The Natural Art of Seduction

If you’re new to the Seduction Community, then this may be a good introduction for you. Richard keeps the jargon down to a minimum, so aside from a few classic terms such as AMOG, Opening, and Mixed Sets, you won’t need to refer to a glossary every three sentences! The book is also very easily available; on Amazon.com, it costs about $14, compared to some of the higher-priced material.

Some people have complained that Richard’s book is not as in-depth as others on the market. He addresses this in the book, and in interviews I’ve seen. There is a danger, that with the vast amount of material available, it is too easy to get caught up in buying books, attending boot-camps and applying self-help theories.

What happens is that you end up never going out to apply it, or confusing yourself with contradictory advice and unnecessary jargon.

Richard’s method seems to be a combination of the Mystery Method Structure, Wayne “Juggler” Elise’s Conversational Jiu Jitsu, and elements of David DeAngelo’s works. He doesn’t directly quote any products, but in interviews I’ve found on the Web, he has mentioned some names.

He regards Mystery’s book and theory as one of the best, but he felt it was somewhat limited in its approach. For example - the 7 hours, the negs, the Mixed Sets in clubs, no direct game, no dance-floor game, no day-game, no inner game, and a very rigid system of steps.

On the other hand, he says, the Natural Approach tends to be more about mindsets and attitude, which may work for the experienced, but beginners will struggle with vague advice such as “Be confident.” Without adequate social and sexual experience, you may not be able to understand or apply the concepts.

The book is frequently punctuated with his “Evolution of a Natural” diary-style entries. Here, he shares his failures and successes, and tries to show how to apply the concepts you’ve just learned in real life. Looking at how he has written his book, it is very easy to assume that he exaggerated on some of the stories. I have to say that I agree with this to a certain extent – but any author tends to twist the truth to make for a more exciting or educational read, anyway!

That said, it is a very confident and honest man who is not afraid to write that he was a socially inept, 21-year-old virgin when he discovered the Community and its concepts.

I'd mark it down for the somewhat unfocused nature at times. The author also makes a big point of stressing that his 'system' is different to all the others, particularly in its 'naturalness' and non-offensive manner to women. I couldn't discern any uniqueness or anything startlingly novel in the advice laid out here, though.

Each chapter deals with a different part of the Seduction Interaction, with chapters on Openers, Mid-Game ideas for building rapport, Number and Kiss closing, plus advice on Same Night Lays. There is also a chapter on additional ideas, where he explores more routine based moves like Cold Reading ( a good brief summary, but nothing new), using NLP to build rapport and a few examples of words to use in patterns, plus some Cocky / Funny lines. He also goes into some detail on dealing with “I’ve a boyfriend” objection.

The final chapter is devoted to Inner Game. There’s some great advice here, albeit brief. Again, he wants you to not get trapped improving your Inner Game, so much so that you end up not going out.

The Three Characters of Seduction. This is Richard’s own take on the various stages of Seduction. Many people, in his experience, can get caught up in the Sociable or Comfort modes, and getting relegated to “Let’s just be friends!” pretty quickly.

He says that while many guys are interesting, and would make a good boyfriend, they're unable to demonstrate that to a girl in the first few minutes. They start the conversation in a boring way, they ask lots of boring questions, and they're very low energy – just the wrong sort of impression you want to give!

Mr. Sociable is the guy you need to be when you enter into a Set. You must appear more interesting, and of higher energy, than the set’s current state. Richard outlines a few ideas that will help you get in there and start a conversation, engage them, then move onto the next step.

The second character is Mr Comfort. This is where you connect with your target, to find reasons to see that person again. He warns against getting into generic “hair dresser” questions, instead of getting down to really what makes that person tick, their motivation, their character traits, their emotions.

The third character is The Seducer, which he says is the phase that most of his clients have problems with. He teaches you the point where you should start to escalate things and need to put in some sexual tension, and to go for the kiss or number close.

This, to me, seems a far more interesting and practical “mindset” than giving the stages a Dungeons and Dragons style format.

Here, he presents his book and boot camps, as teaching a series of social skills. The man is still expected to make the first move, but in addition, he needs to know how to come across as someone who isn’t after one thing (even if he is!) but not relegate himself into the Friend Zone, at the same time.

Richard has tried to get away from the misogynistic “Us versus Them” mindset that some other gurus have fallen into. If a girlfriend finds this book on your bookshelf, at least it isn’t titled like some sort of “Be a Pimp for all the bitches!” lay guide. He argues that you don’t have to become a jerk, or treat women with disdain.

He has appeared on the popular British TV magazine programme “LK Today,” hosted by Lorraine Kelly – the interview can be found on YouTube by typing in “GMTV Interview between PUA Training's Gambler Lorraine Kelly.” Lorraine ends up agreeing with everything he says!

Dealing with the AMOG. The techniques of Tyler Durden, et al, have been well documented, and Richard lists a few examples here. However, he doesn’t apply these techniques himself, and says he’s forewarning you, in case they’re used on you!

Instead, he preaches a far more passive technique here, called “Disarming” This is where you befriend the male of the group, by opening him first. Make him feel good by paying him compliments, and then ask how he knows the girls. He’ll introduce you, and make your job easier! He also advocates the same process for a male introducing himself to your Set.

This is the technique I have always used. Whilst AMOG tactics do sound cool, and work, in real-life, they do have an inherent risk. Out-Alpha the wrong guy, and you’ll end up getting beat up – I’ve seen it happen. Alcohol, testosterone and male pride are dangerous things…

Brief and to the point. I’m a busy man, and I like my books to be full of things I can grasp and go out and apply now, not find by trawling through 60 pages of theory. It’s always nice to know how things work, but I feel that, for people who are already over-analytical and socially uncalibrated, specialist jargon and cod-psychological theory end up doing more harm than good.

I found his marketing of his own training company a little heavy handed. I’m not going to deny the man his right to earn a living, but I thought that some of his statements were pretty heavy come-ons. For example, he talks about how one of his trainers teaches advanced sexual techniques with live demonstrations !

This may be far more wholesome than it sounds, but to a target market of sexually frustrated guys and horny teens, it does sound like “Come to a bootcamp and watch hot girls make out!”

The lack of bullet points and a chapter summary. This is a bugbear of mine – I like to be able to review material quickly, and bullet points help me to memorise good stuff.

Unintentionally hilarious photos of the author. On the back cover of my copy, there is a picture of him with Paris Hilton. Sadly, he looks like he’s striking Ben Stiller’s “Blue Steel” pose from Zoolander.

He was probably just hamming it up, as Paris was hitting her goofy trade-mark pose! To a ‘newbie’ this possibly may not inspire great confidence in the author, when they receive a copy. I advise them that its worth the read!

Very brief description of Day Game. I realise that to a lot of people find this harder than Club game, so perhaps this was left out as it’s considered “Advanced Game” by some. I was disappointed with the lack of detail, though.

I've read several of these PUA manuals now, and whilst this isn't the best of them, it does rank as a competent effort. It's also written by a London PUA, something that might make it more relevant to the British reader. For example, the sort of Mystery style “Peacocking” may work in Fetish Clubs and Nightclubs in America, but over here in England, can make you look a complete idiot!

I'd score it highly on its advice regarding body language, voice, and attitude, and generally, the importance of giving off the right alpha-male persona. It actually has some nifty diagrams to help you strike the right pose, something I hadn't seen often, in other books.

A good place to start for Beginners, and for those of you into the Game and looking for a summary of some of the most important concepts.