You are right!!! Magic should be FUN.

I like practicing till I can fool myself and that takes awhile.

I practice so much, I lose track of time so I never know what day it is.

And no joke, if I want to ACTUALY shuffle a deck of cards, I have to think about it, otherwise, I'll false shuffle as if I'm normally shuffling. Very frustrating.

I literally do sleight of hand with random objects without thinking about it.

I say, practice until it becomes second nature. When you do it, and you didn't mean to, you're ready to go.

||sean ||

I havn't read to the bottom yet, but I think the best way to get motivated is to practice what you love! Find the right genre of magic, just like books that are fun to read (Secret Life of Houdini) and those that are not.

Practice can be a journey. to perfect one's magic starts small yes learn a few of the self working takes little prectice magic that's out there then add a pewrsonal challege to your practice and work for it. as with all bits of hard work reward yourself along the way with performances of what is ready to be seen by an auidence. anly you will know when you have reached a goal. setiing that goal is up to you. For instance I know that Geoff has been working Veru hard o a his new show That prmeired in the DC area just before the Holidays his new show is amazing and has taken him to a new level in performance. I personally have been on a two year journey to perfect a new rotuine of one of my illusions. and Im almost there. will you see it in someone living room no but I also am begining work on a new Parlour rotuine. after 20 years in the business The prectice never stops. it just takes on new form. Think of prctice like an onion each step is a new layer.

As a relative newbie to magic (5 years); I admit I underestimated the time and dedication required to acheive a good skill level.
Two of the best pieces of advice I've ever got:
Michael Close: "don't perform a trick until you can do it well. The lay person will judge the magic industry by the last trick they saw."
David Ben: "when learning sleights, expect to repeat a move over 700 times before you acheive muscle memory. Just like a person learning a new sport."
With that, my work is cut out for me!

Ah, "practice." There isn't anything else. It's all "practice." Ask even the finest neurosurgeon. We can only hope and trust that the "practitioners" of any Art will maintain a finely focused concentration on even the smallest, and seemingly most insignificant detail that goes into the "practice" of their craft and Art. So much hangs in the balance.
The important thing, in my estimation, is to remember to pull down the shingle when the joy is gone from the practice. Have mercy on yourself. Those you "practice" on will be eternally grateful. Good luck to you.

Gary,

Many professions use the term "practice" but not the same way a magician or other entertainers and artists would. To physicians, CPAs and lawyers the "practice" is a business entity. It is far from perfecting the act.

The standard in medical education is watch one, do one, and teach one. You're done! So much for "practice".

To an artist, practice is repeating the activity over and over. Unfortunately some magicians' acts should be called a "practice" due to the lack of practice! LOL

Enjoy!

Bob Sanders
Magic By Sander

I practice all the time. Sometimes I just keep repeating a move to make it second nature so that when I add it into a routine I don't struggle with it. A slight variation is practing a sequence of moves, especially getting into and out of the move I'm working on.

Sometimes I just work through the moves while thinking through my patter. Imagining audience reactions and how I might handle them. Double-checking the story to see if it still feels good enough to tell. Often I'll check the timing of the patter in my mind to see if it makes strong sense in terms of the effect I am trying to create.

Sometimes I just practice creating a new story for something I already do, just to keep it fresh. I think all this stuff is practice. I spend a lot of time on the train/bus

Cheers =D

I practice around 2 hours a day. I learn a trick, practice it untill I can do it natrually, then I learn another trick or routine. After awhile to remember the ones I've learned before is to just go through all the tricks you know and practice them once.

When I started doing the coin roll on my knuckles for the first time, I could not do it at all. It took months for me to be able to do it without dropping the coin. I don't know why I kept practicing, but I guess it's one of those things that I wanted to do so I kept at it. Using different coins and poker chips has helped keep me motivated. The dime was the hardest since it is so small and light, the half dollar was the heaviest, and the poker chip the biggest and smoothest. All these choices gave me an excuse to practice. Always carried something in my pocket just in case I wanted to practice. Even when walking the dog I would practice, and this was a challenge while walking and the dog pulling on the leash. Got better all the time, but still took a lot of practice. Performing the coin roll in front of a spectator was even harder, but I kept on practicing.

I try not to think of practice as punishment, but something that helps pass the time. Practicing can be very relaxing for me.

Now I am practicing throwing a spinning card up into the air and then catching it. I wonder if I could do this while walking the dog (I doubt it)?

My thoughts.
Keith

I do my boomerang practice while listening to the Go Magic Go! podcast.

You're going to find it way easier than the coin roll!

///ark

If you have a lot of time in your day, spend 2 hours every day. If you don't have 24 hours to commit to, do what I do, practice a trick in the mirror and infront of a trusted friend. you should practice until it looks natural and you can do it without thinking twice. practice at least ten times before the day of your show. practicing should not be a chore but a past time. if your busy a lot, just practice what you can. IF you practice to the point where you are fooled yourself, then it shouldn't be a problem for you to show it to somoene else.

Hi there,

I like to practice whenever I can, even if that's just ten or fifteen minutes whilst watching telly or in the car. However, if you carry a deck of cards, some coins, or whatever with you wherever you go, you will be surprised how much time you eventually spend practicing just during your spare time!

Hope this helps!

Many thanks

Magical Mark Watson
(mark1991)

Andy the Cardician,
Thank you for recommending my book, Andy. I appreciate your interest in the practice method.

Thanks again!
Gerald

The reason to practice and rehearse, is to perfect the performance of an effect! Then, maintenance practice is required. You need to be well rehearsed in the effects you perform. I would take them one at a time.

I love to practice!

-Steve

The best way to be motivated is to embrace the experience of how much you like performing and to enjoy the reactions of your audience. Another way to be motivated is to enjoy learning something (or the process of learning) something.

Most performers are not inspired by big checks but by a need to connect with an audience or improve their abilitys.

Basically, being motivated has nothing to do with being a magician AND being a magician has nothing to do with being motived BUT if you find that being a magician is rewarding because it makes you happy, that should be your motivation.

Within the art, there are different reasons why we are motivated to act a certain way or in what order you deside to present a show but that type of motivation is different from having the desire to share your talents or improve your skills.

Try performing for a friend and if you get a "kick" from their reaction, that should motivate you.