Roosh Interview

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday...

Pick Up Artist are generally viewed in a negative light. One PUA who courts this controversy is Roosh, who expresses his strong opinions on his blog. Roosh is a PUA who gained popularity after writing about the D.C. dating scene. Now he has moved on to South America to continue his adventures. We got to chat with Roosh.

Basic Questions
1) How did you get into pickup?

I was reading a business forum in 2001 when someone randomly posted a link to Tony’s Layguide. As I was not getting laid, I studied the guide for a couple months then tried out some of the techniques. They worked and I just kept going.

2) What is your dating philosophy?

No matter what stage of the game you are at right now or how ugly you are there is a girl out there that will fuck you and the only way to find her is to keep approaching until you succeed. The mere act of approaching is the most important thing a guy can do.

3) How did you get good at dating to become an authority on it?

I’m sure there are tons of guys who are better than me, but my skill comes in explaining it in a clear way that other guys can understand and apply it to their own lives. Everyone knows a natural who bangs tons of women but who has retarded advice like “Be yourself” or “Smile.” He can never be an authority because he has no clue what works and what doesn’t. On the other hand I feel like I  know what will help the average guy.

4)What do you think guys greatest mistake with women is?

They’re too needy. You can see it in their eyes when they’re talking to a girl—it’s like everything collapses in the background and the sole reason for his existence is to give this new girl his undivided attention. This goes hand-in-hand with confidence issues because a guy who thinks he doesn’t deserve a hot girl will wet his pants if he just finds himself in a conversation with one. He sinks her claws in her and of course it turns her off. I think a lot of guys can be served well by adopting an aloof and indifferent mindset.

5) In your experience, what is the best place to find a quality girlfriend?

It depends on the guy and what he wants. If quality to me is a Latin girl who loves to dance then I’d hit the salsa clubs. If I want a girl-next-door bookworm then the coffee shop. If I want a vapid, hot girl then I’d go to the club. A guy needs to find out what he wants and then figure out the place that has it. There is no magic place that has a neverending supply of quality.

6) What are some ways to enlarge your social circle?

Be cool. Do you think a cool guy has to think about ways to expand his social circle? No because other people are trying to hang out with him, calling him on Saturday afternoon trying to figure out his plans. The better question is how can you be an interesting person to both guys and girls so that they want to hang out with you.

7) What was your life like when you weren’t good with women? What is it like now?

I played computer games (Warcraft, Starcraft) and poker with other guys who also sucked with women. It was a vicious cycle: hanging out with guys who were just as bad as I was, our skill never improving. I still believed that one day I’d get lucky and meet a hot girl who would find my lack of confidence, self-esteem, and conversational ability endearing. I also believed that being friends with a girl first was the best way to have sex with her. It never worked. Whereas then it was a huge deal to have an interaction with a pretty girl, it’s less significant now. I work on many girls at the same time and always have options. If one girl is acting flakey then it’s no big deal because there are others I can get with.

8 ) What is one of your favorite techniques/tactics?

Breaking up with her. In the course of our first conversation there is going to be something that highlights one of our differences (e.g. she likes dogs and I like cats). Then I tell her that while we had some good times, I can’t continue the relationship and it’s best if we go our separate ways (while holding her hand or touching her in some way). I’m in Colombia now and I made sure to translate this little routine into Spanish.

9) Do you use props? If so, what gets the most reactions?

I don’t use props, but I think my beard and mop-like haircut is a prop in itself.

10) What is your biggest sticking point?

Sometimes there is a girl I want to talk to but I tap into my experience and determine that, based on my previous approaches in this type of situation, the interaction will not go well and I should just save my energy by not doing anything. In effect I feel like I can predict the future, but of course no one can and I probably cost myself quite a bit by pretending I know how things would turn out. I make things harder on myself by overthinking.

11) What pick up artist has inspired you the most? What did you learn from them?

I would say David D’Angelo. His “cocky and funny” concept was very easy to understand and implement, and did the most to help me understand how attraction works. I’ve toned down the cocky quite a bit and found that humor alone is just as potent assuming you are confident. If not then you will come across as silly or goofy.

12) Describe the moment when your realized you need to work on this part of your life.

It was my last year in college and I asked a girl out to the movies, but she said she was busy. Two weeks later I saw her on campus holding hands with another guy and I realized that I had to make some changes if I wanted to get the girls I wanted.

13) What advice do you give to newbies starting out?

Hit the gym. It’s the most reliable way to improve a guy’s confidence, and he’s going to need every bit he can when it’s time to walk up to girls.

14) In your experience, what is the biggest issue for guys getting attraction from women?

Just being normal. Lot of guys are studying all these lines and routines and it comes across as weird and sometimes creepy. If you observe naturals, they’re having a normal conversation with just a few jokes or cocky bits thrown in, but not everything they’re saying is game. Being a normal, confident guy who can have a laugh is usually all you need to get laid with cute girls.

15) What are you goals for the community? Your life?

When it comes to the community I think guys need to be careful about who they idolize. Because no one guy is going to have the answers (including myself), they should pick and choose the advice that fits their personality or lifestyle best. I understand this is a big business now but guys should be skeptical of everyone. I’m at the stage of my life where I have a lot of experiences that I can share, and that I know helps others. I like passing wisdom I’ve learned.

Specialized Questions

1) Why did you choose to come to South America?

It came down to money and language. The two other parts of the world that I was interested in was Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, but I really loved how in South American I only needed to know two languages to get by. Plus I like women with darker, tanned features and curvy bodies, which South America has.

2) What’s the difference between sarging in North America and South America?

The logistics are about five times easier in N. America. Girls have their own apartments. They like to drink (a lot). They don’t have to be home by a certain hour. They don’t hang out in huge groups. They aren’t strict Catholics. And most importantly, they speak the same language as you do. I think a lot of guys have the view that getting laid while traveling is easier, but that’s only the case if you have a lot of trouble getting laid in your own country. If you think you’re going to visit a new city every few days and get laid in each one, you will be sorely disapointed. You’re going to need your own cell phone, you’re going to need time to find places that have the girls, and you’re going to need your own place (or at least know where there is a love motel). Otherwise you’ll be counting on luck quite a bit.

I’m still surprised that being a gringo hurts more than it helps. The quality girls that you want are not looking for some one night fling with a guy she can barely communicate with. She wants that connection too. If you don’t want to dip into the dregs with the poor girls, you’ll have to work quite hard for quality. That includes studying the local language and building roots in one city for an extended period of time.

3) What country do you like best and why? What about women-wise?

My favorite country is Brazil. The country itself doesn’t is an oddball in S. America because it’s so much more colorful and exciting than all the other countries (and dangerous too, unfortunately). It’s a happy place to be in, and while it’s the most expensive country in S. America I think it’s worth it. The women are extremely sensual. They know how to dress and walk, and most importantly of all, please a man. Once you go Brazilian, you don’t go back. And yes, they like gringos.

4) Can you relate a success story about one of your clients?

When I was in the States I was teaching a day game workshop every weekend. I had two students at a time and one of my students was attending a small college. He had practically no approach experience. I ran the lecture and then we went out to various venues like the coffee shop, clothing store, and eventually the street. Now the street is the hardest place to pick up a girl, but there he picked up a very cute girl using the material I taught him. I hear from him every few weeks and he tells me how much progress he’s making. I want to take all the credit, but of course I know that a lot of guys simply need a nudge in the right direction. He’s doing things now that I didn’t teach him and that’s because his early successes keeps pushing him to approach and continue. In only one year I know he’s going to be very good.

5) Why did you choose the name Roosh?

Roosh is my nickname that I’ve had since high school. I probably should have thought harder about using it online because girls google “roosh” often and my blog is the first result. It gets me into trouble all the time.

6) What are your fundamental teachings?

Approach indirectly in large numbers to aquire the experience needed to know how to talk to a girl and make her laugh. Learn the little tricks that take the interaction from one stage to the next. Don’t worry about quality until you get a solid grasp of how the game works.

7) How do you differ from other dating coaches?

I think I’m less of a sell out. I put out a quality book at a low price and genuinely want to help guys. Even my workshop was so cheap that a bunch of my students said I should charge more. Others have helped me when I was coming up and I want to return the favor. I’d do it for free if I had a trust fund or lottery winnings.

8 ) Your known as a misogynist / sexist pig in the community. How do you respond to that?

I think it’s disingenuous to say you love women but want to have sex with a lot of them. It’s a fact that the less you value women, the more you see them as worthless whores, the more of them you will have sex with. I’ve simply adopted the right mindset for my goals. Guys who think women are flawless princesses will not get many bangs out of the game.

9) You’re a well-known blogger (enough to get a parody site). What can you tell us about blogging and your blog?

I’ve had a blog in one form of another since college but things really took off when I focused on the Washington DC area and blogged almost exclusively about girls and nightlife. Gradually the audience grew to where I was making enough money from advertising and book sales to quit my job. I don’t make nearly as much as when I worked, but it’s enough to live in a third-world country such as Colombia or Argentina. My current blog is going on its fifth year, and while it doesn’t bring me as much joy as it used to (at times it feels like a job), I still have a lot of things that I want to share. I may blog less in the future but I don’t think I’ll stop it completely.

10) Tell me about your products.

Right now I only have my book Bang. I wrote it when I felt confident enough about the level of my game that my knowledge would be worth paying for. It has five chapters: Internal Game, Early Game, Middle Game, Late Game, and End Game, and describes step-by-step what you need to do to from the appraoch to sealing the deal. I even talk about the order you should remove a girl’s clothes in bed, something that I haven’t seen other guys do.

11) What are your plans for the future?

I’m working on a memoir now about my previous trip to South America which I hope to be done with by fall of 2009. After that I start work on a day game book, and I have other ideas for books in the future. I think book writing is what I will be focusing my time on for the next couple years, until I get into straight-up pimping.