Approach Mastery Bootcamp 서울 (Seoul) - September 18-20

[Pheonix25]

Simply put, this was the most challenging and most rewarding experience of my lifetime. There is no other fitting term to describe this experience other than bootcamp, perfection was never the goal, but progress was. I figured out early on during the bootcamp that the amount of value I could get out of the bootcamp rested solely upon myself so I braced myself for rough waters. Given my rather conservative and shielded upbringing, I knew this was that one opportunity for change I had been wanting for most of my adolescent-young adult life. I don't recall a single time period where so many things were swimming in my brain at the same time. I know that with consistent practice, all the pieces will start to fall into place but I'm happy to have gotten all of the new info and revelations.

 

Day One: [ Night Street Game at Hongdae ]

To kick off the bootcamp, we had an extensive meeting at a Tom and Tom's coffee at Hongdae where I got to know more about my wing (David) and RPQ. I understood the need for going over the Questionnaire I was asked to fill out prior to the bootcamp but didn't understand the underlying meaning behind it until now: if you don't know what you want specifically, you won't be able to find the girls you will be happy with. Having narrowed the traits I was looking for as narrowly as possible, I was challenged to come up with some of my own qualification questions as well as practice some BT Spikes. The main challenge of the night for me was to keep remembering to pepper in the BT spikes to keep the interaction interesting and to escalate Kino more. The fact that there were a ton of two sets allowed my wing and I to practice what we had just learned. My personal two favorite sets came from one of the sets that I opened and the one that my wing opened. The first set came from one that I opened, a seated set outside of NB2 where I was able to start escalating Kino and building comfort. It was in this set where I understood how factors beyond my control can easily lose you the set. The second set was another seated set near the playground where I understood the importance of good wingmanship. Then, just as soon as the night started, it was over just like that. Time flies while you're actually enjoying your interactions in the field. During the debrief, I started to learn the ever important skillset of self-evaluation which would be critical if I am to coach myself after bootcamp.

 

Day Two: [ Daygame near Gangnam Station]

Despite feeling that this would be the one form of game that I would be most comfortable with, I was completely wrong. After running sets in the daytime at Gangnam I was able to shatter the belief I had prior to bootcamp that the only way to effectively open was by stopping the moving set. Initially, walking with the moving sets felt incredibly challenging until I realized that while the circumstances may change, the process of the sarge remains unchanged. This experience also made me realize how being even just a little bit unfocused on the progress of the sarge will severely damage your chance of success for the sets. My favorite set was a moving one set who I was actually able to stop in front of some clothing store. Even though the set did not end in a timebridge of a bounce, I learned the importance of not ejecting too early, to always push it a little more than your comfortable with each time. Trying for a bounce or a timebridge should be default just like opening and must never be avoided.

 

Day Two: [ Clubgame at Syndrome ]

Out of all the sessions this was personally the most intense for me was I had no prior experience with doing Clubgame. This was also quite possibly the most rewarding experience for me as I got a chance to try to kino escalate more often and learned a variety of non verbal openers (something I had never tried). Strangely, while I wasn't initially overwhelmed, during the second half of the night I felt just how powerful the influence of the loud music and the club environment can be to your sarge if your not staying focused on the progressing the sarge. Going from set to set and getting feedback from each one of them, I further affirmed how important it is to stay focused and remain calm especially where the environment is so fast paced. There were a few sets in the locker room where I learned how the biggest factor to success in game is getting stuck in one phase of the sarge and spending too much time on that one phase will not produce a desired outcome. Oddly enough a seated set in the locker room that became stuck in the attraction phase was my favorite set as I was able to really get the hang of making/keeping the interaction more interesting.

 

Day Three: [ Daygame near Gangnam Station]

A sharp contrast to how I felt Daygaming yesterday, this was the session where I started to put some of the basics together, where all the scrambled thoughts seemed to make more sense and how each step along the sarge was supposed to build off upon the previous one. Staying calm, relaxed and focused I found that even opening non-verbally can work as long as the overall vibe is there and making progress is the only goal. Opening a seated two set at Marley's coffee with my wing, I started to see how even a smoothly run set can end up nowhere without proper communication between your wing and yourself. My favorite set was actually the last set of my bootcamp where I was able to timebridge successfully for the first time during the bootcamp, a truly wonderful way to cap off a fast paced and lesson filled weekend.

[RedpoleQ]

This was a great weekend and a great start to the future. I'm really looking forward to coaching you through your continuing progress!