I think one of the main sources of anxiety is caring too much. You know that feeling where you're starting to succeed, you can hardly believe it, you can hardly contain your excitement - that's when you start caring too much. You stiffen up and lose your poise.

Instead, you have to be zen about it. Yeah, I just talked to a girl and did pretty well. So what. Somewhere, it happens every day. I'm not saying you shouldn't enjoy it when you do well - you definitely should - but you've got to get past the place where you feel giddy about it. It needs to feel normal for you. Fun, but normal.

On the other side of the coin, you have to reach a level of not giving a shit such that when you fail, it doesn't matter. It's just a game. If your primary focus is trying to get laid - i.e. 'I'm going to try to get this woman to have sex with me', you're doing it wrong. This is an attitude that will predispose you towards caring too much. Yeah, it's a cool thing that can happen, but until you reach master level that's not a primary focus you're worthy of yet.

Instead you should be working on getting so that nothing throws you. Working on being interesting, on being the kind of guy who people seek to hang out with, because when you're there, interesting and cool shit happens. In fact just being interesting isn't good enough. You have to be compelling.

Here's an idea for something to practice. Go out with the primary intent of testing yourself. Put yourself in a difficult situation in a conversation and see if you can extricate yourself - without supplication of any kind.

Or, say something controversial and own it so completely that no one can throw your frame.

Or, use ridiculous openers that are sure to fail, get blown out in a hilarious way, and then laugh about it afterwards.

Just be a badass.

I hereby invite further examples, questions, objections, and especially ideas for more in-field experiments towards the practice of transforming into a badass.