Women have flirted with me before, but I usually miss the signs.
Since I'm not very good looking, I always think they're trying to make contact with someone else behind me.
Mind you, there are the opposite times, when you think she's flirting with you, you sit there grinning like an ape, and she shoots you a look that could demolish a brick wall.
If carried out properly, flirting can make both of you feel as though you're walking on clouds.
There are men who think that flirting consists of walking past a woman and pinching her rear end! If you do that, you're far more likely to get yourself slapped.
Flirting should be subtle.
No woman likes a man to leap upon her like a Bengal tiger.
Always look the person with whom you're flirting directly in the eye.
In this way, they always feel that you're interested in them and only them.
If you look at a woman who's apparently smiling at you, but she averts her eyes, half the magic's gone.
It's as though, yes, she's smiling at you -- and anyone else who happens to be around.
The law of attraction is called mirroring.
You pick up your glass to take a sip and she does the same.
Mirroring isn't the same as copying.
Their body language becomes the same.
There's a great difference between mirroring and mimicking.
The latter can be a darned nuisance.
There's a certain generosity in conversation, too, in flirting.
You ask the person about themselves.
The whole point is to make this person feel special, so don't go chattering on about yourself and your many accomplishments.
Bring the conversation round to her as much as you reasonably can, without appearing to interrogate the poor woman! A good sense of humour helps, too, provided you aren't one of those people who tell one joke after another.
Whatever you do, don't try flirting when you're feeling depressed, desperate for a date or anxious.
Certainly not if you're suicidal! (Sorry.
Joke!).
Before you go out, try and relax completely.
Every good flirter exudes calmness and confidence, so don't go out if you feel jumpy and unsure of yourself.
Self hypnosis is an excellent tool for this.
But any form of meditation's good.
If you have to touch the lady; hold her hand, gently cup her elbow to guide her, lay your hand on her shoulder or a light touch on her arm -- nothing sexual, for goodness sake, just a gentle offhand touch can lift people's spirits.
At the University of Miami School of Medicine, they have a Touch Research Institute, (that's perfectly true.
I'm not making that up).
They conducted a study with people who had spent up to fifteen minutes, no longer, who'd 'by chance' touched the librarians hand.
They were asked how well they rated their time.
All the ones who'd touched the hand said they'd had a most enjoyable time.