What you are giving advice from is the trailer for the product. That is not serious advice concerning this DVD. It is conclusions based upon the cover.

You do give advice elsewhere and not bad advice. This however is not advice towards this product.

What I read is, that you believe this product scr**s with your professional work. Not at all. It is cheaper than other products but that is not affecting the quality.

I do understand that you are felling the secrets are slipping out of your hands but then again this has been going on for 25 years.

In the thread "TV hypnosis discussion" you all thought Barry was doing a great show.
That show and Spidey’s are not that different. The method is roughly the same. Spidey makes an introduction to hypnosis.
After seeing his DVD I can understand the mechanism of hypnosis. That is not to say I can do it myself.
He gives information on where to seek more information.
The full show is on the DVD but one of the first things Spidey addresses is to make your own unique show and your own induction. If you do not I think he will find you and ....

Work on your comprehension skills it will serve you well. I said I was bored by his show. So not "all" thought he was doing a great show.

You really are delusional. The "secret" of hypnosis is THERE IS NO SECRET. There is literally nothing to slip away, and this has been true for centuries. Apparently you do not understand the mechanism as well as you think.

ALL the criticism of him from his clip is legitimate. Like I said it is a poor theatrical choice to insert yourself into skits in my view. He has his reasons. No biggie. But to tell us that unless we but the DVD we are not allowed to say that is crazy.

Sorry to break it to you but it is serious advice. You are just not keeping up. Which you have proven.

Also I said the inflaited claims were another thing I mentioned. They are being used to sell the product. I don't need to buy one to know they are bogus as the man himself had said they were inflaited. Then he said he was OK with that. This says a lot about him that we don't have to but the DVD to find out.

I am glad you enjoyed your DVD. Ultimately that is wonderful and the goal. But so wroth the BS for us.

I said Barry was old school and enjoyed his show because it was good to see old school that was in the early 90s it was out of date even back then.

I am also giving you a point of view from someone who has seen a market destroyed by having to many operators in it. Especially bad ones who work in cheap venues and do pretty bad job of presenting a show.

"secrets" given away over 25 years its totally different to whats happening now with the internet. Every man and his dog can create a digital product showing how to do a hypnosis show.( And every man and his dog does) You could spend all day watching kids on Youtube do bad inductions etc etc.

From your point of view as a beginner you might think this is a good thing. But the reality is its ****ing up hypnosis. I don't care about people getting access to what you call "my skills" because I no longer make a living from doing shows it makes no difference to me personally. I'm just sad to see stage hypnosis being brought down to its knees and losing the respect it once had. Information was hard to find when I started it was expensive yet I found it and paid my dues. In those days it was a special thing now anyone with $30 and google can download a digital course and make ****ty video's on Youtube. The last thing the market needs is another cheap product.

I don't expect you to see it this way so long as you enjoy the product I don't expect you to care.

I also agree with everything Danny has said.

In the end it hurts the purchaser more than anything.

The reason prices are going down is the reason people purchase is different. It is inexpensive to produce the products, all products not just hypnosis. To widen the appeal his target the idle curious. They target an audience that will never spend the time and effort to do a show. Then there are those who will never do more than 2.

You can spend a few bucks out of curiosity to be "in the know" and this is who most of these products are aimed at. It is FAR more people and probably good from a business standpoint to sell more products. It is what it is. Can you imagine how few of these things would sell to people who actually became full time performers? Look at all of the seminars, all the training, all the DVD and downloads and hope many of these people become working hypnotists on any real level for any length of time? The percentage is staggeringly low. So the idea that our "secrets" ate slipping away is silly even silly that point of view.

Maybe it affects the market maybe not. I am not sure. Beginners don't affect me. What is funny is that people go to putting out products and courses so much faster than they used to. His in l working 5 or 10 years are the world's foremost authority. That is what is starting to dilute information. Google had made everyone an instant expert.

Oh well I am happy you are happy with your product. Just don't misrepresent what we say, and it rings you're credibility, if you have any, to engage in the behavior you are crying about.

I guess it depends on where you perform Danny. I believe you have a hold on your market and can and have control over other hypnotists in your area. If I'm not mistaken they work for your agency? Its also a transient audience on holiday. That's different from normal venues where people aren't on holiday and are in town permanently etc. If there is a surge in interest then there is a surge in the number of "operators". If you are in a town for example doing theatre shows and all of a sudden every bar has a "hypnotist" in a short time it does affect how hypnosis is perceived. Especially if the bar shows are poor. People get bored with it. It loses its appeal and perceived value quick. You can get away with it a little more in holiday destinations because people are always moving on.

This is my experience plus also the experience of some hypnotists friends from the US. It drives the fees down etc.

It may never affect you by the sounds of it. And that's great.

The price of a product isn't that expensive whether its book or DVD CD or download. The value of a product is in the info given with it. I have paid thousands for digital products I downloaded and the money was worth every penny because of what I could do with it. And what I could make with it financially.

But this is just from my experience and point of view. I come from a different generation with different values and a different market too. This isn't just hypnosis though many markets end up with the same fate. Its a universal thing. It still makes me sad seeing it happen though.

Maybe its just me.

Dannydoyle I applaud you for having a creative show, then. However, you are misunderstanding me, I think.

It doesn't matter if everyone else is doing the same show. They have nothing unique to offer and thus are interchangeable. Those are the ones who are using pricing to compete. Unique acts are not interchangeable, and so they are far easier to market for decent prices. If you want a specific act then you have to pay the price for that act.

The clouds are not concerned with how many drops are in the ocean.

I have no concern with folks who are getting into this learning from cookie cutter resources. I strive to make a unique show, so they are not my problem. The people who have seen my work do not put me into the same category as the normal performers and my reputation is solid.

Furthermore, anyone can learn how to hypnotize people. The resources have been on the market for decades, if not centuries (when you start to learn where to look). While I wouldn't do it, I could teach someone how to hypnotize in a day and they could probably have the skills in their head to go out that night and get some subjects tranced out in the bar. It's not difficult, it's not secret.

The secrets, as with any performance based profession, are the ability to engage and entertain an audience and present something unique and wonderful for them. That is what makes you a unique and wonderful snowflake, not the ability to guide someone into a naturally occurring state of mind that has been used for centuries.

So now repeating what I said about the secrets is your point? Seriously?

YOU seem to not be able to comprehend my point. I said that I feel bad for the people who PURCHASE the items. I NEVER said they impact me in any way shape or form.

Also if it takes you a day to teach someone how to hypnotize someone work on your communication skills because if it takes 2 hours that would be a long time.

Also sorry to give you a wet blanket but unique acts are interchangeable. When you get to a certain level any act is interchangeable. For example you can have Lance Burton or David Copperfield. The unique act is unique to YOU and in YOUR eyes. The audience looks at it as a night of entertainment and that bill can be filled by literally ANY act on that level.

I agree that our situation is a bit different. No question about it.

I can indeed see your point about a surge in performers. I have always done tours. Never tried to sit a show down in a specific area. Well in Branson, but that didn't work so well LOL!. I was thinking of hiring a bouncer to throw people INTO the place!

I have no idea if it affects one vs the other. I can see how it may.

It does seem I was mixing your posts up with others as well. My fault for forum-ing while also working.

I do have two responses to your post though - First, why would you feel bad for anyone who has acquired a resource to teach them about hypnosis? Spidey's video may well just be an introduction (I haven't purchased it yet, as I'm on the fence as to whether it would actually teach me anything) - but it's an introduction to an incredible field. Personally I think hypnosis is amazing and I study it because every day I learn something new about how much power the human mind has. I do this because I love hypnosis. Performing hypnosis is just a way to fund my desire to learn more about it, really.

Second - Everyone mimics before they can innovate. Everyone learning a new skill is going to copy the person they learn from in the beginning. That is just how humans learn, as I am sure you know. So there's no reason to pity someone who is learning from cookie-cutter resources, because either they will use that as a stepping stone to move on to bigger, better, and more innovative things - or they will will stagnate and not make an impact on the field - or they will get bored and drop out. Option 1 interests me and the other two have no impact whatsoever so I don't care about them.

When I say I could teach someone how to hypnotize in a day, I am giving a loose time frame. I do not mean 24 hours exactly. I mean I would devote a day to making sure they understood the process, the health and safety concerns, possible outcomes, etc. And there would be a certain amount of testing and re-affirming of information. You are free to assume that I'm an ineffective teacher, of course, it really doesn't matter to me.

I respectfully disagree on the idea of unique acts. I assume this is something we will simply have to have different opinions on, but here is my thinking: Lance Burton and David Copperfield are unique, sure, but they're both grand illusionists. How unique can you be pushing boxes around? But if someone wants Lance Burton, then Dan Sperry is not going to fill that slot. If you want Ricky Jay, David Copperfield is not going to fill that slot.

What you are referring to is people who are simply assuming that a high price tag automatically means a good show. But people who actually care about who they are hiring make sure they hire the right person. And the right person will have an act that no one else does. It will have an aesthetic or premise or whatever that is not done by other people. That is what I mean when I say "unique". Not "kind of unique" I mean "no one else does this and if you want this you have to hire this person."

What I am referring to is apples to apples. If someone wants Ricky Jay they will not hire Ricky Martin. So your comparison to Dan Sperry is ridiculous.

You are assuming I am making an assumption and you are just wrong.



There is reason to pity people purchasing bad products. Lots of reasons.

There are no unique acts in hypnosis. There are a few different styles and shows that cater to a limited number of markets. There is however varied levels of competence ability ambition and personality. But the shows in terms of material vary only slightly. Hypnosis was seen as unique years ago though and this is what I mean by the saturation of products and training courses and the internet. It erodes the uniqueness.

When you have a saturated market you find many bookers don't see hypnotists the same as other performers. A hypnotist is just a hypnotist to them so a lot of the time they go by the cheapest then complain that hypnotists are no good and book no more in the future. Others may be more careful but I found generally if a market is saturated it becomes more difficult to command the higher fees.

I can see this being true. I have not disowned it myself but I can follow the logic.

Saturation can not help much I can see that. The college and fair markets in America have taken a hit due to this I believe. Heck comedy clubs have All but gone out of business because of saturation. I can see the point.

One of the problems with hypnosis is what is happening here...magicians! Too much magaicians's talk an magician's perspectives. This, in part, is what also helped kill hypnosis.

This is not personal this is business.

It is your right to comment on this product. It is also legit to comment. What I am questioning is the ability to make serious comments about this DVD without seeing it. If you think you could make a solid review on anything without seeing it then you are arrogant and unprofessional. What would you say to a 5-year-old kid that postulate, “I do not like vegetable”. I would guess it could be “try tasting them”. “No I do not want to taste them I know I do not like them”. I would say it is childish and immature postulate. Your review based on the trailer I would call unprofessional and unserious.
If you had seen the DVD and commented in the same way, I would have taken that for serious reviewing.

Do not tell me what I can comprehend or not. Maybe I am new to Hypnosis but that is not the same on other fields. I am not saying what you can grasp or not. It is not the way to make an argument better. Make your arguments and let them speak for themselves.

Maybe the market has been destroyed or saturated, but it is not the magicians nor this DVD fault. Do not blame other people. If you have what it takes then you will be fine. Witch Doctor made the same point.

If every commercial told the truth and the products fulfills all the promises the make, then this world would have another look to it.

Alright, lets set a few things straight here. In every one of your posts you have taken things out of context and made accusation which are incorrect and untrue. First let's separate fact from opinion.

The advice originally asked for here was based on those with knowledge, experience and fact. Your views are based on opinions. Danny, Mindpunisher and my posts he, not just the trailer. Secondly, regardless of what the guys says he IS a magician doing hypnosis (and it's quite immediately obvious). Anyone in the real world of hypnosis easily knows and understand there is a HUGE difference and it becomes quite obvious, very quickly - again fact.

Comparing the skills, knowledge and credibility of this to a kid not liking vegetables is just as weak of an uninformed opinion. No arguments being made. Arguments again are based on opinion. Facts usually can speak for themselves. If you liked the dvd great, but that does not make it legit, credible or a proper learning tool. DVDs like this can often do more damage to both the performer and the art/industry as the newbies that see it or think they are learning something from it properly and have no ideas that they may not, or that the content or approach may be suspect or damaging in the long run. Or that the entire DVD may only be based on the creators own "opinions."

Is the dvd bad? No, it is no different than many other of the many similar dvds by magicians out there. The problem is the viewer thinks they are properly learning hypnosis from it. They don't know any better. They think for under $50 they are learning stage hypnosis. They are not - again fact. This is what can be damaging. Would you want to learn race car driving from a manager at Jiffy Lube or from an experienced NASCAR racer? Yes, they both work in the auto industry, and have knowledge of cars, but there is a huge difference. Same thing here.

No one here (other than you) is even trying to make an argument, but offering facts and information based on real-work working experience. Even if this were and "argument" as you call it, you wouldn't even be able to be part of it because of your lack of knowledge and experience on the subject. Again, let's keep things in the proper perspective.

You are new to hypnosis, you are new to the Café, and you are new to this hypnosis forum, yet you are trying to tell us how to act, and respond (again, opinion). Sorry, I disagree.

And to address your statement from above (again opinion) accusing us of only giving our "opinions" based on the demo. Yes, a longtime experienced professional can easily tell all they need to about someone, their skills, experience, approach and credibility in only the first few minutes of seeing them. I can usually tell in the first 15 seconds. This is not a diss on (or directed to) this guy or his dvd, but rather a fact based on any demo or video from any "professional" performer. At my agencies I receive demos every day, and we all make our assessments the exact same way. As a entertainment trainer and coach, they first thing I assess from a student or client is a demo of the performer. It is one of the best ways for proper assessment and self-assessment for performers.

Welcome to the real world of entertainment. If you aren't thick-skinned enough for it, perhaps this too can be a lesson. It's quite disrespectful when some of the most experienced and longtime working pros I know here come on to assist some newbies question only to have other newbies try to go toe to toe on information and skills they do not know. It is insulting here as it would be in any industry.

Yes, the market has been destroyed by magicians, DJs and comedians by products created and marketed towards magicians, DJs and comedians. They think by buying a dvd, taking a course and watching youtube videos they someone can become a professional stage hypnotist. Do you think the guys selling these dvds, books, courses, etc. will tell them otherwise? Of course not. Unfortunately magicians are the worse because of their instilled magician's thinking and always wanting to take a shortcut to hypnosis, to treat it like a trick or effect, with very few ever properly and truly getting proper hypnosis training and certification.

Perhaps you may learn a bit more by listening rather than talking and offering such opinions a on the topic when you, yourself as still in the beginning stages. You can't listen of you are always taking. Getting caught up in your own opinions, can prevent you from listening and learning from those that speak the facts. Sorry this may be a harsh reality for you, but I think others can learn from it as well.

I love when newbies want to speak as if somehow they A peer.

The fact is you are not helping Spidy here at all. He came and answered concerns quote well on his own. Maybe not in the way I would have but he doesn't really look bad doing it.

As for just brushing of false claims in advertising basically saying everyone does it what can be said? Sad defence of a sad practice. That is really the only point you made. Lots of words to say nothing.

All mighty I undestand clearly now that that you are the masters.

I was not helping Spidey I was making a point that you are so mighty that you do not have to watch anything to make statements about them. You have seen it all and tried it all. You are great men with great wisdom. O why did I not see that coming. It is not my opinion that is questioned but your abilities, but they are set straight here by you and me.

Yea see IF you bother to comprehend what is written it would be easier to keep up.

Sorry child but you are not a peer. Not even remotely close. Your opinion of our opinion is not even valid.

Spidy has a valid opinion and approach. This is not questioned.
I wish he would come back because I would like to hear his reasoning behind being in the skits. He has a reason and must do it fire that reason.

Your opinion interests me not.

For some reason a sentence was missing from my above post. It was something to the fact that First, I have seen the dvd not just the trailer, in which your opinion offered regarding this was wrong.

You got it this time. You have pulled the father/son card. After that, there is nothing left. In addition, you topped it with personal insults.

The example could have been the movie critic that got the question. The new James Bond movie. Is it a good movie? It is the worst movie I have never seen. I have watched crabby action movies for the past 25 years so I know what I am talking about.

If you would give advice to the OP. It could have been something like, I have not seen the DVD but you should instead focus on Ericsson, Ormond McGill or somebody else.
My experience on the DVD may not be of interest of you, and that is fine by me. You are on the spot that it is not for you.

I am listening and reflecting on what written. That is why I think, and question a conclusion based on a 1 min. trailer.
Fact are everyone make an opinion on a person within the first 2 seconds. It is also a fact that you do not always get it right.

That Spidey is in the skids are addressed on the DVD and there are opinions both way.