20 years old, sophomore in college, this post is hella long but I'm going to go in depth on the sets I had yesterday - all day game and no numbers, but learned a lot and still had a good time. TL;DR at the end. Feel free to give me any feedback or tell me some your stories!

Yesterday was about 50/50 for me - I've only been working on my game since the beginning of August when I broke up with my long-term girlfriend and so I haven't been laid yet, but I have been on dates/gotten numbers/made out with a couple of sixes. I'd rate my game as slightly above average because I have been putting myself out there and building confidence but I still have trouble approaching/talking to 8s and above and I wouldn't say I'm particularly 'smooth'. I think my best trait is that I come across as really genuine and I'm easy to talk to (have my funny moments too but not too often.) I wanna share a few stories from yesterday, maybe get some feedback and let anyone else who just started out hear something similar they might've been through.

Set # 1:

Yesterday I had to do some CPR training for my new job, and like every potentially social situation I tried to make the best of it by introducing myself to the people sitting next to me and cracking jokes that I would find funny. At one point the instructor (we're all in college so everyone is young and works at the recreation centers) started teasing me saying that I wasn't very good because my dummy's chest wouldn't inflate and that I should be better because I had done this training before. I didn't respond immediately, but after a few seconds I called her out for being rude while making a joke out of it and even said her name - she had introduced herself at the beginning of the session. Everyone laughed and I shot her a wink to which she winked back! Which was awesome. I teased her again later for eating cotton balls as a child and got less of a reaction, but played it off cool. This is where it goes a little sour: at the end of the training we all had to a basic test and I ripped off a strip of paper and wrote "(My Number), Call me ;)" on a whim since I knew she had more sessions to do and didn't want to ask her number in front of the whole class. I heard her exclaim "WHAT!" as I was walking away, mostly in surprise that someone would do that at all, I think. I was trying to break down exactly what I did wrong with the note but taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture, I think the note itself was flawed, and anything written on it would probably illicit the same response. Not expecting a call from her, overall rating of the interaction from start to finish would probably be a 5 or a 6, felt pretty cringey about it for a while but I'm over it now. If I had closed better, maybe a 7 or an 8, but it's no biggie. Live and learn.

Set # 2:

The next set I did was immediately after leaving the class. I saw a girl walking some distance ahead of me and I approached from behind and said "Excuse me, I really like your outfit". I think one mistake I made right off the bat was making her turn around to talk to me instead of approaching her from the side, which may have made me seem like I was coming on too strong by redirecting her attention so abruptly. She seemed immediately uncomfortable, despite this I felt pretty comfortable so I relaxed, introduced myself, and asked what she was on her way to. She said, "I'm meeting up with my boyfriend." I don't know if I just opened terribly or if her part of her discomfort was being hit on when she was walking to meet her boyfriend but I think it's probably a combination of both. I tried to lighten the mood by talking about my CPR training and my new job briefly but she was relatively unresponsive and visibly uncomfortable. We walked into her boyfriend after a minute or two (it was super obvious because when she saw him from a distance she continued to look forward and I took that as a cue that I should probably bounce). I said it was nice to meet you and continued walking when she stopped to meet her boyfriend. Overall, maybe a 2 or 3 out of 10, even though I didn't feel as badly about that interaction as I did leaving that note for girl #1 mostly because the odds were stacked against me to begin with and I didn't anything super cringey, lol.

Set # 3:

The final set I did was later in the day and closer to early evening. I met up with a couple of my friends from the town over - I used to work at a grocery store in said town so I know a handful of people over there. We smoked a bunch of weed and decided to get sandwiches at a Deli on main street. Sitting outside the deli was a TA from a class I had my first semester - probably 4-5 inches taller than me, but cute as hell. Type of girl who doesn't wear any makeup but has a kind of 'natural radiance' I suppose; easily a 7 or an 8, perhaps a 9 if she dressed up. Definitely not an easy set to close, seeing as she's a grad student who's older than me by a few years and probably involved in a different type of lifestyle at school. I held the door open for my friends, but when I noticed her sitting outside with some guy I kind of eyed her for a second and then she noticed me and said hi. Told my friends I'd catch up and walked over.

I stood over their table and said hi. I was feeling pretty good because I was kind of stoned and hanging out with my friends had given me a relaxed confidence. I shook the guy's hand first and introduced myself (he was clearly gay, not that it matters but he had that kind of flamboyant air about him and was clearly a very sociable person). I sized the girl up for a second, she looked like she was doing the same to me and trying to anticipate what I was going to do next (since breaking up with my ex I've been taking good care of myself and my overall demeanor has changed a lot) I smiled and went in for the hug, to which she seemed quietly surprised/impressed, I would say. I'm gonna write the dialogue like a script to just get it out of the way:

Girl: So how was your summer?

Guy: kind of interrupts So how do you know girl?

Me: decide to respond to guy Oh, I was a student in her class last year.

Guy: Yeah, because you look a little young to be the boyfriend.

Me: looks at girl yeah, not yet at least. sly smile that I've been practicing in the mirror

Guy: Don't be too personable now.

Worth mentioning just for context that this was all very lighthearted and I was actually really enjoying the conversation; it wasn't tense or awkward but really just fun haha

Me: laughs Yeah, I suppose. My summer was great though, thanks for asking.

Girl: Do you still work at grocery store?

Me: super pumped that she asked me this No! I'm a personal trainer now at school's recreation facility. It's really great; I make my own schedule and a lot more money and it's something I'm really passionate about.

Girl: That's awesome.

Me: Thanks! brief pause Well, I should catch up with my friends. It was nice to see you again! Touches guy's shoulder And nice to meet you too.

Hung around with my friends for a minute, thought about the interaction. Got a sandwich and decided I had to ask for her Facebook or something because I wasn't sure I'd see her again and I was feeling good about the interaction we had earlier.

Me: Approaches table Hey, so I'm sorry to disturb you guys again, but I'm taking a lit class next semester 100% liying and I was gonna ask my friends for help, but seeing as you work in the department I thought you might be a better resource. Holds out phone do you have like, a Facebook or something...?

Girl: Oh, you have my email.

Me: Oh, I do...? Yes! That's right. Because you were one of my teachers.

Guy: obviously suspicious but still talking normally What course are you taking?

Me: Oh, uh... Dostoevsky? (real course)

Guy: Wow! That's a big one. You like literature?

Me: Well, I do, but I don't read much and I want to more. I figure, balls deep, you know?

Guy: chuckles Well, that makes sense, but don't say it in front of any real teachers.

Me: You trying to say girl isn't a real teacher? That's rude! looks at girl Why you hang out with this guy?

Girl: laughs, looks at guy I wonder if some person is teaching it.

Guy: looks at me Do you know who's teaching it?

Me: No, I don't.

They proceed to have a small conversation about who could be teaching it, I thank them for their time and let her know I will be emailing her. Say bye again, still feeling good about the conversation despite the rejection.

This interaction I definitely had the most fun with. I think they were suspicious of my ploy to get her Facebook, but I'm a really good liar so I don't think they can be too sure. This one was a lot of fun for me because the guy definitely set me up a little bit, and made everything a little lighter and easy to bounce off of. I'd rate it an 8/10 just because I enjoyed it so much; if I had to rate it based on whether I closed or not probably a 5 or 6. I think if I could do anything differently, I would have stayed and talked to them a little longer - I didn't really think about leaving I kind of just decided to. That would have given me more chances to crack jokes and lay some game on her, whether it would have been successful or not. Another small thing I would tweak is when I replied to the guy, instead of saying 'not yet', I would have said 'she wishes' or something more teasing towards her. Normally I tease girls I'm interested in about how great I am and therefore relatively unattainable to them; I'm not sure if it's a great tactic but it's something that comes naturally to me and when I play it right shows that I have interest in them, confidence in myself, and still don't take things too seriously (I always present it as a joke). Sometimes I get a little too into it and I actually come off as brazen/cocky, but when I play it in that Goldilocks zone I'd say I get good reactions.

So that was my Saturday. No success, but I learned a lot and I'm feeling good about putting myself out there even if these initial interactions are awkward because I know I'll get better (I already have). Seddit definitely puts my mind at ease at the end of the day, because browsing here reminds me that there are always more options, techniques, and girls, of course, and that there's no reason to dwell on some lame note I wrote because I still have a chance for good times to come.

TL;DR: Had no success with my three sets on Saturday, still had fun and yearn for more. Biggest lesson: move on, focus on having a good time rather than closing because it will put you in a good mood that (in my experience) will help you remain calm and confident, and even if you don't close you still have a good time.

Anybody have sets from yesterday they'd like to share or some feedback for me? I have yet to discuss pickup with anyone IRL outside of my one friend who only speaks about it in his own context, i.e. not that of the general PU community but just how he talks to girls and whatnot.