Homework Assignment: Reading and Supplemental Material
Face-reading course from EKI ($229.00)
While not an absolute requirement, you will not be able to learn Autopicking without having passed all of the tests in this course with at least the equivalent of a B+. I’ve negotiated with EKI to get Dance Class students a deal on the class: you get 25% off the purchase price by entering discount code “student25” at checkout (I get no kickback from this).
The Dictionary of Body Language by Joe Navarro ($10.99, paperback)
Having read many body language books, I can say with confidence that they’re all basically the same and they’re all fine. This one is fairly comprehensive. Ignore as best you can Navarro’s editorializing. You’re not reading this to learn to be a cop or to spot lies, you’re reading it to learn vocabulary. Even trained people have a rate of lie detection of—at best—between 55% and 60% or so, not much better than chance. There are ways to spot patterns of deception over time with greater accuracy, but it is a waste of time to try and use this or any book on body language as an impromptu polygraph test.
How to Succeed With Women, Revised and Updated, by Ron Louis and David Copeland ($19.00, paperback)
This is the only good book of its kind, period. I have no connection with the authors and receive no money for this recommendation.
Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through the Unique Perspectives of Autism by Temple Grandin ($12.59, paperback)
Temple Grandin is the best writer on autism, period. This book is a first-rate supplemental social dictionary for autists and non-autists alike.