Tired of using the same pickup lines with less than satisfactory results? Learn these 5 conversation starters to better your game!

If there’s one thing that dating gurus, love consultants, and pickup artists get asked about more than anything else, it’s pickup lines. I can see the appeal. Just a few simple words you have to learn and they unlock all the secrets of making the opposite sex ravish you all night long? Sign me up!

But as someone who has been in the dating industry for many years now, I’m going to let you in on a little secret:

Pickup lines DON’T WORK!

Think about the best pickup line you’ve ever heard of. Where did you read it? In a book? On a website? Taught in a class by a pickup artist? Or perhaps you read “The Game” and thought that surely the most famous pickup artist in the world had something insightful to say about talking to the ladies?

Although there is much to read on him, we didn’t mean this “The Game.”

Now how many other men do you think read that exact same thing and are thinking about using it?

So much for originality. Not a pretty picture, is it? Any reputable pickup artist will tell you to completely dispense with the canned routines and pickup lines simply because if YOU’VE heard about it, SHE has heard about it already.

Talking to women successfully is about originality and genuine conversation, so I’ve come up with a list of five conversation starters that are more effective than any pickup line. If all else fails, you can always start with…

1) “Hi, my name is…”

This is the granddaddy of them all, the oldest pickup line in the book. And that’s because it WORKS. It’s short, sweet, simple, and right to the point. There are no lines to remember. No routines. No moves. If you have a brain fart because you’re nervous or she’s so beautiful and you forget the incredible thing you were going to say 30 seconds ago, it takes no energy to remember and say your name. You literally cannot mess this line up. It also allows you to approach a girl from a neutral, non-threatening standpoint. Call her sexy and her defenses will rise, but introduce yourself in a friendly manner and you’re showing her that you’re a safe pick.

Unless of course this is your name, or if it is Marshal Mathers, or Eminem.

2) Make her laugh.

The easiest way to make a girl laugh is to tell her a joke. This isn’t time for chickens crossing the road, this is the time to give her six pack abs from laughing so hard. But maybe you’re not a funny guy, maybe you don’t know how to tell a good joke. You can always try a comedy improv class at your local community college, or you can try my personal favorite: “I love that dress, I have one just like it!” She knows you’re kidding, and she knows you’re hitting on her, but it’s an innocent way to break the ice that shows her you’re not afraid to be funny. Bonus points: Being able to make a girl laugh is far more attractive than a handsome face. Just look at all the fat and ugly comedians with hot wives and girlfriends.

Probably shouldn’t start off with this joke by the way…

Not so attractive comedians with hot wives theory:Exhibit A Dan Aykroyd.