Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Phone Game II

So you got her phone number, you followed the first installment of the phone game sequence, and she answers, now what?

This is where you begin, as with any interaction, with the method. The six steps remember of Charisma Arts method are: Open, Get Commitment, Establish Rapport, Get Info, SOI, and Close.

Open

Whoever answers greet them with her name, “Hi Susan!”

No need to say who you are because her phone has your name in it and already told her what your name is. If it is a guy that answers do the same thing. This creates a sense of familiarity. He will likely just hand the phone to her thinking you are a close friend who expected her to answer her own phone. If you ask if she is there, then he may just ask her like this, “Uh hold on I’ll see if she is around. Who is this? Hey Susan, some guy named Dan is on the phone, do you want to take it or should I tell him you are busy?”

Not the best impression eh? Also if she answers and you ask her if Susan is there, it sets up the feeling of being strangers.

Get Commitment

Once you get her on the phone it is time to get commitment to the interaction. Start off asking, “What are you doing right now?”

If she tells you something like watching her kid brother, tell her you will call her back when she is done. This shows you expect her full attention and is very high value. I don’t like to talk to people while they are distracted and in turn I try not to be doing anything but talking if I am on the phone. No checking email or watching TV when I am having a conversation. If she says she is just watching TV then say, “Can you turn it off or put it aside for five minutes?”

I expect someone’s full attention when I talk to them; I don’t want to waste my time talking to someone who is distracted. This is how I get commitment.

Establish Rapport

Whether you are a phone person or not it is good to chat just a bit to remind her just how different your conversational style is. Relating and Appreciating her a bit will do just that. If you are not good on the phone you can keep this to a minimum, but you should do a bit.

Get Info

Ask her, “So what’s happened since the last time we’ve talked?”

This is an important step because you don’t know if she got back together with her ex, or her mom died, she’s going in for surgery, or something else that would affect how you interact with her. It would be a shame to go out with her and then at the end of the date she finally gets the nerve up to tell you she just got back together with her ex. Depending on the answer you will know whether you need to take it slower and schedule things around her moms funeral, or whether you can slide a date in the next couple days.

SOI

Time to make sure she knows why you are asking her out. Promise me you won’t skip this step otherwise you will likely be stuck dog sitting for her poodle on a Saturday night instead of going out with her. The word is Sexy and there is no other word. If you are having trouble SOI’ng her in your conversation, then try doing it in a more playful way. Say, “So what are you wearing right now?”

Guaranteed she will say something un-sexy like a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie. You then say, “Ooooh I can definitely use my imagination there, very sexy.”

This is a fun way to do it because it is goofy and so cheesy it comes off well.

Close

Time to set a date. Offer her up a time and day; don’t ask. She will let you know if it won’t work. For example:

You: Ok I think we should get together, you are too much fun. Thursday at 9pm I’ll meet you down at the 3rd street pub and we’ll grab a beer.

Her: I actually can’t that day.

You: That’s cool, well that means it is your turn to propose a day and time. I don’t know you well enough to give you a weekend night, you are going to have to ask really nicely if you want me to yourself on a Friday or Saturday.

Her: Well then, I’d be honored if you joined me for a drink on Sunday night at 8pm. Hopefully that will fit into your busy schedule Mr. Popular.

Me: Sounds good. I’ll see you then.



Want to hear more on dating and what to do on dates, as well as a bit more on phone game? Listen to the accompanying podcast on Phone Game and Dating. Coming Soon!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Loving these phone game posts. This is stuff people need to know. I'm really forward to the upcoming podcast.

Anonymous said...

Nice open loop on the podcast :)Thanks for the post, I appreciate it as it really puts a structure on how to work the phone. But as Wayne puts it, never let the method take over your personality. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Hi Dan, its Mick. You told me that sometimes YOU still get nervous calling a girl. So imagine how she must feel if you leave the ball in her court. That was the paradigm shift for me.

Anonymous said...

I like the part about telling her to suggest a night to meet up if she can't meet on my first suggested night. Back in my 'thinking too much' days I was worried about not leading. Putting the ball in her court feels like the opposite of leading. But it's not. It's just telling her that it's her turn. I used to be too outcome dependent, Dan

Darren Mills said...

I love the two phone-game posts! There isn't a huge amount of information on it, so it's nice to see someone who knows their stuff taking the time to outline good practices.

Great stuff Dan!

-rev7 // socialrevelations