick-up artists bring into play evolutionary arms race strategies to seduce women and out perform competitors. These men make themselves more sought-after with techniques such as peacocking and social proof which have basis in evolutionary research. They also display confidence. “Body language matters for male sexiness.” (Ridley, 2003) To generate and sustain desirability in women, members of the seduction community use research on mating information to their benefit. The main defined goals of the seduction community are to stay ahead of competitors’ progress and targets’ defiance.

The validity of these findings relies heavily on the integrity of sources. Many of the pick-up artists techniques have grounding in proven theories and all of them have been field tested and retested by hundreds (if not thousands) of pick-up artists world wide. Since there are no scientific studies being conducted on the seduction community’s techniques, proven field testing will have to suffice. If these strategies were not valid or did not work, the seduction community would find, develop, or impose strategies that did. With that stated some of the quotations within this project are purely opinion and should be regarded as such.

It should be noted that the sources obtained from wikipedia, especially regarding the seduction community, may be under dispute and their validity may be under discussion. For further details on specific disputes and discussions, www.wikipedia.com should be consulted.

There are plenty of other fundamentals from the seduction community that could be linked to the evolutionary arms race theory, however, the scope of this project has been met and it would be difficult to catalog all such strategies.

The other unanswered aspect of this project relates to the evolutionary arms race in the advertising industry. This theory is currently being handled by Professor Francis Steen.

In general, it can be said that men and women natural have an evolutionary arms race struggle against each other, however, the pick-up artist bring a wide array of categorical and effective weaponry tactics to this ageless battle.

Which leaves the question; what, if any, defenses have the modern woman develop against these seduction community techniques and strategies?

References

~Pseudonyms are used in the seduction community by pick-up artists (PUA). Pseudonyms are listed within this project and its reference list. Pseudonyms are followed by a comma and the abbreviation PUA on the list below.

* Appendix could not be made available in the format of this blog. Appendix sources are only available in their original format and locations.

Merlin, PUA (2006, January 27) The Game: the movie thread. Retrieved March 1, 2007.
http://www.themysterymethod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4691&page=3&highlight=attraction+switches

Borris, PUA (2006, February 24) The Game: the movie thread Retrieved March 1, 2007
http://www.themysterymethod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4691&page=5&highlight=attraction+switches

Hysteria, PUA (2006, February 24) The Game: the movie thread Retrieved March 1, 2007
http://www.themysterymethod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4691&page=7&highlight=attraction+switches

Illpapinyc, PUA (2006, February 27) The Game: the movie thread Retrieved March 1, 2007
http://www.themysterymethod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4691&page=12&highlight=attraction+switches

Hysteria, PUA (2006, July 17) The Game is up (the sky is falling chicken little) Retrieved March 1, 2006
http://www.themysterymethod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7983&page=4&highlight=evolve

Roman_be, PUA (2007, January 27) The Game is up (the sky is falling chicken little)
Retrieved March 1, 2006
http://www.themysterymethod.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7983&page=5&highlight=evolve

Strauss, N. (2006, July) The red queen: study guide Stylelife. Retrieved February 27, 2007
(see appendix)* Exact of location of this source is not public.

Strauss, N. (2005) The game New York, ReganBooks.

Ridley, M (2003) The red queen New York, Harper Perennial.

Wikipedia, “Evolutionary arms race” Retrieved March 3, 2007 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolutionary_arms_race

Wikipedia, “Arms race” Retrieved March 3, 2007 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms_race

Wikipedia, “Red queen” Retrieved March 3, 2007 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Queen

Wikpedia, “Seduction Community” Retrieved March 7, 2007
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seduction_community

Wikipedia, “Seduction” Retrieved March 8, 2007
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seduction

Wikipedia, “Social proof” Retrieved March 10, 2007
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_proof

Wikipedia, “Framing” Retrieved March 10, 2007
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Framing_(telecommunication)

Steen, F. “Class Lecture Notes” (2007)
(see appendix) * Exact location of this source is not public

Urban Dictionary “Peacocking” Retrieved March 8, 2007
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=peacocking

Savoy, PUA; (2005)“Fashion & lifestyle -- OAP issue 7”
(see appendix)* Enrollment in OAP is require. Enrollment can be done through this blog or on www.themysterymethod.com

Savoy, PUA; (2005) “Attraction OAP issue 3”
(see appendix) * Enrollment in OAP is require. Enrollment can be done through this blog or on http://www.themysterymethod.com/

Steve, PUA (2006) “Games are for children: be happy, be yourself” Retrieved March 10, 2007
http://www.gamesareforchildren.com/archives/396-Social-Proof.html

Dolly, female PUA advocate (2006) “Bf ‘social proof’ David” Retrieved March 10, 2007
http://cocksanddolls.blogspot.com/2006/06/bf-social-proof-david.html

Lakoff, G. (February 14, 2006) “Simple framing: an introduction to framing and its use in politics” Retrieved March 10, 2007
http://www.rockridgeinstitute.org/projects/strategic/simple_framing

Fast Seduction “Common acronyms/slang used on alt.seduction.fast” Retrieved March 10, 2007
http://www.fastseduction.com/acronyms.shtml

The Mystery Method “The M3 model” Retrieved March 14, 2007
http://www.themysterymethod.com/downloads/M3Model.ppt

Schizo, PUA "Blog Post Comment" (March 9, 2007)
https://www2.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=4965447022861164429&postID=8900391898894468701

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Yesterday was a beautiful day, today maybe too

Yesterday, I finally got paid (hallelujah!), I wore a dress because the weather allowed me to, I saw two golden retrievers and petted them, I got help with my English paper, and took some "private time". Yay!

Today is looking pretty good too. I just finished my communication studies project (thank God), I can buy some much needed pot, the weather looks great, I can get more help on my English paper, and I have NO class today.....awww, it feels good.

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Framing in politics and pick-up artistry

Pick-up artists could benefit from exploring George Lakoff's framing concepts. As far as I know his framing concepts were developed in his linguistics work and then transfered into his political work.

The concept is very similar to framing in the seduction community, however, there is much to be gained from further insight into his theories. Here's an sample article of his work:

http://www.rockridgeinstitute.org/projects/strategic/simple_framing

I found this while researching my communication studies project and it was inspired by Sinn's work on framing.

Google can produce further resources for those who are interested.

Can anyone tell me why renown linguistic experts turn into political advocates? Chomsky was a renown linguists too before jumping into political and propaganda commentary, wasn't he? (I think I've been studying too hard, I am discussing intellectual bullshit on my blog now. I guess it beats personal drama).

On a side note:

I've just reached the minimum word count on my project, so now all I have to is make sure I've covered all my bases and polish it up. I'll be glad when it's over, my research has caused more trouble than I would have like it to.


Back to my studies.

Thursday, March 8, 2007

My introduction so far and more resources needed

I NEED public resources that discuss POSITIONING see this link for further comments regarding positioning.

Because pick-up artists use different terminology than advertisers I am having a difficult time finding resources that deal with PUAs getting into the targets mind, positioning (for lack of another word) himself higher on "fuckable"/desirable ladder or knowledge structure.

But now that I think about it, any discussion on "attraction switches" could be seen as an attempt to positions oneself higher the the targets mind. And most things that PUAs do (peacocking, DHV, etc) is an attempt to elevate the PUA in the target's mind. I'll have to give this more thought and keep looking.

If you know of any public resources that could be helpful to my project, PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE to leave a comment. My project will be due before I know it and I want it to be a good project.

OH yeah I almost forgot. I am only focusing on the parallels between seduction and advertising (instead of mass media; mass media was too broad of a scope for this project)

Here's my introduction so far:

This project explores the parallels in the evolutionary arms race in advertising and the Seduction community.

The Seduction community is defined as:

A loosely connected world-wide subculture of (mostly) men who strive for consistent success with attracting and seducing women. This overriding intention is facilitated with improvements of self (inner game), skills, and lifestyle. “It's about developing your self. Your skillset. Your social intelligence. Your 'alpha qualities'. Your lifestyle. Your natural attractiveness to women.” (Roman_be, 2006). This collection of attributes and abilities is what is sometimes referred to as “game”.

In addition, members of this community seek greater understanding of male, female, and social psychology and dynamics. Within this community, there are individuals, businesses, and organizations with varying fundamentals, strategies, and philosophies, that offer advice, products, and services that help assist their diverging objectives.

This community is networked “together through internet forums and groups, as well as over a hundred local clubs, called ‘lairs’” (wikipedia, 2007) and other similar local groups and gatherings.

The members of this community are often referred to as pick-up artists (PUA) . A pick-up artist is someone skilled in the arts and non-exact sciences of seduction. For the sake of this project, seduction will refer to the following definition:

“Seduction is the use of temptation and enticement, often sexual in nature, to attract or influence the behavior of another. Traditionally, the word implied leading someone astray, as when a man lures a woman into a sexual relationship without the need to resort to force. In contemporary usage, however, seduction is used more broadly as a synonym for the act of charming someone.“ (Wikipedia, 2007)

The Seduction community is often referred to by its members as “the community”.


This project aims for an objective comparison of two separate but similar groups. The project will not attempt to address the morality or integrity of advertisers or pick-up artists. The author of this project does not believe that either advertisement or the Seduction community are innately corrupt or dishonesty. As in most groups within given societies, there are varying degrees of ethical practices with both seducers and advertisers. It would be an injustice to label all advertisers and pick-up artists as fraudulent. “Being a PUA doesn't make one inherently manipulative or dirty.” (Illpapinyc, 2006)

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Definition of a Pick-up Artist & Seduction

Pick-up artist (PUA) is someone skilled in the arts and non-exact sciences of seduction. (I made this one up).

“Seduction is the use of temptation and enticement, often sexual in nature, to attract or influence the behavior of another. Traditionally, the word implied leading someone astray, as when a man lures a woman into a sexual relationship without the need to resort to force. In contemporary usage, however, seduction is used more broadly as a synonym for the act of charming someone.“ (wikipedia, 2007)

The above definitions are what I will be using in my paper. My paper is due in less than two weeks (along with 2 other papers & 2 other finals...yikes). Let me know if you have any comments regarding the PUA definition. Thank you.

Monday, March 5, 2007

Positioning in Advertising and Seduction

As part of the evolutionary arms race comparison of the Seduction Community and the mass media for my Communication Studies paper, I am also going to be focusing on positioning.

My Opinions:

It's my opinion that PUAs strive to position themselves in the minds of targets in unique and innovative ways. Women, in general, have developed resistance to AFC techniques and PUAs try to stay a head of this resistance by approaching women in ways they haven't been approached before, thus placing themselves in original positions in the women's minds. I believe DHVs are one type of positioning devices PUAs use to accomplish their goals.

I believe beautiful women are bombarded with approaches and attempts at attraction and seduction and a PUA takes this into consideration when approaching these women.



Your Contributions:

I am looking for message board posts, blogs, articles, or other PUA sources that deal with how positioning in the minds of the targets and positioning oneself against competition. If you know of any public sources or are interested in writing a public source, please leave the link(s) to the source(s) in the comment section of this blog post. I've added specific comments to some of the quotes; my opinions appear in (parenthesis) and italics.

Advertising Quotes regarding Positions:

"Advertising is, for the most part, unwanted unliked. In some cases, advertising is thoroughly detested." (I believe the same could be said of the Seduction Community but have no source to reference).

"In spite of its reputation, or perhaps because of it, the field of advertising is a superb testing ground for theories of communication. If it works in advertising, most likely it will work in politics, religion, or any other activity that requires mass communication." (p. 2)

"So the examples in this book could just as well have been taken from the field of politics, war, business, or even the science of chasing the opposite sex." (p. 2)

"Positioning starts with a product. A piece of merchandise, a service, a company, an institution, or even a person. Perhaps yourself." (p. 2)

"Anyone can use positioning strategy to get ahead in the game of life." (p. 4)

"To be successful today, you must touch base with reality. And the only reality that counts is what's already in the prospect's mind."(I believe the same could be said of the Seduction Community and the target's mind but have no source to reference). (p. 5)

"To be creative, to create something that doesn't already exist in the mind, is becoming more and more difficult. If not impossible." (p. 5)

"Today's marketplace is no longer responsive to the strategies that worked in the past." (p. 5)(I believe the same could be said of the Seduction Community but have no source to reference).

"We have become an overcommunicated society." (p. 6)

"In the communication jungle out there, the only hope to score big is to be selective, to concentrate on narrow targets, to practice segmentation. In a word, 'positioning.'" (p. 6)

"The mind, as a defense against the volume of today's communication, screens and rejects much of the information offered it. In general, the mind accepts only that which matches prior knowledge or experience." (p. 6) (The second sentence of this statement is difficult for me to believe, especially when being paralleled with women. I believe the PUA is actually trying to do things that do NOT match prior knowledge or experience in hopes of positioning themselves as different/better than others men.)

"Once a mind is made up, it's almost impossible to change it." (p. 6) (I strongly agree with this statement and think PUAs aim to aid women in making up their minds in regards to favoring PUAs).

"The only defense a person has in our overcommunicated society is an oversimplified mind." (p. 6)

"We communicate with each other in a wide variety of bewildering ways." (p. 7) (I couldn't agree more and I think PUAs aim to master this bewildering communication to their advantage.)

"'Glittering generalities" have become a way of life in our overcommunicated society." (p. 7)

"It's a selection project. You have to select the material that has the best chance of getting through." (p. 8) (This can be seen in the different methods, strategies, and techniques offered from various individuals, businesses, and groups with the Seduction community.)

"When you want to communicate the advantages of a political candidate or a product or even yourself, you must turn things inside out." (p. 8)

"You look for the solution to your problem inside the prospect's mind." (a PUAs problem is seducing a women; the answers to seducing women lie within her individual mind.)

"'In politics,' said John Lindsay, 'the perception is the reality." So, too, in advertising, in business, and in life." (p. 8) (and I'd say in seduction also).

"The only answer to the problems of an overcommunicated society is the positioning answer." (p. 14)

"In our overcommunicated society, the paradox is that nothing is more important than communication. With communication going for you, anything is possible. Without it, nothing is possible. No matter how talented and ambitious you may be." (p.19)

"Positioning is an organized system for finding a wind in the mind. It is based on the concept that communication can only take place at the right time and under the right circumstances." (p.19)

"The easy way to get into a person's mind is to be first." (p.19) (I'd love to see PUA write about being unique and innovative to get into the target's mind.)

"Falling in love is similar phenomenon. While people are more selective than ducks, they're not nearly as selective as you might think." (p.20)

"What counts most is receptivity. Two people must meet in a situation in which both are receptive to the idea. Both must have open winds. That is, neither is deeply in love with someone else." (p.21)

"If you want to be successful in love or in business, you must appreciate the importance of getting into the mind first." (p.21) (I believe being the first to approach a woman in a unique way positions a PUA to be in "the mind first".If a woman is approached with the same AFC tactics over and over again, she begins to resist it so PUA have to be creative to approach her in, what appear to be, original ways).

"You build brand loyalty in a supermarket the same way you build mate loyalty in a marriage. You get there first and then be careful not to give them a reason to switch." (p.21)

"If you didn't get into the mind of your prospect first (personally, politically, or corporately), then you have a positioning problem." (p.21)

"The chaos in the marketplace is a reflection of the fact that advertising just doesn't work the way it used to. But old traditional ways of doing things die hard" (p.23)(Reminds me of AFCs; they don't want to learn new ways of attracting and seducing women).

"Messages prepared in the old, traditional ways have no hope of being successful in today's overcommunicated society." (p.23)

"The fund and games of the sixties and seventies have given way to the harsh realities of the eighties." (p.24)

"To succeed in our overcommunicated society, a company must create a position in the prospect's mind, a position that takes into consideration not only the company's own strengths and weaknesses, but those of its competitors as well." (p.24) (Again something I see PUAs doing).

"Advertising is entering an era where strategy is king." (p.24) (I think there may be something in the Magic Bullets about this...I'll have to check)

References

All above quotes came from Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind written by Al Ries and Jack Trout.

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Evolutionary Arms Races in Seduction & Media

The focus of my paper (per my professor's guidance) is going to be a comparison of parallels between the evolutionary arms races in the Seduction Community and in the mass media.

Advertisers, entertainers, news dispensers and seducers have to continual evolve their strategies because the tactics that they develop quickly loose efficiency when their targets/prospects develop resistance to those tactics/strategies.

How you can contribute:
If you are interested in contributing to my research you can make your own posts or refer me to existing posts.

If you want to make your own post, please make it a public post (discussion forum, blog, podcast, etc) regarding any of the below mentioned ideas/topics/themes.

Please also let me know if you know of other online references that may be helpful to my research. All comments and links can be left in the comment section of this post. I'll review the material and consider using it for my project.

Take a look at some of the ideas/topics/themes I've already gathered below:

Definition:
"An evolutionary arms race is an evolutionary struggle between to competing sets of co-evolving genes [in this case humans] that develop adaptations and counter-adaptations against each other, resembling an arms race." (Wikipedia, 2007)

"Arms race is also used to describe any competition where there is no absolute goal, only relative goals of staying ahead of the other competitors [and targets/prospects]." (Wikipedia, 2007)

Other quotes:
"Sex is an evolutionary puzzle." (Wikipedia, 2007)

"In addition, males and females must spend resources to attract and compete for mates." (Wikipedia, 2007)

"There is an arms race between advertisers and their potential customers." (Steen, 2007)

"Their work represents a ramping up in the arms race between advertisers and their audience." (Steen, 2007)

"In a co-evolutionary arms race, audiences gradually learn to resist advertisers' techniques." (Steen, 2007)

“The male’s goal is seduction: He is trying to manipulate the female into falling for his charms, to get inside her head and steer her mind his way. The evolutionary pressure is on him to perfect displays that make her well disposed toward him and sexually aroused so that he can be certain of mating.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 161)

“The technologies of seduction have been developed to help even the playing field.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 5)

“In a monogamous society a woman often chooses a mate long before he has had a chance to become a ‘chief’, and she must look for clues to his future potential rather than rely only on past achievements. Poise, self assurance, optimism, efficiency, perseverance, courage, decisiveness, intelligence, ambition--these are the things that cause men to rise to the top of their professions. And not coincidentally, these are the things women find attractive.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 298)

“If you exhibit the right traits, then women will take a bet on you. They’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, even though you may not have the corner office just yet. They’re guessing that, based on your personality, you will some day.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 6)

“Body language matters for male sexiness.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 298-299)

“While it’s easy to think every human being is idiosyncratic and unique, the book [The Red Queen] explains how our mating choices are the result of evolutionary and biological pressures over thousands of years.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 7)

“Seduction techniques such as peacocking, social proof, and projecting confidence work in the animal kingdom as well as among humans.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 7)

"In 1972, Robert Trivers explained why the genders have such disparate goals. The gender that invest the most in children (such as the way women carry a fetus for nine months) is the one that has the least to gain from an extra mating. The gender that invest the least has extra time to spend searching for other mates.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 3)

“Therefore, broadly speaking, males invest less and seek quantity of mates, while females invest more and seek quality of mates.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 133)

“Because of those different goals, scientists define a reality that every man who has ever entered a singles club immediately learns.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 3) “Males compete for the attention of females.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 133)

“Females choose; their choosiness is inherited; they prefer exaggerated ornaments; exaggerated ornaments are a burden to males. That much is now uncontroversial.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 138)

“Inherently, peacocking, like all pickup techniques, isn’t meant to be easy.” (Strauss, 2006, p.3)

“We tend to think it’s the woman’s place to be uncomfortable. High-heels, push-up bras, tight shirts, and waxed eyebrows (and other body parts!) are just part of being a fashionable, attractive woman. But to be a successful pickup artist, you have to be willing to carry some of that burden yourself.” (Strauss, 2006, p.3)

“It may feel uncomfortable or not cool sometimes, but it conveys confidence and leadership and individuality when you’re wearing those clothes (as opposed to letting them wear you). And though we weren’t born with antlers or colorful tail feathers, fortunately we can purchase and adorn the equivalent.” (Strauss, 2006, p.3)

“Ridley points out that peacocks are among the few birds to gather together in groups for sexual selection. Scientists call this gathering a ‘lek’. (Strauss, 2006, p.4)

“The characteristic of the lek is that one or a few males, usually those that display near its center, achieve the most mating, but the central position of a successful male is not the cause of his success so much as the consequence: Other males gather around him.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 141)

“In guppy fish, females that have been allowed to see two males, one of which is already courting a female, subsequently prefer that [already attached] male to the other even if the female that was being courted is longer present.” (Ridley, 2003, p. 146). “Obviously, social proof is effective, even in the animal kingdom.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 4)

“For the aspiring pickup artist, The Red Queen is an invaluable text that provides useful information on how our social interaction has evolved over thousands of years. And how it continues to evolve. The Red Queen not only tells you how we got here, but provides solid scientific evidence that you need to constantly improve your game.” (Strauss, 2006, p.2)

“The struggle for seduction never gets easier. However well a pickup artist may adapt his game, he can never relax, because the hard bodies and alpha-males are also adapting their tactics. Seduction is a zero-sum game.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 2)

“You must constantly refine your game. Seek to grow beyond just spitting out canned routines and pickup techniques you’ve memorized. Always be learning, and then challenge yourself to grow beyond what you’ve learned. Become your own guru. Because you can bet that whatever technique you’re memorizing, someone else is working on the antidote.” (Strauss, 2006, p.2)

“Ridley explains that the instinctual goal for every female animal is to find a mate with the genetic makeup necessary to be a good husband, a good father, or a good sire. Male animals, on the other hand, have a goal of locating as many wives and mothers as possible.” (Strauss, 2006, p. 3)

“We’ll be able to adjust somehow.” (Waxlrose, 2006)

“If women start to get bombarded with "the game" then you had better believe they will adapt defenses against it.” (Merlin, 2006)

“Fact is, being successful with girls (or at least better than the average Joe) is about adapting your own behaviour [behavior],” (Borris, 2006)

“Evolve faster than the media can blow it [the Seduction Community] open. Stay two steps ahead at all times.” (Hysteria, 2006)

“being a PUA doesn't make one inherently manipulative or dirty.” (Illpapinyc, 2006)

“The game may be about to bite itself in the ass. That or its gotta evolve big time.” (Irish83, 2006)

Learn to adapt and evolve faster than anybody else.” (Hysteria, 2006)

“It's about developing your self. Your skillset. Your social intelligence. Your 'alpha qualities'. Your lifestyle. Your natural attractiveness to women.” (Roman_be, 2006)

References


The links following the quotes should take you to the exact online location of the referenced text. If there is not a link quote, the information is NOT available for public viewing online and the reference is listed below.

PUAs' pseudonyms are listed in the references because PUAs use pseudonyms instead of real names, unless the PUA's name is publicly known (i.e., Style is listed as Strauss).

Steen, F. “Class Lecture Notes” (2007) Retrieved March 3, 2007 (will appear in appendix of project)

Strauss, N. (2006, July) "The red queen: study guide".
Stylelife. Retrieved February 27, 2007 (will appear in appendix of project)

Ridley, M (2003) The red queen New York, Harper Perennial.

Friday, March 2, 2007

Revised Definition of the Seduction Community

My revised definition of the Seduction Community:

A loosely connected world-wide subculture of (mostly) men who strive for consistent success with attracting and seducing women. This overriding intention is facilitated with improvements of self (inner game), skills, and lifestyle. In addition, they seek greater understanding of male, female, and social psychology and dynamics. This community is networked “together through internet forums and groups, as well as over a hundred local clubs, called ‘lairs’” and other similar local groups and gatherings. Within this community, there are individuals, businesses, and organizations with varying fundamentals, strategies, and philosophies, that offer advice, products, and services that help assist their diverging objectives.


Your feedback is greatly appreciated. (see previous post of more details)

Monday, February 26, 2007

Defining the Seduction Community

I NEED YOUR FEEDBACK. If you took the time to stop by my blog & read this blog...PLEASE LEAVE FEEDBACK.

As some of you know, I am currently working on a Seduction Community Project for my Communication Studies class.

The project is focused on the parallel concepts in the "the community" with concepts in media (advertising, entertainment, propaganda).

I am having a very difficult time finding a "GOOD" workable definition for the community. There is a bad definition(in my opinion) on wikipedia. So I came up with my own version of the definition:

A loosely connected world-wide subculture of (mostly) men who strive for consistent success with seducing women through self-improvement and greater understanding of female and social psychology. These men are called pick-up artists (PUAs) and are skilled (or seek to be skilled) in the arts and non-exact sciences of seduction. These men are networked “together through internet forums and groups, as well as over a hundred local clubs, called ‘lairs’” and other similar local groups and gatherings.

What do you think? I am looking for CONSTRUCTIVE feedback on my definition.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

PUA concepts that confuse me (a little): Frame Control

As much as I like the Seduction community, there are somethings that make me uneasy (which I'll save for another blog post) and something that just confuse me. Frame control is one of those things that I just don't understand all that well.

Sinn did a great post on Frame Control but I am still a little confused. And because there isn't a whole lot of "free" information on frames and frame control I am finding it hard to wrap my brain around this concept.

As I mentioned before I get a lot of free newsletters from various seduction community organizations. Most of it seems pretty useless to my research but I occasionally read through different newsletters when their titles catch my eye.

I recently received a Mehow, Inc. newsletter that mentioned a "frame". But it makes no sense to me. Here's the frame excerpt from the newsletter:

"'You are the cutest ... space alien I've met all night.'

When you do this the content makes it such that you HAVE TO BE PLAYFULL because its hard to come off un-playful when you start talking about space aliens. The reason playful works is that it creates a happy playpen that communicates you are having fun. When you do this women immediately fall into that frame subconsciously and accept the teasing."

What frame involves "space aliens"? Is this an astronaut frame? Sci-fi frame? I don't get how a girl "subconsciously" falls into anything with this frame. It just doesn't make sense to me.

In my paper I want to compare "framing" in advertising to "frame control" in the seduction community. So, I'll have to a little more research or ask a PUA to explain this concept to me.

I think I understand what a frame is. It's a reality that a PUA wants to convey. One example I can think of is "I am the prize" frame.

The thing I am having trouble understanding is how to establish/create and control/maintain that frame. I guess that sort of stuff is covered in the e-books, seminars, and other products available in this community.

I think I'll ask my Professor to explain advertising frames or refer me to the reading where it was discussed. He's mentioned frames in class several times but I don't actually recall reading about them. Maybe if I understanding advertising frames I can understand PUA's frame control. Because understanding PUA stuff has helped me understand advertising stuff (I'm hoping the reverse is true also).

The only other examples of frames I can think of are "framing" in movies and television and literary frames within frames (i.e., Canterbury Tales, etc). And some how I doubt the PUA frame is related to either of these two concepts.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

I need a quick opinion

MY OPENER

I can't stay long because I have a midterm to study for. But I need your opinion on something:

What do you think of The Mystery Method's(TMM) Venusian Arts Handbook (VAH)?


The reason I am asking is because my Communication Studies project/paper proposal is due on Friday. I have to outline what I plan to do in my paper and I am considering using this as a reference. Your opinion is greatly needed.

MY PAPER

My Communication Studies project is focused on comparing advertising and entertainment concepts with similar concepts in the seduction community. Some parallels I am considering discussing are: Branding, Positioning, Evolutionary-Arms race, Frames, Psychological Triggers, etc.

MY REQUEST

If you do NOT own it, please visit the link and list 3-5 things you like about the VAH webpage & 3-5 things you think could be improved on the page. Also list your likelihood of purchasing the VAH on a scale 0-10 (0= would NEVER buy it; 10=I'm ordering it now). You can leave this info as a comment.

If you own the TMM VHA, please leave a review as a comment. Let me know what you think of it. 3-5 things you like and 3-5 things you think could be improved in future editions.


Also please include in your comment: your age, location, sex, and if you consider yourself a PUA or not.

Your feedback is very important to me and my project. It should take anywhere from 5-20 minutes to complete this task (depending on how thorough you want to be). I really appreciate you taking the time to assist me with my project.

Monday, February 5, 2007

Paper update

I spoke with my professor today after class and I told him I didn't think simulating examples in a survey was going to garner truthful results from females. He agreed.

So, we basically talked about paralleling what we've learned in class to the seduction community. This should be very time consuming but interesting.

I like Matt Savage's idea about role models but that's NOT going to be the focus of my paper.

I still have the option of doing a survey but I still don't know what to ask.

I'll write more later...for now I am tired and it's in the middle of midterms, so my brain is fried.