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Are you a desperate, lonely Don Juannabe? Rejected by countless women? Can't even get your mom to visit your basement apartment? Well, there's one person who'll give you a real phone number (if not a last name). Introducing Ronald, founder of the Seduction Board, a Vancouver school that has tutored about 70 men -- from teens to grandpas -- in the flirting arts since last September.
"After my Level One Seduction course, most of my students make at least one connection," says Ronald, 30, who won't reveal his full name to maintain discretion during student field trips. "Occasionally, men have even disappeared with a girl in the middle of my in-field bars sessions. It isn't a magic pill, but it will improve a man's confidence and help him find his inner game."
The field of seduction instruction is booming because of "the breakdown of the alpha male since the seventies," Ronald says. "Men have no role models and are lost because of politically correct values and feminism. There's a lot of dissatisfaction and loneliness out there."
The back-to-school trend gained momentum after reporter Neil Strauss chronicled his transformation from loser to lothario in his 2005 bestseller, The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists. Strauss took seduction boot camp with Mystery, a Toronto magician and guru of a movement that has spawned dozens of schools around the globe. Mystery now charges up to $3,750 (U.S.) to turn AFCs (average frustrated chumps) into PUAs (pick-up artists).
"Mystery is a genius and I've hung out with him," says Ronald, who studied communications, taught martial arts and worked in the music biz before becoming a seduction coach. "Mystery invented some of the big tricks, like using 'negs' -- backhanded compliments meant to chip away a girl's defences." Ronald puts on his game face to "neg" me: "You have beautiful eyes, especially the right one."
Such tricks work for scoring, but not for relationships, he admits. "There's been a shift lately away from objectifying women to what I teach, called natural game or inner game: Be an authentic man and you will attract an authentic woman."
Authenticity training with Ronald can cost up to $2,000. But he offers cheaper courses as well, such as Wingman Tactics and Rules (for team players) and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).
"The NLP concept is that words have powerful persuasion," Ronald explains. "Like saying, 'Have you ever been swept off your feet?' A woman will become tranced out as she recalls what that felt like, and will transfer those emotions to the guy standing there."
Or immediately speed-dial her ex? "The key is understanding how to listen. I call it calibration," Ronald says. "Of course she won't fall for it unless she wants to."
But what about the expression: Those who can't, teach?
"The [seduction-teaching] community was formed by a lot of hurt guys looking to get revenge," he admits. "Some are messed up deep inside and validate through scoring. That's really dangerous and I don't teach anything I don't do myself."
Ronald acknowledges he was once hurt by a cheating girlfriend and has yet to find that special someone. "I'm a Sagittarius, so I need to know it's going somewhere," he says. "I'm looking for a perfect relationship."
The Seduction Board runs various courses monthly. Fees range from $125 to $2,000. For upcoming workshops, call 778-999-5094 or see http://www.seductionboard.com.
