How to Avoid the Friend Zone

Alright fellas, this isn't something new. We've all heard about the Friend Zone and probably even the stupid Brother Zone. Despite popular belief there are ways for us to counter the tactics women use to place us in these dreaded zones of no return. So let's cover the basics on the strategies you should have in your play-book.

The very first thing to do, and the best approach, is to avoid the Friend Zone completely. When you meet that young lady, or even if you've already known her, do NOT fall into the line of thinking that if you are her friend then she will look at you as boyfriend material. Listening to her problems, is NOT a sure fire way of getting on her good side. Let her know that you're interested in her romantically. Drop some compliments on her personality and her appearance. Dress nicely and smell good around her. Remember that women want to have a clear distinction between their friends and their [potential] boyfriend. In a perfect world, women should want their best male friend to be their boyfriend. If they did, I believe that the amount of issues in relationships would decrease, but that's another discussion for another day. Like many other articles and blogs suggest, do not be her "shoulder to cry on" or her life sized diary.

Now you have to be careful about this approach because you do not want to give off the impression that you're just a heartless jerk only after one thing. But, if she insists on sharing or talking about her issues, simply address it briefly, and/or change the subject shortly afterwards.

Example:

She says: "I cannot believe Michael hasn't called me"
He says: "Hmmmmm...So how was your day today?"
She says: "It was cool, until Michael didn't call me."
He says: "Sorry to hear that. Well I was just calling to check up on you. I'm on my way to the gym, so I'll hit you up later."

See the key thing to understand is that even though you may be a nice guy, you do not want to be a push over. As you can you see in the example, I also pointed out another key point. Limited availability. You know the saying, "People always want what they can't have?" Well this rings very true for women in particular. A woman's interest may spike when she knows that you're always doing something. But be careful not to over do this either. And also be sure that the things that are making you unavailable are things that are valued by most women.

Valuable things may  include:
Studying for class (shows your intellect and responsibility)
Workout at the gym (shows you care about appearance)
Go out with friends (shows you're sociable)
Read books (shows intellect)
Hang out with another female. (shows your value to other women)


Now I may get flack for this, but who cares. Women want what other women have. Yup I said it. Okay let's be more specific. Women are attracted to what other women may have. Interest builds when a woman finds out that another woman finds you attractive or interesting. She begins to wonder, "Wait, did I miss something? Maybe I should re-evaluate him again".  Now if you mention the fact that you're hanging out with another female, be cool about it. Slide it into the conversation one day. Something to the effect of, "Hey I'll call you back later on, I'm about to go hang out with my friend, and she just pulled up." She'll pick up on that "she" part and it will definitely keep her wondering about who "she" is in the back of her mind. If she asks you who "she" is, just say "she's just a friend", and let her mind do all the work. Planting the seed ;-)

Okay so let's say that you're not in the lucky position of being able to avoid the Friend Zone completely. Let's just say you're already in it. Well check out How to Escape the Friend Zone.