Yes, I feel vindicated! I think I commented on an earlier chapter on his glaring mistakes, treating what should be a fun conversation as a dry interrogation, so I loved to read the sensei used that very word and help him to fix his problem.
That first date was painful, what a waste of nice restaurant with a view.
Those conversation tricks are a helpful framework for guys that don't even consider this something worth paying attention but rookied still need to be careful to be too obvious and consistent. That 'backtrack' thing is especially terrible, and could be taken as an annoying quirk, that will make you unpleasant and sound silly every time it's noticed.
I thought he was going to encourage him to literally backtrack often during conversations, build upon something mentionned earlier that was interesting. The best conversations constantly ebb and flow like that, go on tangents, then back on track. And there's nothing better to indicate that you're paying attention to what she's saying to you, if you remember and want to learn more!
But the most important thing he learned here was how to handle the rejection indeed, with this 'abundance' mindset. He fucked up but it doesn't matter, he'll do better with the next one.