-Cliff (from Cliff's Seminar 2005 in Montreal)

The seduction community is a loose-knit subculture of men who strive for better success with women through self-improvement and a greater understanding of social psychology. It exists as a loose network of websites, discussion forums, newsgroups, email lists, and local clubs (known as lairs) where men share their knowledge and experience with women and receive feedback from other men.

The community's origins date back to 1970 and the publication of Eric Weber's book How to Pick Up Girls, but it did not take shape until the 1994 founding of the alt.seduction.fast newsgroup, which was initially dedicated to the Speed Seduction techniques of Ross Jeffries. This newsgroup was revolutionary in that it was the first public forum where men could candidly discuss their encounters with women and receive feedback from other men. Instead of merely reading about seduction techniques, men could now try them out in the field, post their results to the group, then receive feedback and criticism from other members. Information that did not yield results was discarded by the group, and this vetting process soon revealed a stark contrast between mainstream dating advice and what actually helped group members meet, attract, and seduce women in real life situations.

The problem with mainstream dating materials is they are mostly based on stereotype and cultural norms rather than accurate models of human behavior. Many of these books are written by middle-aged women and men who feel their success as matchmakers and therapists has qualified them to dispense universal dating advice, but their recommendations are almost entirely surface-level generalizations about male-female relations and not based on real-world experience. Another problem is that most women comprehend very little about why they are attracted to certain men, and men who are naturally successful with women often do not understand why this is so. The seduction community provides a peer review of sorts where material is developed and field-tested by thousands of pickup artists all over the world who report their findings back to the group. This kind of process, whereby groups of people use the internet to build a collective body of information, has advanced nearly every field of human endeavor in the last decade - the discipline of seduction is no exception.

The seduction community incorporates a variety of approaches to attracting and bedding the opposite sex - the theories developed on newsgroups eventually coalesced into several different schools of thought, each associated with a different teacher or "guru". Some of the better known "gurus" include Ross Jeffries, David DeAngelo, Mystery, Neil Strauss (Style), Tyler Durden, Juggler, Lance Mason, Badboy, and Zan. While the different approaches to seduction can vary widely in specifics, the core concepts remain the same.

If you have ever gone to a bar or nightclub and observed men, how they act throughout the night, who they talk to and go home with, then you know for a fact that the traditional approach to meeting women does not work very well. A typical self-styled player tends to buy a lot of drinks for women but rarely ever takes them home - he shills out compliments, free booze, and sexual innuendo all night long, but his entire approach is dependent on finding the one drunk horny girl who came to the bar alone and isn't creeped out by him. This is a bad strategy.

Differentiation is key to winning the game of sexual selection. Even more so than money or good looks, a man's ability to demonstrate value and present himself as more interesting than other men determines his level of success with women. For this very reason, members of the community reject the notion that men should attempt to woo women by flattering or spending money on them. Offering to buy a drink for a woman at the bar does very little to differentiate you from the last ten guys who did the same thing, and taking her out to an expensive restaurant will do very little to increase your chances of sleeping with her. These behaviors telegraph and formalize your interest in the woman, ultimately making you less appealing as a potential mate.

Most attractive women constantly receive unsolicited flattery from strangers - they are accustomed to blowing off men who approach them in this way. One of the most powerful tools used by pickup artists is something called a "neg" which is essentially a backhanded compliment. Instead of merely praising a beautiful woman for her elegant fingernails, for example, a pickup artist might ask if they are real. This indicates he is not seeking validation from the woman - while she may take slight offense to this comment, chances are she will be more invested in conversation with him than other men who try to flatter her. Negs are generally used in an interaction to break through a woman's shield, demonstrate value, and subtly undermine her self-esteem, often triggering approval-seeking behavior. Negs are but one of the many social and conversational tools used by pickup artists to gain an advantage over other men.

Most active members of the community work on their "game" by improving their confidence and self-esteem, their social skills and understanding of female psychology. While traditional good looks are not considered important, style, grooming, and physical fitness can have a tremendous impact on a man's success with women. Even more so, having good conversational skills and confidence with approaching women are essential to having great game. Like any other discipline or skill set, learning the art of seduction takes dedication and practice; community members are encouraged to put themselves out there and interact with as many women as possible. A man can learn a great deal from reading about women, but his only means of defeating approach anxiety is to approach them - the reason they call it a "game" is to downplay the significance of any one interaction. A true pickup artist is constantly seeking improvement, so he thinks in terms of temporary setbacks and lessons, not disappointment or rejection.

The seduction community is comprised primarily of men who love women - they are mostly regular guys who were unsatisfied with their level of success with women and found mainstream dating advice to be corny or unhelpful. Members often express, however, that they see the community as a way of improving every aspect of lives and not just with women. The same skills and habits that make a man more attractive to the opposite sex also help him build a more dynamic, enjoyable lifestyle. Men who are naturally successful with women tend to be self-defined and not seek approval from others - they have no need to "mack" on women, coerce them, make false promises, or any other negative behavior associated with "player" types. These "naturals" are genuinely cool people who are fun to be around and make others feel comfortable; they also tend to be more successful in life and business than other men. Community members study and emulate the behavior of naturals not only because they are good with women, but because they are good at life.

Neil Strauss' 2005 New York Times Bestselling memoir The Game and the forthcoming feature film from Columbia Pictures have presented the seduction community with a variety of challenges and opportunities. While some members feel that exposure will ultimately hurt the community as women learn more about what they do, others feel that publicity is a very good thing. Regardless of how individual members feel about it, the community as a whole is in the process of going mainstream and it will bring change in people's life and will most certainly prove to be beneficial to both the men and women of the world.