When to Perform Magic

There are several ideal settings for performing magic. A mediocre trick at the perfect time will make it seem even better. And performing an excellent magic trick at the perfect time will create a miracle!

Personality goes a long way with magic. If you have a charming personality, and know a few good magic tricks you might just glide through life a little bit easier than others. It's easy for many magicians to come off as a jerk. As a magician it's tough to stay on the same side as your audience, and not jump over to the opponents side. "You don't know how to do this" "I can do this and you can't" are not the attidues to take. Instead, your attitude should be "Look at this wonderous peice of magic" and "I don't know how it happens, but this is really amazing... take a look". Notice the difference? Don't be a magic jerk, the world is filled with them, even if they think that they aren't trying to be.

Magic is a great way to start conversations and break the ice in all kinds of uncomfortable situations. Don't ever force magic on someone. Most people are intrinsically good and will be nice to you after you perform a trick. Many times they will tell you that the trick was very good because they know that is what you want to hear, but deep in their heart they don't believe it. They might not have wanted to see the magic, other things might be on their minds, or they have seen some bad magicians in the past who put a bad taste in their mouth.

So when is the best time to perform magic? The best time to perform magic is when asked, but there are ways of doing quick tricks to test the waters and see if people want to see more. Look at their body language instead of what they say to see if they want to see more. A big rule of magic is to always leave them wanting more. If you only know three tricks, restrain yourself and do two of them, and don't do the third unless asked.

Of course, this is a catch-22 because how are you going to be asked to do magic if the person you are performing for doesn't know you do magic, and there aren't any friends around to work that into the conversation? The best answer is this: Start with something quick and simple. Fast and flashy. Magic Tricks that make something appear or disappear are good for this. Pull your business card out of the air.

The most important thing to remember is to have self-restraint. If, after performing a quick trick, your audience isn't showing the right signals, move on. Don't whip out a deck of cards, just let the conversation flow... and there might be a better time just around the corner.