This is NOT "negging"and is not meant to work the same way, aka trying to break down a man's self-esteem or manipulate him or go out of your way to be excessively mean and make him feel shitty about himself. This is about being just kinda mean. In a fun way.

How to be an asshole:

be fun be interesting be challenging - sometimes just for the hell of it be bitchy and witty be unpredictable - lean into your crazy bitch side have a backbone thats rock solid, and impenetrable standards

Women are socialized to ALWAYS inflate a man's ego, to the point where it's almost force of habit. On some level, men come to depend on this socially. Of course, when it comes to more serious relationships, deep down most of them know they are garbage, no matter what a show they put on or how much they delude themselves or how much Pick-Me women prop them up. They dislike themselves by default, and usually for good reason. You cannot and should not try to change this, as you will fail and be worse off in the end.

Here is why being kind of a dick (aka treating men exactly how they deserve) is a good way to deal with men you may actually be interested in dating: the simple reason that he isn't burdened with having to live up to the expectations that a woman's ego boosting implies. Do this with EVERY man you meet regardless of how much you like them. In my experience, the more I like a guy, the easier this has been, and has had a decent success rate. When done in a correct, lighthearted way (I have been known to be TOO mean - you live, you learn), it'll make him relax, open up, and want to be more himself. And because of how you make him feel, he'll want to be a BETTER version of himself, for you. NOT because you've trashed his self esteem and now he feels like he has to prove something, but because you've given him room to feel comfortable.

Another upside of this is that men love a woman who doesn't take any shit because he knows she won't be taking other men's shit. His baser instincts will be angling for him to be the only guy she does take shit from but of course that won't be happening.

This will NOT work on fragile, volatile nut jobs (LVMs) - so make sure the dude is normal first. This is a good way of checking for that as well, if you're up for that.

What are your thoughts, ladies?