Is Magic Too Hard To Learn

by brad jackson

NOT AT ALL

We often hear people ask that very question.

One thing I have learned in my studies of various different things is that nothing is truly hard once you begin to learn the fundamentals and just build from there.

Clever product placement,eh?
I believe this applies to brain surgery, learning how to walk, or simply doing a magic trick for a hottie.

From the outside looking in one might believe that it takes years of practice to learn how to do these different skills.

CHILD’S PLAY

I can’t help but think of seeing a child learn how to walk. They fall on their ass so many times before they even can stand up in one position. We think it is so cute and cheer them on.

They continue to push on because they want to do what all the other people around them seem to do with ease.

Even at their young age they are calibrating what is working and what is not with each attempt. Such geniuses we were, eh?

The positive feedback further encourages them to keep pushing on even more.

Having that patience with ourselves is very difficult since we tend to want the immediate results. The reality is that as we are learning a new skill we are doing so at a concious level.

Through repetition and “falling on our ass” we begin to learn the skill at a subconcious level. You will begin to find yourself doing these little tricks we teach with relative ease. You will not be able to pick up a business card without making it disappear. (I hope brain surgeons have it right before they operate on a live patient though)

DISCOVERY OF NEW SKILLS

I consistently discover myself doing that very thing and don’t realize it until someone points it out or they are just staring in amazement and dissillusionment.

Little do they know that I was dropping cards for weeks and feeling like giving up.

So I continue to bust my ass in delight now everytime I decide to learn a new trick or simply learn a new (puma)skill.

  • bill

    This is so true. In some ways, seeing the final, perfected version of a trick on a video can be discouraging. It shows me where I want to end up with a trick and how powerful it looks, but it can add to my frustration when I’m first learning it. My attempts look nothing like the video – I drop things, reveal other things and generally make a mess of it. It’s nice to hear that magic doesn’t come automatically for other people too. The only thing that really kept me at it was learning and doing my very first effect and getting a great reaction. At least I know it’s possible.

  • know

    I never thought about that. You are right though.

    I am thinking, DAMN I WANT TO DO IT JUST LIKE THAT! Truth be told, they were screwing up for a while before they got to that point where they make it look effortless.

    These guys have been practicing for many years and developed all the backup plans and patter in case something goes wrong.

    Allow yourself to fail and have fun with it. Although I personally prefer to make it a small failure, my ego is a sensitive thing, eh?

  • Magicdream

    Generally, it’s the lack of personality and will which creates the difficulties and mental blocks. Therefore, nothing can compromises our progress faster than our mind! If we have faith in ourselves and strive constantly to keep a positive attitude, our efforts will be successful. On the other hand, a negative view engenders the failure. Because, more often, itisn’t the circumstances which determine our destiny, but it’s our manner to confront the events, our self-confidence and the degree of our will which, in reality, make our destiny and as the saying goes: “where there’s a will there’s a way.”

    Always remember that for the ones who have reached the summits (in magic or any other domain) and have realized their aims, the self-confidence and will were the basis of their success. They take the initiative, forestall the others and declare: “We form our destiny ourselves, we are what we think to be and the passivity doesn’t make winners”.

    So, stay positive and remember: practice makes perfect; self- confidence, like muscles, can be built up; it’s the self-confidence, without any overestimation, which makes the difference between success and failure. Consider any failure as an unfinished work!

    Cheers

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