I have recently begun reading Ormond McGill's "New Encyclopedia of Stage Hypnotism."

I have been able to get the falling backwards and some of the other waking hypnosis stunts to work, but as of yet I have had absolutely no success on the "locking the spectators hands together" stunt.

Anyone give me some tips?

Hi
If I read you right, you just recently started to look in to hynosis. I am afraid that you must prepair yourself on the terryfying fact (as to the other fields of our art ) that learning this takes time.

I am not a very skilled person with hypnotism, and I do not perform it now. However I believe that I know enough to be convinced about that the "Become a stage hypnotist in 14 days"-courses that you see around give the readers of them a few too many hopes.

Again, this is "the way of eating an elephant", - Not all of it the same day, but one bite a day.

When I read what I just wrote, I can see that some might find me -- eh--patronizing, is that the word?

I don't mean to be, and have no reason to.
However, I have seen many in my own country trying to learn some something from of our art, and lose patience after a few weeks. Why they do, is very often because of the fact that the dealers promises in their adds are too many and too optimistic.

In my humble opinion, effects you can perform "5 minutes after you received it" do not exist. Not even the 1$ Ball and Vase. Atleast not any good effects.

OMG, I can see that I talk myself into something quite other than what your question was about. Still, the just witten is my opinion.

When it comes to "locking the spectactors hands together" you will find that not all spectactors hands will.

The spectactors you managed to lock the hands, are the ones you go further on with, doing other experiments. They are the most receiveable persons to hypnotism.

NB: don't let any of them struggle too long to open their hands, sooner or later they will. Help them to unlock the hands after a short while.

Also, hypnotism is all about the spectactors trust, belief and how comfortable they are with you.
You will get more and more self confidence the more you practice. The audience will notice this, and you will see that they react far better and sooner.

Sorry about all this, I was carried away.

I hope some of this could be a a little help, though.
Sven

As a starting point try to make the spectator feel that if their hands lock, it is a success for them.

Without this, or without the pressure of being on stage, or the anticipation of your "powers" you don't really have anything working for you.

I hope this helps.

Fon

Maybe "locking hands" is simply more difficult to do. So rather than asking them to separate their hands, get them to "experience" how it feels to have their hands locked and "not" ask them to separate them. To the audience it should seem that you are hynotically suggesting their hands are stuck and that to the person they feel stuck.

Also, this will help condition the person to become more suggestible. Then command him to slowly pull them apart (and if you know the Derren Brown routine, you could integrate other people or yourself in this part--I don't want to give too much away at this point.)

Getting them to try really hard to separate their hands is an important part of the process. It establishes that suggestion is taking place and sets up the rest of the show.

If you can't get locked hands then you won't be able to do a good show. Good stage hypnosis is about building anticipation and taking complete control of the situation. This must be communicated with your verbal and non verbal behaviour.

You can try any starting point, e.g. doing a palm reading or guessing which hand a coin is in.

I own a few of these stage hypnosis manuals. I have met Ormond in person as well. A rather pleasant, soft spoken person. The things that are not apparent, are that he had many years of experience before he wrote the manual. If you pay close attention Ormond brings this up over and over in the text.

Bottom line, nothing good comes fast or easy. It takes time. Many of the things in the book do work just as told,without very much practice, but not all of them without putting in the time.

I fully realize and acknowledge that stage hynotism is not something that I can read the book and go out and do it. I am prepared to put in the necessary time to gett his down. However, he presents the locking hands as a basic test early on, and says that one should be consistently successful with that stunt before going on to trance inductions. I am not trying these things on paying clients or anything. Just friends and family members so far.

I was just curious if someone else had some other touches that may help the success rate.

Brent;
" I am not trying these things on paying clients or anything. Just friends and family members so far. "

This brings me a little closer to your challenge.
When I first started rehearsing hypnotism, I did as you do, tried it on friends, bros, sisters and so.

I didn't have much progress on this (well...the fall tests went ok, with a little bit of help..
) but not the locked hands, "frozen arm" or other experiments

I found that the guys I tried this on knew me actually too well. They had seen me doing magic tricks for years, and an just anticipated that my hypnotism efforts
were magic tricks as well.

Many people didn't believe in hypnotism at that time,and absolutely not the people who knew me.
Why should Sven with all his magic tricks, apparatuses, sleight of hands and all the other mumbo-jumbo managed to do things like this??? NO Way!!

I got my kind of breakthrough on this when I started to do a few experiments for more distant friends and even strangers. I did the fall tests and locked hands in combination with other things,LOOKING like hypnotism... (among other, Hypno heat)
This made my audience more believeing, and me more confident.I moved on in the right direction from there.
After a while I could leave the trick hypnotism out, and only do "the real thing"

This is my advice.
There are several books about hypnotism for magicans, trick hypnotism and so one. Have a look into this material, and see if you can find something to use as mentioned.
Good luck
Sven

Brent,

Getting the handstick is a very basic low-level fundamental of hypnosis.

Several summers ago I taught my one daughter to ride a bike. She'd get on and crash! Crash! Crash!...wobble.... CRASH!

Finally, she *got* it. Drove down the street (but crashed trying to turn!). But she *got* it.

You are most likely over thinking it. Or, doubting it. Just believe. Talk as though it is a guaranteed FACT that it WILL happen.

Here's the big key: SEE it happen in your mind.

Read Napoleon Hill. Read Clement Stone. The Power of Positive Thinking.

Soon... very soon... you'll GET it. And then, you'll have a hard time NOT getting it to work!

Good luck!

Blair

Stage Hypnosis Secrets Revealed:www.Mental-List.com/masterhypnosis.htm

Brent,

You say you are willing to put in the work to learn hypnosis. Great. I applaud your intent.

Now, some suggestions. Get a professional certification. I am not kidding, for several reasons.

One: you will learn in a hands on manner, under supervision. Nothing helps more than a coach in the early stages of learning hypnosis.

Two: experiential training - you will get to experience some to many of the things you will be doing, so you will know how they feel and how to pace them appropriately.

Three: abreactions - very few books cover what to do when someone acts out in a manner completely unexpected and, sometimes, in a highly emotional manner. With a class, from a reputable organization, you will GET this training.

Four: suggestion formulation - in other words, how to frame your suggestions so as to minimize the probability of an abreactive response.

Five: insurance - many insurers will NOT cover you for hypnosis without a professional certification. Period.

Six: membership in a professional organization - ongoing availability of training, getting to know the movers & shakers in the field and getting to schmooze with them at conventions.

Recommendations for organizations - National Guild of Hypnotists (www.ngh.net), International Medical and Dental Hypnosis Association (IMDHA).

I carry an NGH certification and am proud of it.

I've also been doing stage hypnosis for over 30 years (not bad for a guy who's only 51), so perhaps these suggestions actually might be worth something!

Regards,

Lee Darrow, C.Ht.

I found a copy of this book in my personal library, is it any good?

Zodiac,

From what I have read so far, it is very good. And, from what people have told me, this book is for hypnotism what Corinda is for Mentalism.

Hi,
Two tips:

1. Get the client to lock their hands, say, "Your hands are locking together tighter and tighter, the more you relax your mind the tighter your hands lock together, tighter and tighter like steel cogs they are locking together" etc. Keep looking into their eyes and say ( keeping their hands in your peripheral vision) "your hands are now stuck together, try to seperate them, the harder you try the harder the harder they stick", keep looking into their eyes and if you see their hands starting to come apart say "just relax and let your hands come apart." Take credit for releasing them!

2. Get them to link their hands together, put them over their head palms UP. It is very hard to seperate the hands from that position, hypnotised or not.
All the best,

George Kaye.

Hi George
Tip 2.
I use palms down. With the inside of the fingers against the scalp. As they relax their arms, they will feel the fingers actually becoming locked tighter.
Try it yourself

Teejay, what do you mean by palms down?

Hi Mesmer,
Interlace your fingers so that the fingers of your right hand are resting in the palm of your left hand and vice versa.

Place your hands on top of your head palms down. You now have your scalp Interlaced fingers resting on scalp. Palms resting on interlaced fingers.

With palms down, gravity and fricion help create the desired state i.e. they can't open them. Palms up, I have trouble keeping them together.
Anybody with any views?

I agree that it is important to believe what you say will happen will happen. If you don't believe in your success, why should they? You can do it to people who have known you - it is all in presentation and personal conviction. I have locked my wife's hands so tight that left finger prints on the back of her hand. It helps if you get the script down so you own it and you use visual triggers like the strongest crazy glue in the world. It gives them something to relate to other than their hands are just locking togther. Their hands are glued, clamped, locked tighter and tighter. A bolt runs through their hands and the nut is being drawn tighter and tighter.

Its all in their responding to your suggestions. Keep practicing and trying them on more and more people who don't know you. They'll believe what you tell until they find out different. That's why you never tell anyone its your first show. Its belief and expectancy.

Brent,

For me, it's all about how you say it. With some people I spend up to two minutes (usually it's 10 odd seconds) telling them "your fingers are locked tight, so tight, like they are glued, taped and then cemented together. Like they are carved from the same piece of wood, the harder you try to separate them, they will lock down even tighter". More on that vein for a while, then once I see they are following the suggestion of squeezing tighter (white knuckles) I'll ask them to "try in vain to pull your hands apart. Really try, but notice, the harder you try, your fingers only get tighter." By this time they will be begging me (in at least one case literally) to drop them...

Notice I tell them to lock their FINGERS, and then ask them to separate their HANDS, which they can't do without loosening their fingers, which I didn't tell them to do... subtle, but it works.

Also learn how to express the opposite to what you are saying. E.g. No meaning Yes, or Yes meaning No. Use that skill when you ask them to separate their hands. This also teaches you to be congruent (vital with hypnosis) when you lock their fingers (or any other suggestion).

Enjoy
M.

Shrink brought up a key point, and key word - TRY. I.e. TRY to pick up the pencil. I didn't say pick up the pencil, I said TRY to pick up the pencil.

I also give the suggetion time to work in their heads i.e. "IN A MOMENT something very interesting is going to happen". SOON I'm going to ask you to TRY and pull your hands apart.

After observing/questioning participants, I've found this to be most helpful.

v/r
Truth

Also, you may find this works better if you have "prepared" your subject, perhaps with the locking eyelids bit. I find that makes it a lot easier to achieve results.

/bamba