Most guys outside the community are very much aware of this. They do tend to over rate the usefulness of money, but that's another issue. However, they come into PU and get told that no, in fact, it barely matters.
So guys who are aware, are aware despite community teachings.

And you wouldn't need to spend the whole book on looks. But a crystal clear statement would be good. If Mystery, David D, etc said "Assuming you have at least basic social skills, looks are the single most important element of seduction. It sets your ceiling of consistency. Maybe an ugly guy can get lucky, but to consistently pull attractive women through cold approach, you must be at least somewhat physically attractive".

I wouldn't be giving them flak if they did that. Neither one of them seem to understand fashion, or fitness, so they aren't even qualified to give advice, honestly. It's that they lie and tell them that it's not that important. They say it's a small piece, if it even matters. And you can overcome any amount of physical unattractiveness.

And I don't see mainstream pickup preaching to stir emotions. Which is one more reason I say that PU as a whole, is not helpful and doesn't work for most guys. You need to dig to find the quality stuff. The mainstream is basically the best marketers. And that's what %90+ of guys who are exposed to pickup learn from.

_________________
RSDTyler

So tell me, if a girl asks you what you do with your spare time, do you tell her you're a pick up artist/aspiring pick up artist?

I tried Pick Up for a bit and wasted a large amount of money. The only thing that has properly worked for me is going direct with women. The human race has lasted a number of millenniums without the need for manipulative tricks and over complicated tactics when you could just be direct and to the point instead.

Want to learn to be alpha? Be direct - straightforward and direct people are always real alpha males, and being direct will make you feel like a man more than trying to learn the correct way to stand or hold your drink or other irrelevant shit. Ever seen an alpha male using tactics in order to get other people to like or follow him? Nope, he says his mind and that is all.

Yes, actually, I have. The majority do. But it's nothing like what PUAs talk about.

_________________
RSDTyler

Bollocks. Pretty much all the real alpha males I have encountered speak their minds clearly.

I however honestly think the obsession with being alpha is pretty pathetic anyway, but being an honest person will make you feel a lot more of a man.

I totally agree with you on that point. As a matter of fact, I'd take it a step further and say that obsessing on any specific area of pickup is pathetic.

_________________
mpuaforum.proboards.com

Then they're smarter or more socially intelligent than you and you just don't notice.
Any leader is also a manipulator. You have to be. Nothing wrong with it, but that requires tactics and thinking ahead.

_________________
RSDTyler

I'll agree that Mystery is a weirdo, but having been in the community for 10+ years after being introduced to David D, I can always remember the importance placed on physical appearance such as good dress sense. Agreed, he didn't put it as the MOST important point, but it is pretty high up on his list in my opinion.

Either way, the discussion of fixed physical appearance is moot. You can definitely improve your rating by dressing better and better personal grooming, but of course there isn't much you can do to improve your facial features, height, etc.

There's a LOT you can do, beyond style.

You can lose fat, and gain muscle. This is major if you're unattractive. You'd need a face like a gargoyle to be failing the looks test for attractive women if you're physically very fit. Most guys are carrying at least 20 lbs too much fat, and anywhere from 20-40 fewer lbs of muscle than they should.

You can take better care of your skin. Having very healthy skin is worth at least a full point over "normal"(see bad) skin. I'm not even talking about acne. You want healthy, glowing skin. This is especially important for any man over 25.

There are several things you can do about height. First off is shoe lifts/elevator shoes. Adding 2 inches will make a big difference for a short guy. One of the major reason girls are often such sticklers for "over 6' tall", is because you take a girl who's 5'6" and put her in 4" inch heels and he needs to be that tall to be just slightly taller than her. Girls are biologically designed to want a man 4+" taller. Depending on how short you are, wearing flats is almost suicide. When you're 5'6", girls who are 5'2" in flats will be at level with you in heels.
You can also style your hair certain ways to add over an inch in apparent height.

"Dress nice" is not even 1/4 of the battle. A pudgy guy decked out beats a pudgy guy in a baggy t-shirt and skater shorts, but he's still a pudgy man. This is very similar to women. A girl with a slim waist, and overall low body fat, looks much better in a pair of simple jeans and a t-shirt than a husky girl in a $500 tailored dress. This is true for men as well. A man who's fit, with broad shoulders, large arms and a flat stomach, looks better in a tshirt and jeans than a pudgy man in a tailored Armani suit.

You want a girl who has a good body, I'd suggest you get your body in as good of shape as possible. This is a point that is very rarely stressed in mainstream pickup. And frankly, it's absent in a lot of dating advice as a whole, even outside PUA. It may seem "common sense", but a lot of people think women place a much lower priority on looks than men. This is not really true. And it's more true for boyfriends, than hooking up. Women are even MORE concerned about good looks in men they're willing to randomly hookup with.

_________________
RSDTyler

Good breakdown. Style details doing every one of these things in the Game, so these things ARE in there. However, I don't know how any PU guide can spend much time on these things as I couldnt really think of any more points than what you wrote.