"I just moved here from Florida."

That sentence contains at least five follow-up questions she WANTS you to ask. Where in Florida? What brought you here? How long have you been in the area? What do you miss? How does it compare to here?

She handed them to you on a silver platter. And you said, "Oh cool. I come here every week. I love this band. Ummm... pretty crowded tonight."

She smiled politely. Nodded. And never texted you back.

I was that guy for years. Talking too much. Listening too little. Panicking about my next sentence while she was literally feeding me the answers.

Then I found 22 rules that fixed the whole thing. Rule number one: shut up and listen. She'll tell you exactly what to say.

Read more...

Relationships expose your inner demons

Pandora

Master Don Juan
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Messages
3,729
Reaction score
3,565
Age
41
Relationships can bring out inner game issues that you didnt even know you had. Whatever trauma you have under the surface comes out. People that are normal in every other aspect of life become psychos once they get romantically involved.

You become hypersensitive to behaviors of the other party. This is especially true if you really like the other person.

Many men and women cant handle this ( including me). This creates a cycle of toxicity and dysfunction.

Because of this, relationships do serve as a catalyst for growth after you break up.
 

"So, What Do You Do for Fun?"

She asks it casually, mid-sip. And you feel the floor open up, because the honest answer is work, gym, and a couple shows you're half-watching.

Women rarely say this out loud, but a man with a life is attractive before he says a word. The guy who spent Saturday deep-sea fishing and came back with photos and a story — he walks in already interesting.

The "22 Rules" pushed me to build a life worth talking about. Turns out the fastest way to be interesting to women is to be interested in your own life first.

Read more...

M

member160292

Guest
The subject had me rolling my eyes, but the content is great! Thanks, OP!
 

corrector

Master Don Juan
Joined
Oct 12, 2009
Messages
10,398
Reaction score
4,068
So true. This is one aspect that I'm not Nostalgic about.
 

The Duke

Master Don Juan
Joined
Feb 4, 2008
Messages
6,542
Reaction score
11,503
I had one relationship that got too toxic and dysfunctional. We were having an argument and I shoved her and she fell down. Never done anything like that to anybody. She had pushed me to my breaking point. I think it's in even the most sane person. I knew right then that I was done and needed to end that relationship immediately.
 
M

member160761

Guest
I had one relationship that got too toxic and dysfunctional. We were having an argument and I shoved her and she fell down. Never done anything like that to anybody. She had pushed me to my breaking point. I think it's in even the most sane person. I knew right then that I was done and needed to end that relationship immediately.
What you call breaking point is regular stress relief in a Russian marriage. Pushing is just the foreplay.
 

"She Liked You in March. It's October Now."

Attraction runs on a clock.

She flirted for weeks. Touched your arm. Found reasons to be alone with you. And you were careful. Respectful. Waiting for the right moment.

The moment had a shelf life. It expired around month two, and by the time you asked her out, she'd quietly filed you under "little brother."

One of the hardest lessons inside the 22 Rules: women rarely wait. Interest either grows or it decays, and nothing decays it faster than a man who never moves.

Make the move while she's still inventing reasons to be near you.

Read more...

anonymous12345

Senior Don Juan
Joined
Dec 23, 2021
Messages
496
Reaction score
185
Age
42
Location
Sweden
Attachment issues in early age results in so-called "asocial behavior" (fine wording violence) in men and emotional instability in women. This is reflected in society, men are over represented in jail and women among the disorder "emotional instability" in the psychiatry. A shrink told me this.

Women can with their way of being and emotion stability drive men crazy, it seems is my experience. A Swedish politician lost his career for airing this thought. For everyone's sake, including our own so we don't get the blame here, we need to be able to ignore, walk or next. Temporarily and if needed also permanently.
 

anonymous12345

Senior Don Juan
Joined
Dec 23, 2021
Messages
496
Reaction score
185
Age
42
Location
Sweden
Relationships can bring out inner game issues that you didnt even know you had. Whatever trauma you have under the surface comes out. People that are normal in every other aspect of life become psychos once they get romantically involved.
Absolutely, when someone gets under your skin things gets activated that could have been dormant, have heard plenty of anecdotes of that. I got angry at a girlfriend that was unfaithful, also later on jealous on a previous lover's new life. These days I am very confident that I've become a respectable man with good relationship skills. Have put in the work and pain for reaching that.
 
Last edited:

bat soup

Master Don Juan
Joined
Apr 10, 2020
Messages
4,210
Reaction score
4,701
Age
46
Relationships can bring out inner game issues that you didnt even know you had. Whatever trauma you have under the surface comes out. People that are normal in every other aspect of life become psychos once they get romantically involved.

You become hypersensitive to behaviors of the other party. This is especially true if you really like the other person.

Many men and women cant handle this ( including me). This creates a cycle of toxicity and dysfunction.

Because of this, relationships do serve as a catalyst for growth after you break up.
I once had a relationship and I discovered that I had a lot of inner game issues: a half-finished game of backgammon and a game of chess were both simultaneously going on inside my head. Fortunately I managed to resolve the issue by taking lots and lots of pills.
 

Murk

Master Don Juan
Joined
Aug 17, 2017
Messages
4,359
Reaction score
3,322
Age
37
Location
London
I'm my experience relationships are lessons you learn from, applying the knowledge to the next one, starting with a better frame each time and putting up with less BS. I'm at a pretty good level now after a few go-arounds. You can't read or watch vids on this stuff, you have to live it, and go through experiences.
 

"You'll Never Feel READY to Walk Over"

Next Monday you'll feel more confident. After the gym you'll feel more confident. After one more drink you'll feel more confident. After you get a better haircut, a better jacket, a better job.

You've been "getting ready" for two years.

She's standing ten feet away right now. She'll be gone in four minutes. No amount of preparation will manufacture the courage that only comes from moving your feet.

Walk over. Stumble through the first sentence. Let it be clumsy. Let it be imperfect. You will feel more alive in those ten seconds than you have all month.

Read more...

BackInTheGame78

Moderator
Joined
Sep 10, 2014
Messages
16,941
Reaction score
19,257
Yeah definitely true...in some ways they expose things about a person that nothing else can. And usually only the bad things.
 

Gamisch

Master Don Juan
Joined
May 2, 2022
Messages
5,327
Reaction score
6,220
Attachment issues in early age results in so-called "asocial behavior" (fine wording violence) in men and emotional instability in women. This is reflected in society, men are over represented in jail and women among the disorder "emotional instability" in the psychiatry. A shrink told me this.

Women can with their way of being and emotion stability drive men crazy, it seems is my experience. A Swedish politician lost his career for airing this thought. For everyone's sake, including our own so we don't get the blame here, we need to be able to ignore, walk or next. Temporarily and if needed also permanently.
And it makes sense. This is a game where at the end all characters will be able to compete with each other. So a 5.3 skinny fragile woman will be able to MENTALLY compete with a 6.5 baboon. Kinda like xmen, or streetfighter or whatever analogy you like to use.

Or perhaps the analogy of the infamous African honey badger, who will fight a lion to death and wont back down no matter what. Even the lion starts to doubt himself ,"why does this small creature DOESN'T back down, I can crush you with my index finger!"
I had one relationship that got too toxic and dysfunctional. We were having an argument and I shoved her and she fell down. Never done anything like that to anybody. She had pushed me to my breaking point. I think it's in even the most sane person. I knew right then that I was done and needed to end that relationship immediately.
Same thing here . Pushed my girl, she fell on her elbow and shoved it into my face fir YEARS . The push was more a reflex, but looking back at it the whole lead up to this was "my mistake".

It's like being a boxing fan, cheering from the couch is easy. You might even have some tactical knowledge. Yet everything changes the moment you gotta step inside the ring yourself. You'll discover thing about yourself you never knew...

That's why lately I tend to be more positive about many of my failed relationships. Without them I would miss TONS of knowledge, especially knowledge about myself.
 

ubercat

Master Don Juan
Joined
Mar 6, 2015
Messages
3,671
Reaction score
2,309
Location
Australia
Same with Serbians. My mate had this girl he was dating try and stab when she found out about other girls. They hadn't even had the talk. I ve had Greek and Serbian chix ditch me because I wasn't moody enough. I think one of them actually wanted to be slapped around. Damaged goods.
 

Pierce Manhammer

Moderator
Joined
Jun 2, 2021
Messages
4,900
Reaction score
5,868
Location
PRC
There’s a reason we gimped the MLRS systems we sent the Ukraine…
 

"Nervous Around Beautiful Women? There's a Rule for That"

I could talk to any woman I wasn't attracted to. Charming, funny, relaxed. Then a gorgeous woman looked my way and I'd become a sweating, babbling mess.

The fix took me years to find and ten minutes to learn. Nervousness and excitement are the same physical state — pounding heart, adrenaline, flushed face. Your brain just picks the label. And you can pick a better one.

Rule 16 shows you how. You feel the nerves, relabel them as excitement, and let that energy pour out as enthusiasm. Women notice the guy radiating it. They always do.

Read more...

Realthangpoon

Don Juan
Joined
Aug 14, 2019
Messages
69
Reaction score
51
Very insightful post OP.

My relationship is going that direction currently and it’s driving me insane because I can’t figure out how to fix it. Moving in together made everything worse.

She’s very cute, caring, low notch count, family-oriented. But also very insecure, needing physical and emotional affirmation, demanding attention and talks a lot (almost all the time) about stuff I really don’t care about. It’s often the same stuff because she doesn’t go out much and thus can’t talk about new experiences.
Plus she doesn’t have a fixed group of girl friends to dump the figments in her brain to. To make matters worse she’s one of my good friends’ younger sister.

This situation is draining me emotionally and physically. I feel ungrounded as a man and she can feel it too, which is making everything worse. Any advice here?
 

Pandora

Master Don Juan
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Messages
3,729
Reaction score
3,565
Age
41
I had one relationship that got too toxic and dysfunctional. We were having an argument and I shoved her and she fell down. Never done anything like that to anybody. She had pushed me to my breaking point. I think it's in even the most sane person. I knew right then that I was done and needed to end that relationship immediately.
Your story is a perfect example. They will bring things out of you that you didnt know you had. On a positive note this gives you an opportunity to do some internal healing of your wounds. They bring them to the surface.

Btw was this female BPD or just a high conflict personality?
 

Pandora

Master Don Juan
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Messages
3,729
Reaction score
3,565
Age
41
Attachment issues in early age results in so-called "asocial behavior" (fine wording violence) in men and emotional instability in women. This is reflected in society, men are over represented in jail and women among the disorder "emotional instability" in the psychiatry. A shrink told me this.

Women can with their way of being and emotion stability drive men crazy, it seems is my experience. A Swedish politician lost his career for airing this thought. For everyone's sake, including our own so we don't get the blame here, we need to be able to ignore, walk or next. Temporarily and if needed also permanently.
This is so true. Childhood traumas lead to adult issues. If you date enough attractive women you WILL run into a BPD cluster B type. If you are not ready to ignore, walk or next you are done.
 

Pandora

Master Don Juan
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Messages
3,729
Reaction score
3,565
Age
41
Very insightful post OP.

My relationship is going that direction currently and it’s driving me insane because I can’t figure out how to fix it. Moving in together made everything worse.

She’s very cute, caring, low notch count, family-oriented. But also very insecure, needing physical and emotional affirmation, demanding attention and talks a lot (almost all the time) about stuff I really don’t care about. It’s often the same stuff because she doesn’t go out much and thus can’t talk about new experiences.
Plus she doesn’t have a fixed group of girl friends to dump the figments in her brain to. To make matters worse she’s one of my good friends’ younger sister.

This situation is draining me emotionally and physically. I feel ungrounded as a man and she can feel it too, which is making everything worse. Any advice here?
Well she does not sound like a Cluster B whack job so thats good. If the relationship is draining you then it ultimately going to make you very depressed. The pain will be so much that you will have to make a choice. You either leave or slowly die. Hopefully she breaks up with you and that will make your exit more smooth.
 

The Duke

Master Don Juan
Joined
Feb 4, 2008
Messages
6,542
Reaction score
11,503
Your story is a perfect example. They will bring things out of you that you didnt know you had. On a positive note this gives you an opportunity to do some internal healing of your wounds. They bring them to the surface.

Btw was this female BPD or just a high conflict personality?
Highly likely Borderline Personality Disorder.
 

"She Made Her Decision Before You Finished Your Sentence"

Three seconds. That's how long it took. Your shoes. Your posture. The way you held your drink. Whether you looked at the floor or looked at her.

She already filed you away. Interesting. Boring. Safe. Bold. Before you even opened your mouth.

Everything you say after that is just her confirming what she already decided.

So stop rehearsing lines. Fix the first three seconds. Stand tall. Look up. Smile like you mean it. Walk like you belong wherever you're standing.

The words come later. The impression comes first.

Read more...

Top