Student Testimonials
At Practical Pickup, we don’t just invest in teaching you dating skills, we strive to create a relationship with you. We’re invested in your success, and as a result many of our students have shown us gratitude in return by writing reviews for others. We’re very proud of our track record and the fact we’ve never had one poor review or request for refund.
See for yourself…
Workshop Reviews:
- “They were able to break down the weaknesses in my game before we even set foot in the club!”
- “I have taken three different programs and if I had to rate my experiences with each instructor, I would honestly say that my time with Mickey and Mark was the most helpful for my dollar and I will happily stand by my word.”
- “I still feel like I paid too little for the in-depth teaching and feedback I received.”
- “If you are totally screwing up, they will tell you “Hey, you’re screwing up, let’s do this….” and they will help guide you to where you need to be.”
- “Four months later, I can still honestly say that the improvements they helped inspire in my life, even beyond my new found successes with women, were well worth the cost.”
- “Going out with these guys is like working out with Arnold Schwarzenegger”
- “I have never really approached a woman cold before and that weekend I think I got 8 or 9 numbers and a make-out at the last club.”
- “Fifteen minutes into the lesson, he basically broke down every mental issue I had into a science.”
- “I was out of my comfort zone, but he pushed me into interactions when I didn’t want to, and at the end of the day I was glad I did it.”
- “Within an hour I had five phone numbers. I was so dizzy with this success that I had actually forgotten their names! … My whole view of dating has changed.”
- “I am still exhausted from a weekend that has deeply changed my perceptions of what is possible with women.”
- “A week after the workshop, I definitely notice an improvement in my ability to meet and talk to women.”
- “I lost some of my attachment to worrying about what people think of me.”
- “They really raise your skills with women to another level no matter what level you are at currently.”
- “The skills I learned extend much further than the realm of pickup, as I’ve been able to apply much of it in everyday interactions, as well.”
One on One Reviews:
Mark, Mickey
Video Testimonials
Practical Pickup Workshop, October 2008
“They were able to break down the weaknesses in my game before we even set foot in the club!”
Practical Pick-Up is aptly named. You won’t find any fancy steps or jargon in the style of game Mickey and Mark teach. Just simplicity. Just what works. They’re less about routines, but not anti-routine, and more about making a genuine connection with the woman or women you’re gaming. They’re also big on having real conversational skills, something that is not talked about in a lot of other methods.
Mickey and Mark are great instructors and really down to earth, cool guys who are very easy to relate and talk to. I also have to say they are super generous with their time and knowledge. They give 110%. And then some. They really care that you are learning and take the time to make sure your questions are answered and you are getting the help you need, of course with a 2:1 instructor/student ratio you damn near get a one on one. When it comes to analyzing flaws in your game, Mickey and Mark are very perceptive. They were able to break down the weaknesses in my game just from watching me do some practice approaches before we even set foot in the club! I don’t feel like I left their boot camp as some superstar PUA, nor did I expect to, but I do feel like I have a very clear idea of the things I need to improve, and the steps I need to take, to elevate my game to the next level.
Mickey’s day game is awesome. I love his method. It’s simple and effective. The fashion consult was great as well and again the guys bring a lot of knowledge and know-how to the table. The only negative I have is that the boot camp was too short and I wish I would have had more time with Mickey and Mark.
The only other training I had when coming to Practical Pick-Up was a Vince Kelvin Day Game Boot Camp. I have nothing but praise for Vince and I will continue to work with him. That being said I prefer Mickey’s direct, simplified style of day game over Vince’s indirect method, and feel my day game ( night game as well) really came better into focus under Mickey and Mark’s knowing instruction.
I would highly recommend Practical Pick-Up to anyone thinking of seeking professional training. Why pay more? If you’re still in doubt, talk to me! Seriously. They give a ton of value for half the price of their competitors.
- MT, Los Angeles
Practical Pickup Workshop, August 2008
“I have taken three different programs and if I had to rate my experiences with each instructor, I would honestly say that my time with Mickey and Mark was the most helpful for my dollar and I will happily stand by my word.”
My name’s Brett. I’m a 22 year old college grad taking a year off from school before starting med school next August. I’ve been in the “game” for about a year now, and this program I just took with Mickey and Mark is the third one I’ve ever taken in my journey towards understanding women and getting laid. My game is getting pretty tight at this point, and my two previous boot camps were first with Sinn and Future when they both worked for Love Systems (Formally The Mystery Method), and with Brad P. over at Brad P. Presents. All the programs I’ve taken have been incredibly helpful, and it’s amazing how every single person I’ve worked with has a slightly different style and approach to women, yet they all work. Still, if I had to rate my experiences with each instructor, I would honestly say that my time with Mickey and Mark was the most helpful for my dollar and I will happily stand by my word if anyone wants to email me and discuss.
First, a little about myself and my background – if anyone wants to skip the next two paragraphs and get down to the nitty gritty of the review – feel free. Anyway, I’ve always been OK with women, but I never really had the success I wanted. I would leave bars and parties upset and disappointed, wondering why some of my more obnoxious and inconsiderate friends would always leave with girls and I wouldn’t. I would think to myself, “I’m smart, funny, and I have a hell of a lot more going on than a lot of my friends, what the fuck is going on?” Then I would go home, jerk off, and cry myself to sleep (not really, but you get the idea).
Thus, I turned to the “seduction community” like many people that are reading this review right now probably did as well. I read books on body language, social dynamics, human sexuality, and pretty much everything else you could think of. I would practice as I went out to bars and fraternity parties with friends, and slowly my game got better and better.
Still, I wasn’t getting the results I wanted. I was able to approach girls, build attraction, and talk to girls for maybe 5-10 minutes, but then the conversation would fizzle down and I would end up going home alone. I couldn’t figure out what my problem was. I was doing everything I thought I was suppose to be doing “theoretically,” and still not getting laid. Then I met up with Mickey and Mark.
Mickey is 5′6, 130 lb. white kid with a Mohawk. No one would ever think he could get laid by just hearing his stats on paper – that is, until you meet him. Doc is one of the funniest, coolest, most down to earth, awesome guys on the planet. He can walk into any bar and talk to any chick, or just chill and kick it with you by the bar talking about life, politics, and relationships. He’s a master at day game, and instantly spotted my problem with women within an hour of working with me (I’ll get more into that later in the review).
Mark is one of the most chill, nice, and genuine people I have ever met on the planet. He has read just about every book ever written (and I’m not just talking about books on picking up girls, I’m talking about books on philosophy, religion, politics, whatever – you name it, he has read it). He played guitar for years, and he’s more laid back than most dating coaches I’ve met. His and Doc’s dynamic together is hilarious. I really felt like I was hanging out with two really cool, close friends when I was with them and they made me feel as if I was a part of their crew when I was with them for the weekend.
The key to Practical Pickup is their style – which is very different from a lot of other guys in the industry. Mark is less focused on “routines” than a lot of guys that I’ve met in the industry, and is a lot more focused on making sure that people have the right mind-sets and beliefs that will take people farther than any routine could (although he does have plenty of good routines if you want them). This makes him come off as a much more normal, regular person than a lot of people I’ve talked to in the seduction community.
Mickey is a lot more direct than any pick-up coach I’ve met, which I really like. He cuts out a lot of the bullshit. I really feel that the “pick-up community” is heavily weighted towards gaining attraction, and Mickey showed me that you could talk to a girl and cut through attraction in 30 seconds to a minute if the circumstances are right and get right down to comfort – something I never realized before with all my work in the (I also never really realized that comfort is the meat of the interaction with women, thank you again Practical Pickup for helping me realize this).
Don’t get me wrong, Brad P. is amazing. He’s one of the nicest, coolest, most interesting guys on the planet, with some of the deepest insights into women I’ve ever heard. But I felt as if Brad floated around attraction material for too long, thinking of complex pick-up lines and routines that don’t work for everyone in every situation – especially newbies that don’t necessarily grasp the true reasoning behind why a lot of his stuff works.
Mickey and Mark helped me realize that most “game” really takes place in the “comfort” level of interactions, and pinpointed the reason I was having trouble getting there. Mickey pulled me aside at one point during the night, and literally said one sentence to me that was worth the whole cost of the weekend (I’m not going to tell you what it was, cause you should pay to work with these guys to figure it out), but it literally transformed my game by flipping on a metaphorical “light-bulb” in my head.
Their style of teaching is a lot better than a lot of the guys in the community I’ve met as well. They are a lot more direct, to the point, and easier to understand than a lot of the people I met. Sinn, for example, is one of the most knowledgeable guys about game out there right now. But his style of teaching is a lot more like a drill instructor that made me nervous, flooded me with information, and made it hard for me to apply a lot of what I learned. Mickey and Mark are a lot more patient, understanding, and focused on individual training than these other guys I’ve worked with on boot camps. It might be because their style of teaching was more suited to my style of learning, or the fact that they had a better ratio of coaches/students than I’ve had on other programs.
Mickey and Mark also do an amazing fashion make-over. They know wayyy more about fashion then any heterosexual male should, and really made me look pimped out within 2-3 hours of shopping with them at Macy’s and other stores. They figured out who I was as a person, what my lifestyle was, and dressed me accordingly. I now have a style that allows me to go out and pick up women on the street if I wish, or go and sit down with a med school interviewer and talk about hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy if I so desire.
The only negative I have to offer is that my time with Mickey and Mark was too short. While other boot camps usually offer 3 days (2 days seminar/in-field night game, 1 day infield day game), Mickey and Mark only offered 2 days (1 day seminar/in-field night game, 1 day seminar/in-field day game). However, this shortcoming is more than compensated for by the fact that the price of working with Mickey and Mark for the weekend is about half of what it cost to work with some of the big-name guys in the industry.
- Brett, Chicago
Practical Pickup Workshop, July 2008
“I still feel like I paid too little for the in-depth teaching and feedback I received.”
Previously, in the world of women and pick up, I was alone and lost in the wilderness. I decided to take a workshop to straighten myself out; I did some research. I wanted to the program to be in Boston, and for my wallet to not be gasping for air the weekend after.
Practical Pickup was the ideal situation for me: it had a low student to instructor ratio, and a matching and very palatable price. I still feel like I paid too little for the indepth teaching and feedback I received. All three of the instructors had obvious credibility and observable skills. At the end of the weekend I was exhausted - I had been sent back into the wilderness with GPS, food and a XM radio for fun for night and day. After taking a workshop with Practical Pickup, I now have the skills for survival and more. I would recommend this experience to anyone.
- XW, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, July 2008
“If you are totally screwing up, they will tell you “Hey, you’re screwing up, let’s do this….” and they will help guide you to where you need to be.”
This is my review the workshop with practical pickup.
I started working on my dating life in Jan 2008 and since I casually was seeing a susan saradon look alike. I got lazy and stopped going out cause to deal with waking up early for school after going out was an issue so I put it on hold for awhile.
I went out with a friend who harshly critized my game and told me I wasnt too invested on getting better and I was slacking off. So I decide to go back to working on this skill set and practice ,I hated myself for being so negligent.
I worked on meeting women during the day. Honestly at first I was scared of meeting them in the day cause I didnt know what to say to beautiful women in the day plus my personality in night game is different. So I went out and experiemented and practice for 3 weeks, 4times a week 8-10 appraoches, I had a better understanding but still needed to get better results and feedback.
I went up to Boston, saw my friend who was taking a program with these guys, so I met them.
Anyways, I met the guys at practical pickup, I didnt know them before and they seem chill guys.
After that I looked into reading at each of their Blogs and I realized how fuckin’ good they are at this stuff.
I sensed that I was going to see these guys and I had found awesome mentors. So I signed up immediately.
First Day — seminar was a mind-blowing experience!
The concepts were broken down to be easily understood (even if you are a newbie) and I like how didactic they were in making sure the student got to the picture. I know how to teach cause I intereact in my school with teaching students in my field of work and know when I see someone that knows how to explain and transfer that information to the student.
ALL excersises, themselves were a mindfuck! totally awesome and as I practiced there infront of the instructors and they would correct me which was a total personalized feeling while being trained. Wow! I started to improve right away.
When Mark was explaining “inner game” and beliefs, that was when I started to see how these guys are as people, not only know how to GAME women but definately know how to teach and care about the students.
Ben, I read his stuff and I bombarded him with questions. Seeing him and his ability to analyze situations and students, I can say he is a Master! I liked this guy and identify myself with him cause I dont BS and came in this workshop with my balls ready to go out and do it. He wants the student to come out of their comfort zone and that’s what I did.
I found that was the most effective way for me to learn and try out in field.
In field at night: I felt I was the shit being with Ben and Mark as my instructors in the venue. The venue was perfect for meeting women. A lot of women constantly coming in’ out. No excuse for not talking to them.
I talked to several women, got feedback, they “winged” me, I made dumb mistakes and they called me on them too. But the highlight of the night for me was then as I was about to leave, I ran into a cutest girl, the cutest drunk girl ever!!! she thought I look like a WWE wrestler and told me I was hot.
She was so excited so picked her up and carried her, slapped her ass and made out with her. Everybody on the program laughed at this!
I got feedback on my mistakes at debrief. I felt it was important since I havent been going out recently. They helped me see my mistakes and I learned alot.
NEXT DAY:
Daytime: As I mentioned previously I was practicing day game for 3 weeks before the program, but Mickey, being the expert at day game gave me awesome feedback and structured day game better and more effectively for me.
His concepts are advanced and definately worth checking out!
Then we went to get our fashion advice for what we could wear and improve in our style. This was very important for me since Im a doctor. Im a ballsy, laid back cool guy but I didnt want my style to be too try hard, this was also eye opening for me to get them to give their advice and pick out clothing that would help me look my best as well and very helpful to the other guys there.
After wards we went back to seminar to review dates, and what happens afterwards.
They also shared their honest personal life experiences and gave awesome advice on handling situations that may occur.
I was mostly impresed by the honesty of the instructors and their feedback, for the guys reading,
there isnt any BS here man.
This program is NOT about making you feel good about yourself if you are making mistakes.
If you are totally fuckin up , they will tell you “hey, your fuckin up , let’s do this ….” and they would help guide you where you need to be.
For me it was about making changes that needed to happen for me to improve this skill set !
It inspired me to want to get better and get out and practice , reading their Blogs and now being able to take a program with them, trust me its more than worth it!
- “DreamerBoy,” New York City
Practical Pickup Workshop, May 2008
“Four months later, I can still honestly say that the improvements they helped inspire in my life, even beyond my new found successes with women, were well worth the cost.”
They taught me the lines, they told me what worked and what didn’t. They were good at it too. In the end, I found the lines don’t matter all that much. Most lines can be found online or in a book, and there is no such thing as a magic phrase to solve all your dating woes. The most value I got from Practical Pickup came from nonverbal areas - especially in the method of delivery of those lines and in the lessons they taught me about my inner self. And those are not things you can find online or in a book.
I believe I am naturally an alpha-male. I have always been a leader at heart. Once upon a time I would always go my own way and never care what anyone thought about me. But before these guys got ahold of me, anyone looking at me or interacting with me would never know it. I had repressed these desirable traits and my psyche had been seriously damaged from reasons I don’t care to get into, even if my core remained an alpha personality waiting to escape. The Practical Pickup instructors taught me to walk like a man who knew he was in control. They opened my eyes to a new world of fashion where my clothes *actually* fit me and best complimented my personal style. They taught me to recognize when I was being led instead of doing the leading. They introduced me to the world of subtle sub-communications that are so very critical when directing an interaction. Their individual stories inspired me to believe that it was possible for even me to achieve success again. Ben, Mark, and Mickey know what they are doing and are passionate about helping their students.
It has been four months since I took the Practical Pickup workshop. Besides being lazy, I wanted to wait to write about my experiences because I wanted to let the “post bootcamp high” (as Ben put it) settle down to normal levels and allow me to give my honest and unbiased opinion. And I am glad I did - because only now do I think I really can begin to grasp how much the seeds they planted have begun to grow. Four months later, I can still honestly say that the improvements they helped inspire in my life, even beyond my new found successes with women, were well worth the cost. Four months later, I would definitely recommend Practical Pickup to anyone looking to improve their social skills with women.
- Mike, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, May 2008
“Going out with these guys is like working out with Arnold Schwarzenegger”
This was my first experience with a dating coach and I had no idea what to expect!
Here’s my approach to finding the right instructor. If you’ve ever mastered an area of your life (basketball, guitar, painting, etc.) you can probably understand where I’m coming from. Also if you just visualize back on your K-12 teachers, I bet you’ll be able to relate too.
Having practiced tae kwon do for over 14 years and developed mastery in the art, I’ve trained with different instructors in my time. Here are the 4 categories of instructors that I’ve come across (I’d draw a box if I could):
1. dedicated to students, and has achieved mastery, teaching skill
2. dedicated to students, but lacks mastery, teaching skill
3. not dedicated to students, yet has achieved mastery, teaching skill
4. not dedicated to students, and lacks mastery, teaching skill
Qualities I look for in an Instructor:
-Dedication to his students
-Ability to tailor exercises to each individual student’s need
All the Practical Pick Up instructors fit the 1st category of instructor and they had what I was looking for.
Now for the practical stuff… (gotta love puns ha)
Without getting too much into details, the 3 main topics covered are:
Inner Game
Night Game
Day Game
(Bonus: Fashion Consultation)
For a more detailed description go here: http://www.practicalpickup.com/
Having read many books & watched a couple DVD programs, the theory sessions during the day were helpful. However, I looked forward most to putting these into action.
Here are the strengths of the program:
- 3 instructors to 4 students
This meant that we got a lot of personal time and one-on-one coaching. I’d often talk to a girl while an instructor watched and then gave me feedback afterwards. Besides, how is someone supposed to teach if they can’t see what you’re doing right?
Also each instructor has a very different style & approach they bring to the topic of pick up. To put in a sports analogy it’s sort of like having a strength & conditioning coach, a nutrition coach, and a technique coach. When you mesh all 3 together, you get a very complete package.
- “Going out with these guys is like working out with Arnold Schwarzenegger”
These guys are going to push you to succeed because they care about you. This quote actually came up in conversation between myself and some of the other students. At the end of the weekend, I was dead exhausted; but I never would’ve pushed myself in the way I did if they weren’t there. I better myself by being around guys who are more talented than me. These guys are it. I learned simply from observing and being around these guys.
- Bottom line: the advice is practical, their approach is practical.
I’m glad we didn’t sit in a room for 5 hours each day and listen to lectures. The BEST part of this program was going out with these guys and approaching women. The only way to get better is to go out now and start “doing” and that’s what these guys are all about.
- Alex, Boston
Follow-Up Review: One Month Later
You may be wondering why I’m writing a 2nd review. Truthfully, a month ago I didn’t think I’d be either. I thought I’d write just one for you all to read and that’d be it.
The Magic Pill
Ok, so before my program I “logically” knew that I wasn’t going to get super good overnight. It’s common sense right? Mastery takes effort, time, & dedication. Yet…still some little part of me deep down inside, wished that in 1 night — these guys could just somehow transform me into a superstar. Damn, that’s not the way it works.
I’m writing a 2nd review b/c at the time I wrote the 1st one, I didn’t realize the full impact of how the my experience would come to affect my growth.
Your Personal Learning Style
I’ve spent the last 6 months intensely soul searching.
In more tangible terms, I’ve been developing my own owner’s manual: finding what makes me tick, how I learn most efficiently, what types of feedback works for me, etc. For any guy looking to take a workshop I’d recommend that you have a firm grasp of how you learn. Otherwise, it may just seem like you’re paying $$$ just to go in circles through the motions of meeting women – and you can do this any old Fri or Sat night.
I’ve sought to answer the question: “How do I learn best?”
Me personally, I learn best through repetition. Some guys can understand and perform stuff the 1st time around. Not me, and it’s always been like that for as long as I remember. I literally have to do stuff 1,000 times over and over before it finally becomes auto-pilot.
Honestly – I don’t want to have to take another workshop. Do you?
Do I want to keep sucking with women? Hell no!
I want success with women.
Back to the Review…
It’s a funny thing, most of my learning has come after the Practical Pickup workshop. What the program did for me was plant seeds of “how things can be.” While I was observing the instructors, I was picking up frames of mind and body language. I saw what it meant to “plow.” (Admittedly before the program I used to eject wuss-bag style way too often, lol).
It’s now 4 weeks later that I’m beginning to recognize my current small successes are not some magic or miracle. Seeds of success were planted 4 weeks ago. Thank you Mickey, Mark and Ben. You guys rock.
Again I ask myself – why did success have to come 4 weeks later? wtf.
This is frustrating. I wanted my magic pill! haha.
It goes back to my personal owner’s manual. Personally, I learn best by repetition. I’ve re-created the “bootcamp” experience every night I’ve gone out since then. (3 nights/week x 6 approaches x 4 weeks = 72 approaches at least). I had my first same night lay around approach 60′ish.
Any geeks in here remember Star Wars? Haha.
(Man I LOVE that movie!)
I literally remember these guys’ advice coming to me in field like the voice of Obi Wan. “Plow Luke plow, number close.” Seriously. Much like the main character, I didn’t immediately realize the full value of my training (aka the workshop) until I was being tested in-field. And shit man…the field is unforgiving. Ouch. haha.
Anyway, so there’s my 2nd review. I hope that gives you guys a more personal taste of how the Practical Pickup Workshop has affected my learning.
I look forward to seeing you guys out in-field. That’s where the learning is done!
Thanks again to my instructors Mickey, Mark and Ben.
- Alex, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, April 2008
“I have never really approached a woman cold before and that night and next day I think I got 8 or 9 numbers and a make-out at the last club.”
I definitely recommend this workshop to someone like me……a virgin. I’m a cheap student so it would have to be good in order for me to recommend it.
There is a shitload of material to digest although it makes PRACTICAL sense so it isn’t bad. I have been thinking about everything these dudes said since Sunday and it all makes sense. My weak points were pointed out and it was tough to listen to but in the end these guys want to make you better with women and will if you listen AND DO AS THEY SAY!!
Mickey, Mark and Ben all have really different styles which is helpful to understand that there isn’t just one path you have to follow in order to be successful with women. Congruency is key. I think I literally approached every kind of woman out there including a middle eastern mother of two who had a sister in California and was shopping with her husband. Thanks Ben, next time I’ll ask if she needs a baby sitter for her kids.
I don’t recommend the program if you are unwilling to approach women or unwilling to have what you’re doing wrong pointed out. I appreciated the honesty and see how much work I have ahead of me, however I’m also really excited because of the results I saw in the field. I just hope to be able to replicate them and improve my inner game (check out practical pickups latest podcast). I have never really approached a woman cold before and that night and next day I think I got 8 or 9 numbers and a make-out at the last club. By the end of the last day I was exhausted; these guys make you work. What was awesome about the night is that I started the conversations. These guys didn’t come in and warm them up for me; I came in alone and worked it from there. I got demonstrations when I was lost and needed some guidance, and got some experience (what not to do) winging.
On a lighter note, the event was a ton of fun. One of the reasons these guys can pick up chicks is because they are fun to be around. Practicing the pick up lines on the dudes was hilarious and there were plenty of “that’s what she said” jokes. I think Mark’s reactions to my pick up lines were right on. When I said something weird he had the exact same reaction girls had at the club haha. For example, saying “hey I’ve been watching you from across the room and I had to come over and say hi” isn’t a good pick up line as I found out from Mark and later a group of three girls. I got the exact same reaction from mark as I got from the girls; No doubt he’s got experience. Getting blown out by girls at the club weren’t painful because we could laugh about it and then have what we did wrong broken down and could make adjustments.
During day, walking around with Mickey was the bomb diggs. I opened a couple of women just for fun “Hey you look wicked fuckin hawt! Can I getcha numba!?” But in the serious sets I got some great advice. I was like a deer in the headlights with a few interactions but just stayed in until I either got her number or the girl walked away/told me to leave/had a husband/boyfriend. After each interaction, Mickey told me how to improve my body language, tone, and wording and made it make sense.
On the second day we went to Saks and Mark critiqued our fashion and gave us advice. The advice was over my head since I know nothing about fashion, but it was great to see how making a few small changes can really improve your attractiveness
- George, Boston
[Note: George went on to lose his virginity three weeks later!]
Practical Pickup Workshop, April 2008
“Fifteen minutes into the lesson, he basically broke down every mental issue I had into a science.”
Like the others in my group, I never had a dating coach before. Since getting into this stuff in October of last year, I have been soaking up as much information as my head could possibly hold — but maybe it was too much. I’ve found that trying to take too much information from too many sources can actually set you further back from where you started and make you crave even more conflicting information as a result.
And, although I’ve had early success with women since working on my dating life, I knew I needed some sort of professional help with my game. I was willing to talk to any girl that walked by right from the start, but if I can’t consistently hook them into intriguing conversations then none of this is really doing myself any good. I had the will, which Mark tells me is 95% of the problem with most new students, but I needed someone to show me the way — I needed something practical.
As we enter our seminar room, we start off with introductions of both the instructors (Mark, Ben and Mickey) and then the students.
Mark begins with his segment on Inner Game. This guy is fucking solid inside-out. Fifteen minutes into the lesson, he basically broke down every mental issue I had into a science. The fact that I was able to understand what I was feeling was already making me feel better. He showed us that true Inner Game doesn’t come from the validation others give us, it comes from your own self-validation from within. Furthermore, he explained how getting into “state,” while it may give you a nice initial boost early on in your night might be nice, it generally isn’t something you can sustain throughout the entire night. Inner Game and being in the moment comes from repetition and practice — you can’t just be in “state” by thinking you’re the party because it’s difficult to convince yourself into fully believing such an abstract concept like that. He capped off his segment with exercises and some great books for us to further expand on improving our Inner Game.
Next comes Ben, who probably overcomes every stereotype you could possibly place on someone. His talk was centered on body language, tonality and volume of voice, and meeting women at night. We did a few body language and voice exercises that were critiqued by the instructors, which allowed us to see and make note of what we need to improve on. He showed us how we can actually move through thick crowds by slowing our pace and using our shoulders in a confident way. We studied the pictures of some iconic pop-culture figures for which we used to model our own stances and body language.
The last discussion of the day, was Mickey’s on day game, in which we learned important concepts such as Grounding and building Comfort, so as to not creep out the girl. Doc is probably a master at building Comfort. His philosophies and routines on the subject allowed us to see the importance in it.
A couple hours after the discussions were over, my fellow students and I grab dinner then meet up with Mark and Ben at the first venue of the night. I was able to get us all in for free and cut the line because I knew the manager of the place (go me).
The women were ridiculously abundant thanks to a few bachelorette parties and the message from the instructors was clear: “No one here is too good to not talk to these girls. Talk to everything.”
For me, my instruction was a bit different since I don’t have trouble opening. I was going for quality interactions as opposed to quantity, meaning I was to get comfortable with staying talking longer.
I talked to the first few women with one of Ben’s, “You are too fucking adorable” opener. Thewomen, although receptive, later told Mark I could’ve just gone in with something much simpler than that. He pulled me aside and explained to me how to adjust my delivery to make it work better.
My new opener was simple and effective: “Hey, guys, what’s up? I’m X.” The conversations hooked much easier with this and allowed me to transition into other topics more efficiently.
Five hours and who knows how many women later, I was spent and it was time to go home… more than satisfied. The fact that I now have a solid foundation to work from, puts me at ease since I now know that I can pinpoint my mistakes and make note of them so much easier. Since I worked with Mark more for the majority of the night, he was also able to point out two sticking points I never knew I had and can work on plowing through now. Just having him there as a pair of eyes worked wonders for me over the course of the night.
The next day was Mickey’s in field Day Game portion. The opener he told us to use was simple, genuine and effective.
My first conversation actually went really well, she seemed into me, until…
Me: “So, what do you do when you’re not here?”
Her: “Usually hang out with my husband, who’s right behind you.”
HAHA! I politely eject and Ben pulls me aside, telling me I did everything right and to keep plowing through. I was actually impressed at how easily she hooked when her husband was right there for most of the time. (They were a young couple.)
There weren’t a lot of women, but I managed to # close two, one of which was ecstatic I came over and talked to her in the middle of H&M using Mickey’s line.
We get back and finish off the workshop with Mickey’s ideas on dates and phone calls, which gave me a lot of perspective and ideas that were, well… practical. We debriefed afterwards and I come home feeling exhausted, but satisfied in how I spent my money.
The next day at work on set was unbelievable. I was on such a high from the workshop that people from both the cast and crew took notice of me when I didn’t even think it was possible before. They were all going out of their way to say hi to me and I was definitely getting more attention from the women I work with.
My only regret was not getting their phone numbers, which I know I could’ve easily done. I know the mistake I made and it won’t happen again.
So, on the whole, the program was an awesome experience. I now know I have a solid foundation to work from for my outer game and am practicing the exercises and reading the books suggested for Inner Game as well in order to continue on with my journey to success with women.
- “Chamelon,” Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, April 2008
“I was out of my comfort zone, but he pushed me into interactions when I didn’t want to, but at the end of the day I’m glad I did it.”
I took the Practical Pickup because I need a jolt in my dating life. Almost all the stuff I did in the past couple of months with women had been mediocre at best.
I don’t know how bad I really am. I wanted someone who could give me an honest feedback and pinpoint what I can improve in field. I got more than I bargained for…The honest feedback of me was tough, but it is what it is and I’m going to work on it. The Practical Pickup Workshop definitely doesn’t teach you gimmicks on getting phone numbers like a sport. It just teaches you practical social skills that you can implement on your daily lives. It was interesting to listen to their thoughts.
What I learned over the weekend was creating attraction, builting good solid comfort within my conversations. All the instructor gave us a lot of attention and were very helpful when needed.
Ben:
I had met Ben before the program. I knew how fluid he was when I saw him talking to a girl at the mall. I was looking forward to having him as my instructor. He pushed me into a lot situations. A lot of the women, I wouldn’t have approached if I was by myself, or with my friends. I was out of my comfort zone, but he pushed me into interactions when I didn’t want to, but at the end of the day I’m glad I did it. He showed us how to walk up to a woman and be more “Alpha” and what not to do. He did the seminar portion of the workshop. Explaining body language, same night lays, dealing with other guys, Vocal Projection, etc. It was helpful when we did the role playing exercise.
Mickey:
I met him at a local Boston meeting back in January. I was looking forward to see what he got to offer. He gave some great ideas on my conversation and helped teach me to build comfort and things for me to talk about. His presentation was detailed and very knowledgeable on his stuff. I thought he’s going to repeat some of the same stuff he made at the meetings, but it was totally diffrent. His phone game and dating ideas are solid.
Mark:
I didn’t really vibe with him much at the meetings before. But I realized at the workshop that he’s a good guy. He gave a good presentation on inner game. During the night game aspect, he was standing next to some of my conversations and listening in. He gave me a lot of feedback on mistakes that I didn’t realize I made. I probably do realize it, but It was reassuring for me when he say it. When I gave up, he picked me up and told me to approach. I can’t wait to use my pickup line I developed with him, that’s like my secret weapon.
Our group of guys was fun to be around. The energy around us was amazing! One of the guys (you know who you are), got approached by a female rapper. Yes! A female rapper that opened for lil wayne (famous rapper). She say something like, “you’re sexy” to him. He got her number. I hope he takes her to the candy shop.
Towards the end of the day. Mark talked about fashion. He definitly knows his stuff, anybody needs a makeover should definitly contact him. In the fashion world perception is important, how you dress is how people are going to perceive you. I know some people going to say it’s not that important, but it sure helps. He definitly can emphasize it more.
- Sy, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, March 2008
“Within an hour I had five phone numbers. I was so dizzy with this success that I had actually forgotten their names! … My whole view of dating has changed.”
Short Version: Wow!
Long Version: I attended the Practical Pickup workshop last weekend. It was an amazing experience. I had gone out with experienced guys before, who had offered comments on my game – but I had never worked with a proper dating coach. It has changed my life for the better. And I would recommend it to anyone.
The Practical Pickup team (Micky, Ben and Mark) did an excellent job. The whole experience was exhausting for all involved and exhilarating for the five students. It has to be said that the three instructors put in a huge amount of time. They were with us basically from noon on Saturday till 4am Sunday morning and from noon on Sunday to 11pm. If nothing else, that is an impressive level of dedication. In addition, there was a pupil-teacher ration of almost 1:1. Can’t really do better than that.
The were 4 basic parts to the weekend. There was a seminar on Saturday afternoon, night game out at venues on Saturday evening, day game Sunday afternoon followed by fashion shopping and phone/dates seminar that evening.
The first part of the experience was the “theory” seminar. I put theory in quotes because, as the name “practical pickup” suggests, they were anxious to emphasize practical methods to help guys get and keep superior women. Thus we didn’t spend hours on evolutionary biology, but got down to the nuts and bolts of their method quickly. To be honest, I had anticipated that this part of the seminar would be the least useful to me. I have read every book and so I “know” it all – I just can’t do it! Nevertheless, it was a useful opportunity for me to ask questions and clear up some of the things I had been confused about.
One thing that did impress me about the seminar was their public speaking skills. Although it was a small group, it is no mean feat to hold any group’s attention for two hours. All of them spoke clearly and more importantly all of them spoke in a structured framework i.e. they didn’t ramble but spoke to a clear agenda and purpose. This may not be surprising to anyone who knows the guys. But we have all been to enough bad lectures in school or college to know that it isn’t automatic.
After the seminar we adjourned for a break and met up at a bar for in field tuition. This was the part of the program that I was most looking forward to. I wasn’t disappointed. All 3 of the instructors offered very valuable comments on the interactions I had. Ben was able to point out that I was leaning in too much. I stopped that. In another I was playing with the straw in my drink – a nervous tick that I was able to eliminate. This level of detailed comments greatly improved my game. I ended the night with the number of the most beautiful woman I have ever talked to! So there are no complaints there.
One interesting thing happened during the night. It was as if a switch flipped in my brain. Usually when I am out, I spend a lot of time in my head. I am sure many guys have similar experiences. I spend time day dreaming about work, friends, sports, whatever — anything other than the matter at hand. That didn’t happen during the program. I spent the entire time “in the moment”. I can’t be certain that this was because of the workshop. But it seems likely that the presence of the other instructors sort of forced all the extraneous stuff out of my head. In short, I think that on Saturday 15th of March 2008, at the tender age of 37, I finally learnt how to have fun! That alone is worth the price.
One little anecdote from the night: I was talking to some girl when out of the corner of my eye I see Mark start to talk to another girl. No surprise there. Then only 30 seconds later, I catch a glimpse of him making out with her!! Within a few minutes Ben comes along and says that we are going to move to another venue. So we leave. It is clear that it super on with Mark and the the girl he was tongue-tied with. But he leaves too. He had caught a big juicy fish – but he threw it back. No greater sign of dedication to the cause is possible…
On Sunday, we met at the mall for day game. Now Saturday night had been good but Sunday was to blow my mind. I had come to the camp prepared to push out of my comfort zone. But I wasn’t really looking forward to the day game – especially as I knew the guys advocated going direct during the day. Not my scene. And to be honest, I probably wouldn’t have done anything if they hadn’t really pushed. In a way, one of the biggest advantages of a dating coach is that the embarrassment of wussing out and not opening in front of the instructor, is greater than the anxiety to approach a woman.
Ben, showing no mercy, pushed me in to my conversation, right there in the food court. The rest went off. To my utter surprise (and with the aid of subtle hint from Ben to end it and get the number) I got her number. Then I opened another woman and got her number. Then another. And another. Within an hour I had five phone numbers. I was so dizzy with this success that I had actually forgotten the names of some of the earlier numbers! I have been calling and texting 3 of those girls since and I am not sure which is which! (Does anybody have advice on how keep track of multiple numbers? Some sort of spreadsheet?)
Each conversation that I was in was observed (and overheard) by one of the instructors. All were able to give specific comments on what I did right and what I did wrong. I could then apply this the next conversation. So my game improved exponentially. By the time of the last few conversations, the women were toast!
I changed my game and tried to go indirect or get insta-dates and generally mess with the method again with the instant feedback of the various instructors. I didnt get any phone numbers this way but I didn’t care. My whole view of dating has changed. I now knew that I could go direct and get numbers during the day.
After the day game, we had a very useful session on fashion in the Pru. I have basically zero fashion sense. I simply wear what other people tell me looks good. So this session was pretty important for me and I took it all on board.
After the fashion session, we got some dinner and went back to the seminar room for Mickey’s session on phone game. For me, this was critical. In the past I have often gotten numbers to see them evaporate before my eyes. I am using the method now, with the various numbers I got on Sunday. It seems to be working. It is certainly working better than my previous method.
The final stage of the program was the individual feedback. Each of the three instructors offered their thoughts on each student’s game. Each offered pointers for the future. This was very useful and I certainly know exactly what I have to work on next. The seminar ended with all of the instructor’s emphasizing that they would be available to answer questions via email or the phone on an on-going basis.
Finally 5 exhausted but exhilarated students made their way home at 11pm.
- Vincent, Dublin, Ireland
Practical Pickup Workshop, March 2008
“I am still exhausted from a weekend that has deeply changed my perceptions of what is possible with women.”
Camp isn’t just for kids anymore…
It’s Monday night and I am still exhausted from a weekend that has deeply changed my perceptions of what is possible with women.
Actually, that was what I wanted most from the Practical Pickup team; to expand my perceptions to include their legendary success stories as a real possibility for me.
No small order.
And yet, these guys delivered!
The Practical Pickup workshop learning curve was like a telephone pole — straight up and down, and straight through the fucking roof!
Although I had tried only ONE cold approach before (you can guess how it went), after one weekend with this team I now have four hot girls’ numbers in my phone, and a string of experiences that I’m catching myself smiling about as I write this.
A little preface: the word “newbie” pretty much sums up my game (lack_of) skill when I arrived at the bootcamp Saturday morning. I’d read some books, listened to a dating advice CD, and attended one local meeting - where a guy was kind enough to take me under his wing and, after 45 minutes of chatting, help me to say something to a woman who worked at Saks that wasn’t related to clothing. I was terrified, with near-paralyzing approach anxiety.
Flash forward to six weeks later at the workshop.
The deluge of information was impressive. I kind of jokingly commented that the coursework was so dense with material and information that part of my conscious mind had to shut down its filters for me to allow it all in. It was like sipping water from a firehouse (yeah, yeah, Mickey - that’s what she said. lol).
The volume of information had an almost dizzying effect.
And the in-class exercises, where we developed unique individual openers, conversational threads, touching techniques, and just how to be with a woman, was more than a primer for the night’s festivities – this was a gateway drug. They gave us a taste, and then they set us loose on the town.
Mark explained that my goal would be straightforward enough: since I was so new, my target was 10 cold approaches. Daunting, but fair.
I’d started a few, and was plowing along with no real success, but then something changed. It took me a minute to figure out what, exactly. But then I realized what was happening…
As I’m doing my thing, the instructors were keeping a close watch, and after every interaction their laser-focused feedback made incremental improvements that brought near-immediate results.
And all of a sudden, I’m opening women and chatting away.
On the second hour in, after opening one an asian woman, SHE PULLED ME into the center of her three girlfriend circle. Holy fuck. It was nice.
The night continued on this (awesome, amazing, glorious, somebody_stop_me) trajectory, growing and expanding, until finally culminating when Ben sent me in to approach this hot little blonde (straight from Ireland - Thank You Ben!) sitting in a booth all alone.
Well, she WAS alone, at first.
Then her friend sat down. Befriended. Then a male “friend” sat beside me. Same. Then another guy. Before I knew it, I was running this the show with four people, and I was the center of fun. Man, it was awesome. And I left with her number! A really cool bunch of folks.
As we were about to leave, I spotted a girl who’d given me some eye contact AI earlier, but who’d been sitting at the bar with some dude chewing her ear off all night. I wasn’t sure of what to do, but I knew I had to do something to meet her. A few moments before the group headed out, I asked Mark for his advice (man, that dude is cool). A few encouraging words later, and it was on…
I wrote my name and number on a napkin, and headed for the door. In one motion and without stopping I put my right hand on the shoulder between her and the dude, whispered into her left, unoccupied ear that she should call me, and passed her the napkin. As I continued for the door I heard her say that it was nice meeting me - even though she didn’t. Ha!
The following day was led by Mickey as we ventured into his world of day game and the direct opener. Holy s-h-i-t! Who knew that speaking from the heart with direct intent and confidence could have such an amazing impact on women? Mickey, of course.
Right out of the gate, using exactly what Mickey had described just a few short hours before, I did my first ever direct approach – and got her number in minutes. I must have looked like a grinning fool for most of the day after that (even though I got more numbers) because my ear-to-ear smile stayed on for so long that my face hurt by the time we got back to the debrief.
The team wrapped up the day with individual one-on-ones to discuss where they thought we could improve, and to help each of us create a strategy for improvement during the weeks and months to come.
These guys put out in a big way. I would highly recommend this program to anyone, and would especially recommend it to the newcomer who is as curious (and confused) by this incredible world of pickup as me.
Practical Pickup will not disappoint.
Oh, yeah, and on Saturday night I saw Mark start tongue-wrestling a SMOKING HOT blonde within twenty seconds of seeing her using less than a dozen words.
Perceptions expanded? Check. I told him that he is my new personal God.
- JT, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, March 2008
“A week after the workshop, I definitely notice an improvement in my ability to meet and talk to women.”
My background:
I am not bad with women. The last six to eight months have been an interesting journey for me in working on my inner game and beliefs. My approach anxiety is gone, and I can approach anyone anytime anywhere. My sticking points were leaving conversations too soon because I ran out of things to say, and not turning any of the initial attraction I was generating into anything more.
Instructors were Mickey, Ben and Mark. The best presenter of the group was Mickey. He instructed us on various topics like Day Game, phone game, and plowing. There were a few exercises that were certainly valuable. They included finding interesting things to talk about, something that I definitely needed. This of course led to the part of the workshop that was the most valuable, the infield coaching.
The coach I probably worked with the most was Mark. He’s about my height and although he’s younger, he has a maturity well beyond his years. My instruction was simple; don’t leave the conversation until the woman or an instructor tells you to. I think I certainly bored the living hell out of some of the girls, who at times were giving me body language that it was time to go. But as Ben explained, “plowing through rough patches helps you grow”. This led to the best conversation of the night at a hotel bar. There were two women, a blonde and a teacher. It’s the best interactions that you don’t even remember how you come in, or what say, really. The conversations are just so natural and flow that it just seems to work. With these women, I was able to successfully bring in a wing, and talk one on one with the teacher. I definitely feel like I improved throughout the night and the coaching was certainly valuable.
The next day brought day-game. I was once again given specific things to work on. Lower my energy, and begin to build comfort. Once again with the help of coaches I was able to improve throughout the day.
A week after the workshop, I definitely notice an improvement in my ability to meet and talk to women. I’m getting better at building comfort and am starting to get phone numbers. I also liked that the instructors have told us that they aren’t looking for clients but rather long-term relationships with their students. One of the students has told me that he has already exchanged several e-mails with Mark on inner game.
It should be obvious from the name, practical pickup is more “practical”. Instead of running exercises looking in the mirror and saying what we saw like I did in other programs, I got to listen to tips from Mickey about how to set up a date on the spot. Instead of being taken to lunch on Sunday as I was with another program, I got practical experience at the a real location.
The measure of any workshop can’t be measured by how you feel a week after. It’s measured months or years after its ended. Practical Pickup was an excellent workshop at a very reasonable price.
- BK, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, March 2008
“I lost some of my attachment to worrying about what people think of me.”
Instructors/Coaches:
Ben: Dating coach who’s been hitting on women since the age of 4. The man is living proof that having game has everything to do with having the right mindset.
Mark: You would think he’s not even trying when he’s out at a club. He has a great, playful attitude and great stories.
Mickey: the youngest of the 3 Instructors, and his Day game is unrivaled. His mastery in comfort was helpful during in-field sessions.
All were warm “alpha male” guys who were genuinely invested in the success of every student.
The instructors spent the night game and day game tutoring and helping you with your interactions. Each instructor/Coach gave good critical reviews of the students. All were masterful in their own abilities with women.
Special Props to 2 Instuctors:
Mark who, as if by design, meets an hot girl in Vox and starts making out with her within 30 seconds.
Ben who, during day game, opens the hottest girl I’ve seen in months, while all us students were watching, and email/facebook closes her.
Thank you for blowing my reality!
Material:
The material was very good. For me, much was review and much was new. Learning simple and proven techniques was useful. There was a lot of information to digest but it was great!
In-Field: Day Game and Night Game
The In-field time was the most valuable. The 2:1 student ratio was awesome, you got a lot personal attention. Being coached after each interaction was awesome and super insightful. I lost some of my attachment to worrying about what people think of me.
Summary:
I got a ton of useful information. The thing of most value was the In-field time. These guys are very good at what they’re doing!
It’s clear that it’s all about your mindsets and that you need to get out there to really see how this stuff works. Having a wing (a friend talking to them with you) was super useful, as it puts you in state to fuckin’ knock thse girls socks off…
I’ll be going out with Mark for 1-on-1 sessions, and I’ll report back on how that goes….
About me:
I’ve been reading dating advice for the past year but have sat on my ass. I signed up to get my ass out there, and I did.
I Got several numbers/emails over the weekend, but, as a newbie, I still have a bit to overcome.
-Gabe, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, February 2008
“They really raise your skills with women to another level no matter what level you are at currently.”
I recently signed up for Practical Pickup’s workshop and I will start off by saying that I highly recommend them to anyone looking to really raise your skills with women to another level no matter what level you are at currently.
I have been doing a lot of reading and now have nothing left to read. I have been going out alone but not making much progress. When I got this opportunity, I made the investment in myself because the value was incredible and the instructors were people I already knew were credible based on having met most of them. I will now be able to go out and critique my own game infinitely better than I could have in the past.
The instructors:
Ben: This guy is either closing or opening. He has a very strong frame and is the perfect example of how limiting beliefs are completely an internal issue. He was relentless in pushing me into conversations when he was with me but I didn’t work as much with him as I did other people.
Mickey: Even though he’s about half my age he was probably the main instructor I wanted to work with. He has a very similar sense of humor and perception of the world that I do. He’s well known for his unbelievable day game and I was excited to get paired up with him for the day game in-field session. He didn’t let me down. He helped me with clerks and also with stating direct interest (which I had never used before). After watching my conversations he was able to tell me what to change and what I did right.
Mark: He has a natural presence. In fact, if he didn’t tell us stories of his past failures I’d have pegged him as natural at this. He was really good at starting interactions in night game and then having students come in and he’d roll out. I ran some practice material with him that really helped me transition to get myself deeper into conversations. I’m sure if I had spent more time with him it would have been very insightful.
There are a lot of things that are true of all the people I worked with. They are all very genuine people. They all actually care about your success. Different students got different things based on their needs. Each of them are great speakers and motivators who keep you interested in what they have to say.The instructors kept saying all weekend how they were so different but in the end, they weren’t. They all had their own variations on their game but they all run game with the exact same nucleus.
The Material:
Practical Pickup is based completely on how to take all the great things about yourself and blend them with the great things about the woman and get them together to make something even greater. If you are sick of trying to remember stupid “routines” or trick or anything that isn’t who you are at heart you have an alternative.
We did exercises on body language, eye contact, tonality and moving women. Frames were another topic that were covered but also came up repeatedly throughout the workshop. The quantity of material was far too much to remember and taking notes is imperative.
They were all willing to do demonstrations without hesitation but made sure that the focus quickly shifted back to the students.
In-field:
This was by far the most valuable part of the boot camp. That is not to say that the seminar material wasn’t great it is more like saying the material was pure gold but the in-field was platinum with embedded diamonds. By the end of the in-field portion of the workshop I had manged to run an incredibly tight set. One I know I could run again and again while being 100% genuine and honest. I have often seen many people with a lot of questions about day game and how there is not a lot of material on it but they broke down day game and made it very simple.
Dates:
They gave some great advice one how to turn phone numbers into dates. Various text message ideas and phone game ideas that make sense including some killer messages to send/leave. There was also a lot of insightful ideas on date logistics including setting up dates, things to do in the date to build attraction and post date tactics to close at the end of the night.
Summary:
The best things I can say about this boot camp was that it was fun. It was non-stop. From the minute it started until the minute it ended I was learning something. The instructors are all very genuine people. The Practical Pickup team really wants to help people achieve their personal goals and realize that while pickup is the initial goal that those who commit to the life style end up becoming better people in many aspects of their lives. Books and videos are a great way to get you to improve and I was skeptical about the use of a real dating coach but they have turned the world’s biggest cynic to a total believer.
- J, Boston
Practical Pickup Workshop, February 2008
“The skills I learned extend much further than the realm of pickup, as I’ve been able to apply much of it in everyday interactions, as well.”
Practical Pickup’s Boston Workshop was amazing! The weekend was truly a completely life-changing experience. A week before the bootcamp, my friend signed me up as a gift, so I really didn’t expect much going in: maybe a few lines, a few clever stories. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The weekend was literally two days of non-stop learning. I left with a new sense of confidence, a new understanding of women, and a huge improvement on my game.
Before the program, I had read several print materials and various forums; but I had never gone out to pick up women. However, after hearing the Practical Pickup guys’ stories and seeing them in field, I realized that there was much for me to learn.
Now, less than a week after the workshop, I’ve already seen striking results. I’ve been approaching strangers with no hesitation, hooking into conversations with ease, and easily navigating conversations to talk about myself and the girl I’m speaking to. The skills I learned extend much further than the realm of pickup, as I’ve been able to apply much of it in everyday interactions, as well. Furthermore, I’ve developed my understanding of the powerful concept of framing and have begun to apply the idea to many of my conversations.
From a professional standpoint, I was extremely impressed with how prepared the instructors were and how well they presented their material. All three instructors were experienced 1-on-1 coaches, but this was their first joint workshop. The three did an excellent job in transitioning to the new format; I was unable to tell it was their first time.
The seminar was long and grueling, but the information was comprehensive, insightful, and very practical. It comprised of 4 sections: night game, day game, inner game, and follow-up game (phone, text, day 2, LMR). Each section was further divided into organized topics that made the concepts easy to grasp and to internalize. The instructors clearly communicated the material and even adjusted the seminar topics to address the personal needs of each student.
In particular, I loved the section on non-verbal communication. Not only did they teach us how to display good body language, but also how to use it to our advantage and use it effectively. The segment on eye contact was also very informative. Before the seminar, I never would have thought that eye contact could have such powerful impact on an interaction.
This program stood out from all the others I’ve looked into because of its focus on pure practicality. The three instructors (Ben, Mickey and Mark) all have and teach a fluid and natural style of pickup. Though they did offer some fresh new lines, they emphasized teaching the underlying mechanisms behind the lines and why they worked. After learning the foundations for those routines, it became much easier for me to streamline my conversations and formulate genuine high-impact stories from my past experiences and future ambitions.
During the weekend, we put our knowledge to the test for both night-game and day-game. The instructors and fellow students were all very supportive in field, and helped to relieve much of the anxiety I had about approaching. After each interactoin, I had the opportunity to get immediate feedback from the coaches about what I did well and where I could have improved. The instructors pushed the students to their capacity, leaving little down-time in between girls. I was comforted by the feeling that the instructors really seemed invested in us and wanted us to improve.
The instructors were willing to help us in every any way we asked. Because I had found it extremely useful, I had asked for several “demonstration sets” throughout the in-field portion. Impressively, each time the instructors immediately approached a nearby girl with no hesitation and almost always were able to hook them into conversation. After seeing them approach with confidence, I have since felt much more comfortable in my own approach.
In conclusion, I highly recommend Practical Pickup’s Workshop to anyone who is interested in developing tight game. The workshop requires no prior knowledge, so even absolute beginners can definitely attend. The only requirement is that you go with an open mind and the willingness to put yourself out there. I did this, and the results were phenomenal. The price of the bootcamp pales in comparison to the value of what I’ve taken away.
- “Solace,” Washington, D.C.
One on One with Mark, December 2007
I didn’t really interact with Mark until three or four months after joining the Boston community, but I had already learned a lot from him. He was one of the most active posters on some boards, eager to help the newer guys with questions. I noticed right away that he had a knack for understanding almost any situation and providing the correct explanation, often in just a few sentences. Mark has a thorough theoretical and practical knowledge of pick-up, and articulates this knowledge well.
I had made a lot of progress in my first few months going out regularly, and had just had my best weekend ever in late August. I got five numbers that weekend, a few of which required very little effort. I enjoyed the progress I was making, and after the weekend I noticed that one of those numbers held more meaning to me than the others. I continued to follow up with one girl, and she agreed to drive an hour and a half to meet up with me … but then things mysteriously fell apart. Still quite susceptible to getting attached to one girl quickly, I took this setback really hard. I had no answers – often in this journey, failure is not your enemy; uncertainty and limbo are. So one night, struggling with deciphering what went wrong, I reached out to Mark and asked for his advice. I wrote a detailed and lengthy post about the interaction, and Mark took some time to give me advice. We had never talked before, but he gave his all in his advice to me, and asked for nothing in return. mark genuinely believes in giving value and helping people.
A week or two later, Mark spoke in front of the entire Boston group about frame control and inner game. He took one of the most complex topics in pick-up and broke it down into its simplest elements. And, he taught by doing … he embodied calm confidence in a challenging situation and handled everything thrown his way with humor and ease. Everyone I spoke to afterwards agreed with my assessment of the talk – that it was extremely helpful and inspiring. Mark has a knack for breaking down complex pick-up topics to their simplest elements.
A few weeks later, I finally had an opportunity to get out in field with Mark. I had been spinning my wheels for weeks and looked forward to this opportunity for a breakthrough, and I was curious to see how Mark ran game up close. I talked to some women shortly after we entered the venue, and in typical fashion, it seemed to hook but fizzled after a few minutes. Mark pointed out that I wasn’t hooking powerfully enough and I lacked a strong presence and vibe while opening. He mentioned I did many things well, but because of those subtle problems, I was fighting an uphill battle in all my interactions. We talked to some women together, and I observed Mark in action. He demonstrated how natural he is, and what he meant by a powerful vibe when opening.. In just a few minutes he had two different girls attracted – one took HIS number 10 minutes into the interaction before leaving, and he was dancing and had his hands all over the other about 5 minutes later. He kept observing throughout the night, and motioned me outside where he offered his thoughts and advice in detail – a helpful recap during the hustle and bustle of a night out. The very next week, while out in Providence, I used the lessons learned to get a girl’s number in 5 minutes, and invite her to a party I was throwing in Boston, which she happily showed up to. Mark can quickly determine your sticking points and offer the path of quickest improvement in-field, making your night the priority. Oh yeah, and he walks the walk.
Since then, Mark has continued to be my dating coach as I work on my dating life. We’ve discussed complex inner game issues, and he’s been able to decipher what happened in interactions I’ve had where no one else had any answers.
In closing, Mark has been an invaluable source of knowledge and inspiration in my personal improvement. I can’t think of a better coach or resource.
“Vitalogy”, Boston
One on One with Mark, March 2008
“So I just finished my one on one with Mark. It was a really cool experience to say the least. I have been doing this pick up thing now for a few months and consider myself to be a little more than a newbie now. We first met up at a local bar and talked for a little more than an hour about some theory, goals and life in general. When I was talking with Mark it really didn’t feel like he was a teacher it felt like I was talking to one of my friends, the guy is really chill and easy to work with. After talking we started to talk to girls, the first one started off really weird. Mark actually bombed the opener so bad that he just gave up and said “Hi, my name’s Mark” I thought it went horribly but this guy is so good that it didn’t matter at all, after a minute he had his girl hooked like crazy and all over him. This really made me realize that it doesn’t matter what you open with at all. We went through the rest of the night talking to girls and getting some phone numbers. Entropy’s game is so natural it doesn’t seem like he’s doing pick up, everything just flows so well. That is probably the biggest thing that I picked up that night, pick up doesn’t have to be about lines and routines. In fact, it should be natural and congruent to who you are. Now knowing this I’m really going to work on making my style more like that. I’m slowly but surely going to ween myself off of the liness. In the end Mark is really good at this and is also really good at teaching. I never felt like he was above me, it felt like we were peers and he was just helping me out. After our one on one I now feel inspired again and thanks to Mark I have a game plan and goals to work on in the future. I’ve been coached by guys like Jeffy and Fader, and Mark is every bit as good at what he does. I enjoyed the one on one and would definitely recommend it to anyone that is thinking about improving their game and life.”
-Ian, Boston
One on One Review with Mickey, July 2008
Let me begin by saying that I had sex with the hostess at [Ed note: omitted] thanks in large part to the coaching I got. She is the second girl ever that I have had sexual relations with and I probably put about 3 hours in of working towards the sack. In ode, here’s my review of the coacking session with Mickey:
The 1-1 with Mickey was money well spent. I’ve been in a two week slump where I haven’t gone out because I wasn’t ‘in-state’. During the 1-1 I was totally not ‘in-state’ because that morning I got chewed out by my brother and I was exhausted. Unfortunately, I usually feel like I’ve been mind-fucked which is expected since I’m an engineering student. What I learned is that state is over rated. Some of the intereactions I had were pretty shitty, but some went pretty well and I appreciate that Mickey gave me honest feedback regardless of how things went. Some conversations were far from fantastic and he didn’t try and bullshit me; when they were awful, they were awful, but when they were good they were good (as always, there was room for improvement and I still got feedback). I haven’t had a ton of instruction, but I feel like a lot of instructors will artificially pump you up which is good for the moment, however the next day you still suck at life. Personally, I don’t want an instructor who will tell me things just to make me feel good about myself, or an instructor who will tear me apart. The criticisms were constructive, helpful, and honest.
I’ve heard some guys talk about when they get blown out and they totally blame the girl for the it because they don’t feel like there’s any way she could have wanted to reject them; so they delude themselves into thinking that there must be something wrong with her. Sometimes this might be the case, but quite often it isn’t and the 1-1 was extremely helpful in pointing out what I was doing wrong in the interactions. When things went shitty, Mickey could immediately point out what I was doing wrong and would give me feedback that would make sense. He didn’t BS me into thinking that she was just being irrational or something. Sometimes the girls did act weird and he would say so. Sometimes I would act weird and he would show me how to correct it.
Ultimately, a person isn’t always going to be there to push. Mickey will push….hehe…but he made me realize that he’s not going to be there to tell me to approach and push the interaction; that’s up to me, and I don’t want to have to rely on someone else to have to be there all the time. We talked about setting reasonable goals, like 5 direct approaches a day and to focus on what’s in front of you.
The demo-sets I got were great and it was the first time I could actually see and hear the interaction. The first two girls during the day that I talked to ended poorly when both people thought that I was dared to come and talk to them. After seeing Mickey talk to a girl it helped a lot in order to just reinforce the fact that cold approaching women is not a bad thing which I have been socially conditioned to think. When done correctly, girls are flattered even if they have a boyfriend whose 15 feet away that you didn’t notice, and it was awesome to see Mickey run his magic.
I feel like anyone who is having some trouble with day game can benefit from a 1-1 with Mickey. A lot of my close friends should take a 1-1, but are still held back with their limiting beliefs about talking to girls they don’t know, which is completely retarded, and when they wake up I am definitely going to give them Mickey’s name. Considering how expensive some workshops can be, the program or 1-1 is an awesome deal. I’m glad I ran into Mickey now verses a few years from now when the cost of a 1-1 will be a lot higher. My suggestion is that someone struggling now should take advantage of this great deal. The hardest thing for me to do was to admit that I needed help, and I think that Mickey is a great person to help because he has been there before, taken a bootcamp and understands the frustrations that guys go through with not getting ass.
- Brahmin, Boston
One on One with Mickey, May 2008
So I took a one-on-one day game in field with Mickey in Boston.
Prior to this, I estimate I talked to over 1,500 girls and only got two lays. I was so pissed off with that hit rate that id got to the stage where i cudnt even motivate myself to talk to women in daylight.
Watching Mickey work his magic in a bookstore was worth the money alone, he talked to two girls, both hooked extremely hard, + i know he fucked one of the girls + got a date with the other one.
He teaches how to vibe naturally with the girl, have them hang on every word and how to make the interaction solid.
He also single handedly cured my fear of phone game - this use to terrify me. Now i look forward to it because done well it’s more efficient than 5 days of text banter.
2nd girl i spoke when i got back to Ca was 11yrs my junior, retardedly hot 18yr old runner, i vibed with her the way Mickey showed me, rang her 2 days later + got the date, was so much easier than i thought. ok, so i fucked up with escalation on the day 2, but the realization that day game can be efficient and understanding what makes a day interaction “solid” was the main thing to take away from this.
- “Invictus,” Chicago
One on One with Mickey, April 2008
I was worried about meeting a dating coach. I was so unsure of what he’d be like but Mickey was different, he’s friendly, funny as shit, and charismatic. He’s shorter than average, skinny, and looks young but doesn’t let it hold him back. Mickey and I talked and exchanged numbers and later we met up for lunch and talked theory for hours. He really opened up my eyes to how much more in depth you can take this skill set. He is young so he has really spent a lot of time mastering day game. Not to mention his views on comfort changed the way I game in general. My major sticking point before I met Doc was I could not build an emotional connection with women. Looking back the only time I didn’t build those connections was through layin the pipe! But now its different. He explained how to build emotional connections through stories congruent with my life.
Our in field portion was awesome…I got to do some day game and night game with him watching.
My day game interactions went well. He was able to analyze everything that was going on from a distance and was real smooth with it. I fucked up by not getting her number when she was all over me….I was too busy wondering what he was going to give as feedback, I got off track.
Night game as awesome! It was my first time hitting girls at a bar ever…
While I was talking to girls, I had no idea where Mickey was but he later gave me great feedback on what I did wrong but also as equal importance, what I did correctly. I went back in with his advice Later that girl was grabbing my ass and kissing me in front of all her friends from school. The best part was this girl’s friend came over and said to me “get out of my seat”…Then out of no where, Mickey was like “hey check this out so….” and he babysat the friends for me. Then later on 4 guys across the bar bought a round of shots for the girls we were gaming and Mickey reached for the shot to drink it himself. This guy is fearless! It was so fun to watch him tool all the other guys there!
Mickey is a really down to earth guy and has helped me so much with pick up. He answers all his emails, which is not like many instructors… Do a phone consult with this guy and you’ll know what I mean. He’s the real deal.
One of the best parts about this is he checks up on how I’m doing through text/phone/email and always has an answer to every question I have.
- “Surefire,” Atlanta
