Since the challenge was “open 7 sets” I set out to just run openers, move on, and let the night unfold. Keeping the “3 second rule” in mind I opened my first set moments after entering the venue. A mixed set of 2 girls and 1 guy. I addressed the guy first, “Real quick, I have to hit the bar to grab a drink but, first you need to help settle this debate my friends and I are having. Is kissing cheating?”

I made sure my body language conveyed I wouldn’t be staying around long. The group opened easily. They all chimed in agreeing that of course, “kissing is cheating.”

“Right, obviously, but it’s actually a two part question. If a girl is making-out with other girls, is that cheating? The reason I’m asking is because my buddy’s girlfriend is doing just that and it’s driving him crazy.” Here their opinion split. The guy says it’s not cheating. The girls say if it bothers my friend in the relationship then it’s chatting. After a minute of discussion I say, “Pleasure meeting you.” And I head on my way.

I cycled through different openers throughout the night to be sure I didn’t burn out the bar. “Hey real quick, I have to get back to my friends in a second, but I need a female opinion on something. My buddy wants to get his girlfriend a cashmere sweater for her birthday. Some of her clothes are small and some are medium. If you were to get a gift, would you rather it be a little too small or a little too big?”

They say too big so she doesn’t feel fat in it. They assure me if he gets her a medium she won’t think he is calling her fat. They suggest a gift receipt. I point at them with an impressed look on my face. “Very clever! Thanks so much. Pleasure meeting you.”

Part of the FACE-OFF CHALLENGE is to use Evolve’s material, so I employed his “Astrology Opener” next – “Hey, real quick, why do you think women are so much more into astrology than men? My friend is a professional astrologer for a living and his guy friends hate when he talks about the stuff, but women love it.” They’re unable to give a good reason, but really enjoy the question. One of them asks me my sign. I don’t know too much about astrology, but it really is amazing how hard women bite at the subject matter.

Note to self: study astrology.

Note to Evolve: great opener man. Worked like a charm.

At this point I’m sure I’d been seen talking to several groups of women. I knew I had social proof and preselection on my side. Walking to another part of the bar I spot an especially cute blonde girl. Strangely, she is standing alone, perhaps waiting for someone. I decide to go with a little known opener Style taught me years ago. I’m especially sure to make my body language seem like I’m not staying long “Uh, so see that guy over there?” I point to a nerdy looking fellow. “When I walked by he said ‘I know kung fu.’ What do you think that was about? Was he trying to throw down or something.”

She laughs, says that is pretty weird, then reaches for my hair. If you’ve never seen me, I rock a pretty killer afro! I dodge out of the way borrowing a line from Mystery “Whoa there, I charge for that missy.”

“Come on! I want to touch it.”

“You’re too aggressive. You’d probably just tug on it with no sensuality.”

“No way. I’d do a good job.”

“Ok, one chance, but you’d better do it right.”

She reaches into my hair and rubs her hands through it with a big smile on her face. I reach to the back of her head, grab her hair by the roots, and pull down gently. “That’s all you get for now.” I tell her with a smile.

I had more sets to do. Surely though, I’d come back here once the mission was done. This take away would surely make her want me even more. After another run of the “Two Part Kiss Opener,” “Cashmere Sweater Opener” and “Evolve’s Astrology Opener,” I’d finished my Stylelife challenge and ready to return.

“Hey hair friend! Miss me?” She beams with delight. I’m digging this girls energy. I address her friends, who have arrived, “Hey, I’m Jay.” They’re all friendly, except one girl who seems to be in a bad mood. She’s very cold and reserved. I don’t worry about it too much, I need to focus on isolation anyway, and when she offers to buy me a drink that window opens wide.

We hit the bar. She orders 2 giant cans of PBR. “I’ve been on my feet all day and have a ridiculous adventure planned for tomorrow. Mind if sit for a while?” She agreed, I took her by the hand and lead her through the crowd. For all my sets I’d found a great little isolation spot with two chairs in the corner of the bar. I hoped she would ask about my adventure so I could seed a second date, but she didn’t take the bait. Still, the conversation was good.

We talked about a mutual fascination with cults and the overall concept of influence. She asked what I do for a living I told her about a card game I invented called Skittykitts. She was halfway between impressed and in disbelief that I’d released my own card game so she pulled out her smart phone and googled “Skittykitts” sure enough she saw the website and knew I wasn’t messing with her. I inquired, “What are you passionate about? What is it that you love to do?” She answered traveling and told me about her recent trips. I told her I was just back from London and Amsterdam. At this point, her phone rang for the first, but not the last time.

I’d made a mistake not further engaging her friends before isolating. The cold one was calling her… again and again. After ignoring the first couple of calls, she eventually answers and lets her know she is in the corner of the bar. I take this as an easy moment to exchange numbers. “The bar is closing soon, but we need to hang again for sure, take my number down and text me your full name so I can save yours.” She puts my number in her phone and then her friend arrives.

I try being friendly, but I think I’d already struck a nerve by stealing her friend away. I’ll make it a point not to make this mistake again. We all hang for five to ten minutes more and the bar announces last call. I excuse myself to return to my friends with the classic all purpose exit line “Pleasure meeting you.” We embrace and I’m off. Not long after being out of the bar my phone buzzes with a text “[her name] the best girl ever.”

We’ll see about that…

-The Sneak (future winner of this PUA FACE-OFF)

THE PUA FACE-OFF IS ON! The FIRST FIELD REPORTS are in for MISSION #1. PUAs from 20 different countries are competing to be one of STYLE’S ELITES and earn:

* A discounted EARLY BIRD ticket to the Style’s World Conference in L.A. ( June 23-24)

* A VIP seat in the front conference rows to see Style live

*Have Style feature your pick-up artist FIELD REPORTS and ROUTINES on the Stylelife website (you’ll be PUA famous)!

*PLUS ONE WILL WIN THE GRAND PRIZE: a conference ticket, plus airfare and a 1 hour private coaching session with a Stylelife coach

CONGRATS to Bondus for a great FIELD REPORT. He earned the feature spot today -

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PUA FACE-OFF MISSION #1 – WINNING STUDENT FIELD REPORT
by Bondus
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Evening Gentlemen,

My thanks to all involved in Project London (Kaos, Moiser, Science, Keyser Soze and those I’ve yet to meet…we will, in the near future).

My preparation for Project London begins a month before the actual event …I learn a few basic attention grabbing magic tricks (interlinking paperclips, the French drop, the dead match, Houdini’s hopping elastic band, the three glass shuffle). I learn a few opening routines by heart, practising them in front of a full length mirror until I can deliver them with total aplomb and knowing exactly what target is going to see and hear is a wonderful way to build the basic confidence you need to take it to the streets.

I start working on my own material; thinking about the London Landscape provides me with the fragment I need. What is London famous for that virtually everyone uses? The Tube. OK, And how do people get to the platform? The escalator or the stairs generally. Ok, this is good (think Bondus think?)… So let’s think about something fun that people can do on the stairs (steady! . A slinky that’s an 80/early 90’s toy. Perfect. Ok, so let’s combine the two. So it’s “What do you think would happen if you put a slinky on an escalator?” Would it get stuck in a state of perpetual motion or would it fail to work? Ok, so it’s a question that was originally posed in the New Scientist and having looked it up before posting this; turned into an opener by ‘Monkey’ back in 2006. So hat’s off to you, ‘Monkey’ whoever/wherever you are. I’m a man of integrity; I’m not going to steal your triumph, pal.

I also borrow one of style’s new protégé’s material. “Quick question, my friends and I are taking a trip to celebrate something special. We can’t decide between Paris or
Las Vegas. Where would you go?”

Finally it’s a trip to a Hypnotherapist’s to elevate my mind state and get me beyond my previous fear of crowds and low self confidence. Well done Michael Crompton of Real Hypnotherapy for his outstanding work on integrating my logical critical mind with my unconscious mind.

This done, we are ready to live and die by the sword known as Project London.

So the journey starts in the industrial wastelands of the North at 07:45 on a Saturday morning, all is quiet and I’m the only person catching the bus to London. There’s a few people loitering around the bus station but no one catches my attention.

Boarding the bus, I send the guys a text letting them know that Bondus is in transit. Moiser sends me one back telling me to get as much sleep as I can on the journey down, you don’t know when the luxury will be afforded to you again. (Sound advice man) So I plug in my headphones and listen to on my reflections of nature sleep induction mp3. I’m awoken by the bus stopping occasionally at Wigan, Leigh, Birmingham but otherwise sleep pack for all I’m worth.

We pull in at Coventry bus station and the driver announces that we’ve stopping for 15 minutes to stretch our legs and give him a break from the road. I disembark and wonder around the coach station. There’s a smoking hot black chick, cute as hell about to light up a cigarette. I step up and say “Allow me to light your cigarette”…she accepts. I pluck my matches out of my bag and the game is on. I draw out a pre prepared dead match (shh!!! it’s painted black with marker pen) and calmly say “oh well, that one’s gone, never mind”. Calmly striking it against the sandpaper strip down the side of the box. It bursts into flame producing a total look of wonderment, surprise and excitement. I light her cigarette and eject myself from the scene with a ‘you have a great day’ partly because I’m amazed at how naturally it all flowed out of me and because I’m conscious of the time constraint. I’d love to have gone deeper because she was something else, but reflect on the beauty of the dead match routine as the Warwickshire countryside rolls past the window. 1. Its quick and easy, 2. It’s made a routine part of her day more interesting, 3. The execution of the trick destroys exactly ‘how it’s done’. 4. It gives her a lovely inexpensive memento of your meeting. 5. It gives her something to show and tell her friends about & 6. It invariably leads to them trying to replicate the trick: an obvious impossibility at this stage. Not a bad morning all in all.

I switch to psyching myself up for London. I put on Baba Brinkman’s ‘Rap Guide to Evolution’ and let the blend of science and fun work, it’s magic. See http://youtu.be/irrKFXCoi0A , http://youtu.be/SCjkQb9MLNw. And http://youtu.be/ROgR3nK6ayk

So I disembark at Victoria taking a trip through Pimlico and the South bank I actively seek out one of the busiest parts of London; to put the hypnotherapy to the test. I’m unfazed, calm, collected and clear headed. Unbeknown to me, the South bank Thames footpath is undergoing renovation and cleaning ahead of London 2012 and the crowd is pushed even closer together by the resulting scaffolding. I remain calm. Clocking my watch, I realise, I’m behind schedule so hot foot it to the hotel.

Having changed shirts because my travel one is sweaty from running and carrying my bag in front of me. I change my shirt, call the guys and let them know I’m there and ready to meet them. We make introductions and head for the tube and the ultimate destination of Stretford Shopping Centre.

Moiser opens a 3 set effortless as we’re descending to the ticket machines (the man’s a relentless machine: all credit to him). I buy my ticket and out the corner of my eye spot two dynamite blondes just stepping on to the downward travelator. The girls have 20 yards advance on us as we begin our descent. I whisper to Kaos, “the blondes, this is my set” and charge down the escalator faster than Usain Bolt. I’m keen to earn my spurs and prove myself worthy of their time. I go about 5 degrees past them and do an over the shoulder delivery. “Quick question, me and my friends where having this discussion, I indicate with a gesture of the palm toward them, the guys beam back (social proof), we were thinking what do you think would happen if you put a slinky on an escalator? They smile, this is novel, they confer “I don’t know, I guess it would stop, no, hang on…they laugh as the childish genius of the question dawns. I think it would get stuck in a state of perpetual motion myself, I add. One strokes her hair away from her face (IOI). Her friend says, “Yeah, I suppose that’s a possibility. We reach the platform, I’ve dried up at this point but it’s OK because I see they are headed in the opposite direction.

The guys gather round. Science asks me “How did that feel?” I reply “Empowering”. They ask me to break down what I said/ did. I tell them the slinky escalator routine. I confess my mind had gone blank beyond the initial ice breaker. They congratulate me on an brilliant first approach, I explain that my pickup skills are like an un started dot to dot puzzle, bits of theoretical knowledge just waiting to be all joined up. They tell me not too over think things too much, just relax, enjoy the process, not the destination, fist and for most its about having fun, it’ll all come together with time. This is the best bit of advice I’ve had in a while.

We all take turns at opening sets whilst Kaos and Moiser have a cigarette. I switch to Style’s location opener whilst outside, it seems more natural given situational conditions. “Quick question, my friends and I are taking a trip to celebrate something special. We can’t decide between Paris or Las Vegas. Where would you go?” Women’s faces light up as we ask them where they would go and say 9 to 1 Vegas. “You’ve seen the hangover right”; “It’s more fun”. Get one defensive chick who slanders Vegas as a hole. Kaos joins me and says ask for more detail “What, Who, Why, Where, When and How” It’s open ended and can’t be shut down by a single word response. It works; I’m flowing into a more natural sounding conversation. I’d previously thought it was about trying to Mr Slick and always having a witticism on hand. This is not the case. You need to compel women to take interest in you and hold their attention. This is not done via over negging or just being a bad comic clutching at straws…

We enter the shopping centre and crank game up a gear. Science and Moiser form a team. Kaos and I form the other. We open set after set with every routine we have. Kaos says we’re in danger of repeating ourselves to someone and so teaches me “5 oceans”. He points to an empty shop and says go in there and try it. I walk up, not having quite got it rooted in my mind, back out and ask him to demonstrate. He does. Hearing it done, cements the routine into my psyche.

We walk into a exclusive department store and proceed to run amok amongst the quality makeup cashiers ‘hired guns’ on the upper floors. I use 5 oceans, stumbling over the details but the girl takes the bait nevertheless. Kaos walks over. “Here he is” I say. Now I bet him that if you could name all 5 oceans, Don’t let me down now. She confers with her colleague, ‘no cheating’ Kaos jests. She name’s 3. the Atlantic, The Pacific, The Indian and flails with the rest.

We go to Soho and meet with Keyser Soze. This guy is the most dapper and well dressed guy I’ve ever meet. Every pore of his oozes Quality, distinction and attention to smallest detail. A smooth talking, worldly figure with a fantastic range of anecdotes, tall tales and jokes. Instantaneously knew that he’s solid and nothing can throw him. First couple drinks are a briefing, in our designated briefing bar, followed by an exclusive, members-only, guests by invitation only place which Keyser had kindly arranged for us. This takes entertainment to a whole new plateau.

Rain stopped play for a while, but as the shower past we emerged from Keyser’s club and worked the streets and clubs of Soho. Opening yet more sets with the complete arsenal. Everyone is now engrossed and utterly in state. Science and Moiser try to open the most sizzling set of blonde lesbians you’ve ever seen in your life. These girls walk up holding hands. They are having none of it. They give it everything to try to score. Keyser later quips “that stuff might work in porn films but not in real life”. I have nothing but complete awe for these guys by now, they are 100% the real deal.

We return to a bar, Science, Kaos and Moiser are in their element. The clubs around my hometown are dingy dark affairs that make the blackhole of Calcutta look fashionable, I seldom go to them. These guys work on every nationality of women under the sun with astounding success rates. I get invited into an conversation with HB Scotland discover she’s into art. I push my limited knowledge of Scottish Artists to it’s limit, Rene Macintosh. She seems momentarily interested. I hesitate “I’ve never tried k closing a girl I’ve just met before. This hesitation is noticed by her and my subsequent attempt to K close by touching her face and leaning in is rebuffed. She excuses herself and makes the excuse that she’s goes to the toilet. I show signs of distress and uncertainty by capping my scalp in my hands, earning a rebuke from Moiser who tells me “Don’t do that” and shift body language touching my mouth “or that either” and reframes it all instantaneously “Imagine what you would have done if you hadn’t…you’d have beaten your self around for weeks even months…that’s the end of it, you now know she isn’t interested…let it go”. On return she’s icy, oh well! You don’t score unless you shoot!

Individual progress

Approach virginity annihilated. There are my previous limitations and where I am now happily located. Been incredibly humble, meek and passive previously. Mr Meek died on the 21st April 2012 – No-one saluted his passing. Bondus was born, people cheered loudly. Realise I still have a Lot to learn before I’m up to successfully K closing, N closing or indeed SNL. Need to work on specific goal orientated targets, be more charismatic, and project more energy, passion, exultation and vibrancy into life and take my newly learnt confidence and make it work for me on multiple levels…

Team Progress

Its all expressed by the first word really TEAM = Together Everyone Achieves More. I arrived into a pre existing team having been made to feel that I already belong amongst their number. Meeting in London only helped further cement this bond and my wish to better myself in every dimension. Sadly reading and particularly taking responsibility for the direction of your own life are not popular activities in my hometown. Will definitely meet up with you guys again real soon. Witnessing what’s possible if you devote your life to this stuff and get solid grounded advice from people who aren’t out to profiteer is hugely empowering. Make that journey people, meet your fellow members. Share wherever and whatever you can possible. In Union there is strength. This forum is solid gold because of that motto. Collectively something close to what I imagine the beginnings of pickup were like is here on this forum right now. Just guys intent on trying to the steps necessary to make their dreams reality. All hail Bravo!