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Note From the Editor

What follows was originally published by Jeff McBride for Wittus Witt’s “Magische Welt” magazine in Germany.Also published in the Secret Art Journal.

Reprinted here in Stone Cold Magic Magazine with permission from Bryce Kuhlman and Jeff McBride

The purpose, as always, of the Roots and Branches column is all about improving as a performer. What better person to learn about that than Jeff McBride. For even more help and tips on improvement, check out his latest book, The Show Doctor.

Meanwhile, enjoy the following essay from Jeff McBride.

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In this month’s article we are going to take a close look at what causes stage fright and some strategies to overcome these fears. More importantly we will provide you (the magician) with some concrete methods of overcoming your fears of external judgment. Though in February 2008, I touched on overcoming the jitters, this month I really want to take a deep look into the psychology behind stage fright.

I can remember clearly the first time I was asked to speak in front of an audience. It was one of the most frightening experiences in my life, however, in retrospect it became one of the most life-changing. I was working for the Department of Workforce Services and the Federal Government asked the Quality Analyst Department of Utah to develop and present training for the State of Utah Public Assistance Administration Conference.

Well my Supervisor assigned me to the task. It was interesting to watch the faces of all the other Quality Control Analyst before our Supervisor announced the nominee. Some exclaimed openly that they did not want to do it, while others planned vacations or played sick. Some went so far as to elaborately avoid our supervisor’s radar until a nominee was selected.

The fears expressed in my co-workers faces were sincere and very real. I found myself tied up in knots with the thought of being selected. The moment arrived, and the anticipation gripped the air. No one spoke a word. When my supervisor read my name the feeling could only be described as the feeling a Death-row inmate would experience before being carted off to the electric chair.

The day came: Judgment Day. I felt sick, and I remember not being able to sit down. There were hundreds of people present and every scan of the room produced more anxiety. I felt like I wanted to run out of the conference room and hide. I even had brief thoughts of planning a brilliant scheme of playing sick. But once the certain opened there was no turning back. In the beginning stages of my presentation I noticed that the more I engaged with the audience, the better I felt.

I guess by doing so I felt like I had a connection, giving me the perception that it was a one on one conversation rather than a presentation to an audience. Once I got through the body and closer to my conclusion I started feeling energized and alive.

After concluding my presentation, the audience cheered and applauded. People were coming up to me after the presentation giving me compliments and words of encouragement. I noticed that none of the earlier fears that I was experiencing were present anymore. In fact I felt alive, and the euphoria was overwhelming. So what happened? What caused me to experience so much fear? The audience was not a pack of wolves ready to rip my flesh off of my body, but I truly felt that I was facing a clear and present danger.

Though this life experience shared ended well, I had many more that did not. I learned that even the seemingly negative experiences are opportunities for learning. The main idea is how can we reframe these fears into opportunities for success? Before we discuss how we reframe fear, we need to know what fear is.

I would like to first define fear and why it is programmed into our biology. There have been many books written on the subject of fear and many of them focus on how fear can keep us alive. These books also address how fear can stagnate our progress and even stop functionality. So what is fear and how can we truly develop a working relationship with it? Regardless of your believe systems, I think we all can agree that there was a time when men and women were pitted against the environment directly for survival.

There were real and direct dangers that presented life threatening obstructions to our survival. Either it was being prey to predatory animals that co-existed with mankind, or other tribes (groups) fighting for territory and food access. The dangers were real and looming. Fear is a defense mechanism that heightens our senses, provides us with supernatural strength, and can give us a sixth sense to help us avoid danger. But what is not common knowledge is that fear and anger are two sides to the same coin.

As we discussed in last month’s article that we have a fight or flight mechanism that is activated when we feel threatened. The interesting aspect about this mechanism is that it can save your life if you are presented with a direct and real danger, however, what happens when that danger is indirect and perception-based?

Indirect and perception-based fears can seem very real and can paralyze an individual. If you study panic and anxiety disorders you will discover that the fight/flight mechanism kicks into overdrive. These episodes are triggered by conscious or subconscious fear-based beliefs regarding a situation or circumstance. These panics can caus accelerated heart rates, shortness of breath, and even can give the individual a sense that he/she is dying. It fascinating to realize how psychologically based beliefs can affect our physiology.

As magicians we all can recall our first experiences performing in front of an audience. Some of you out there probably experienced butterflies, feelings of nervousness, or in some cases some overwhelming feelings of panic. We have to keep in mind that perception based fears are limited to the mind’s eye.

As I stated I truly felt threatened by the audience, and in that moment I felt like I was facing a dangerous situation. Due to my perception of speaking to an audience, I created illusions of fear that caused my fight/flight mechanism to kick in. Fortunately I discovered that by reframing the situation, from focusing on speaking to a large audience to having a one-on-one conservation with human beings, helped calm my reactions allowing me to become responsive.

The center of stage fright lays our defense of ego. Understand that the ego contains our self concepts (our views about ourselves). To stand in front of an audience is to truly leave you vulnerable to judgment. This fear of judgment can feel very real and can cause you to go into a reactive state. So how can we control these perception based fears? The answer is reframing.

Reframing is the process of taking a perception, belief system, and/or memory and alternating it consciously, thus turning the experience from negative to positive. Understand that optimal performances are executed under a state of relaxation. To all of you beginning magicians please take this to heart because only when you have mastery over your perception based fears will you obtain a higher level of performance.

Before the performance, use the visualization techniques taught in the third step in my article “overcoming the Jitters.” Visualization is a great way to reframe your past, present, and future experiences. A great reframing technique is to focus on a positive aspect of a situation; for example when I reframed my presentation from a large group to a one-on-one conversation. This alleviated much of the anxiety that I was experiencing earlier because I focused on one audience member at a time, and once my nerves calmed I was able to focus on the whole audience. Remember it usually is the first handful of performances that are the most nerve-racking. Through time and practice, we all start to feel easier about the performance and overall develop a love for the stage. Reframe you perception-based fears into opportunities of growth and rejuvenation.

Here is an analogy that will illustrate how perception based fears are transformed into exhilarating experiences through allowing yourself to embrace the fear and take action. Most of us can remember our first roller coaster ride. Waiting in line we find ourselves getting restless and anxiety saturated with anticipation. As you hear the thunderous roar of the passing coasters you start to feel the butterflies swarm within your stomach.

The line moves forward, and every step you take causes more tension. Your mind is at war. One side is urging you to push forward while the other demands a retreat. With the opening of the gates your throat dries and hands perspire. As you get into your seat, you have one last thought of jumping off and running for your life. Too late, the bars go down securing you to the seat. As the coaster climbs up the hills, each clack of the pulling chain pounds in your ears. The moment has come, the descent. The roar of the coaster muffles your screams, and with every twist and turn your senses heighten. As fast as it started the coaster comes to a stop. Then, paradoxically, the very next thought that enters your mind is: “let’s do it again.”

Remember every perception-based fearful moment presents an opportunity for growth. Embrace it and know that the end of it provides life, not death. Reframe your judgment days and remember your first rollercoaster ride. Enjoy these moments because they are truly the thrills of life.

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So the question remains: why are some individuals willing to let go and enjoy the foreign experience that magic delivers, while some seemingly cannot drop their defense mechanisms long enough to be blanketed by the magical experience?

In this month’s article I am going to dive in deep into the human psyche to answer these important questions and provide you (the magician) with a deeper understanding of what is psychologically going on in the minds of these difficult spectators.

So there I was in Las Vegas enjoying the company of good friends and like most social gatherings once people know that you are a magician, the requests start pouring in.

So the cards break out and I start my routine. In the midst of my magic performance, which by this time was going very well, I noticed that there was one spectator who was separate from the crowd. His defiant expression spoke volumes of his discontent with what he was witnessing.

That is when the challenges began. It came in the middle of my performance of The Coolest Ace Trick in the World. The man exclaimed in a booming voice “I know what you are doing!” Understanding where he was going with this I calmingly replied “well then, from one magician to another I believe you can appreciate the craftsmanship of a well practiced routine.”

My reply was calculated to determine if this gentleman was an ego-based spectator or a control-based spectator. Generally ego-based spectators love to be the center of attention and of course the magic I was performing that night became the focus of this gathering.

Through my past experiences and my understanding of psychology I understood that the best way to deflate conflict with an aggressive ego-based spectator is to throw them an “Ego Bone.” In this case by saying “from one magician to another” I placed this man equally to me, which in most ego battles removes the motive for conflict. But unfortunately he did not stop there.

This is where it got interesting. The man continued to challenge every move, every gesture, and continue to proclaim he knew every sleight I performed. I stood there witnessing the once contagious enthusiasm of the audience suffocated by this spectator’s relentless exclaims of discredit.

I found myself feeling uneasy and wondering what could have provoked such aggression. It was not like I was selling carrot juice a cure for cancer. I was entertaining them with no other intention except for wanting to amaze and provide an experience that some of the audience members have never witnessed firsthand.

But the seemingly negative experience suddenly starting to be a lesson I will never forget. It became clear to me what was going on inside the mind of this difficult spectator. That clarity started to emerge when he exclaimed “You can’t fool me!” I replied “my intention is not to fool you, but simply entertain.”

He snapped back “There is no such thing as real magic. It is all sleight of hand and gimmicks.” This is where I started to lose my cool, which is rare for me. But for some reason I was stunned by his sure disregard for my craft. I sarcastically shot back, “Well I never claimed that I knew any witchcraft, sorcery, or voodoo for that matter, however, if you continue with this I will have to pull a monkey from your butt.” In retrospect that was not the best thing to say. This obviously escalated the conflict.

At this point I drew a line to a battle I never intended to wage. Some words were exchanged and in his last effort to make a point he struck the cards I was holding, scattering all over the floor and stomped away. In a professional setting my response may have been considered inappropriate, which I would agree because in my perspective I lost my mind control.

Think about it; which one of us was in control is this situation, was it the man or was I in control? Obviously the man was in control because I adopted his combative mentality, and in the end the magic was ruined and he got the last non-verbal statement. I believe that the most important lessons in life present themselves in failure. So what can we learn from this experience?

The type of spectator this man was is what I would define as control-based. Control-based spectators do not like the thought of not knowing, which in turn gives them a sense of control loss. Understand that people in general react either cautiously or aggressively to threatening situations.

Unknowns can be very threatening to some people, and their reactions can derive from the fight or flight mechanism. Though this man was aggressive taking on more of the fight reaction, some will simply act uninterested and walk away taking on the flight reaction.

I believe that mankind’s last true liberty is our thoughts: our minds. Mind control has fascinated and terrified Sci-Fi readers throughout the ages. Why? The thought of losing your thoughts can be an uneasy thought, what?!? In this example the conflict was founded on the fact that the man perceived that he was not in control.

His sense of control derived from what he knew and understood. The magic effects presented an illusion that could not easily be explained through his current knowledge base. So how did he react to this? He reacted by simply challenging and aggressively attempting to deduce my sleights and debunking my magic. I threatened this man with my illusions because he perceived my performance as a battle for mind control.

In retrospect the man was correct, because though I initially did not intend to engage in this battle in the end I found myself unintentionally fighting for control with this gentleman. Child Psychology has taught me that the confrontation that transpired between the man and me can be compared to conflicts we see between parents and children.

Think about this for a moment; we have all witnessed a parent being dragged helplessly by the will of their children, but there are cases in contrast where the parents rule with an iron fist. Both cases end in power struggles that inevitably result in emotional strain and relational division.

Power struggles for control never end in a win/win situation. On the contrary they end in unnecessary conflict, and if analyzed carefully they never achieve the objectives the parties originally set out for. In the example with the confrontational man, I never had dealt with a control-based spectator which put me on the defensive and ultimately caused me to react in a way that contradicted my professionalism. Though the solution came to me in retrospect, the lesson will stay with me for the rest of my life. The answer is that you need to give up a little control to gain control.

There are some cases where, in my professional opinion, that the best thing to do is to walk away, however, the understanding of what these difficult spectators are going through psychologically can give you an empathic perspective that will allow you to deal with these situations calmly and compassionately.

Remember there are no mind control battles that exist outside of your mind because the true enemy is found within. As a magician you must keep in mind that you have no control over your external circumstances, for example how people are going to react.

However, you do have control over your internal responses, how you consciously choose to handle the situation. Professionalism is measured by our ability to remain responsive rather than reactive. Once you adopt a reactive mentality you have lost control, giving the control to your external circumstances.

I know that there were times I wanted to master the deadly art of ninja card throwing, so that I could neutralize a difficult spectator by burying a card into the wall next to his head sending an unsettling message. If you had similar fantasies refrain from carrying this out to fruition because all you will achieve is magically turning yourself into an ass.

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Many moons ago I worked at a prison to help rehabilitate prisoners. During that time, one of the more aggressive inmates made a comment along these lines: “They say that the meek shall inherit the Earth, but that’s a bunch of crap; the strong and powerful shall inherit the Earth.”

What he did not understand was that inheriting the Earth is nothing to do with strength or even intelligence, but rather humility and teach-ability. The more teachable you are the more you gain or inherit, and the more wise you become.

Root:
Let’s remember our roots. Do you think that guys like Houdini were born knowing how to be entertainers? No way! Houdini had more failures in his early career. He had to learn to become who he became. He also spent time learning how to pick locks and build illusions… on and on and on.

The point is that our past is full of well-known performers who were life-long students of the art. They never stopped learning, nor should you. Your art, our art is rooted in a history rich with brilliant people who made it their life’s work to study and learn as much as they could. Sometimes the learning came from other people, sometimes from books, and sometimes from themselves.

Having the ability to see yourself is a knack that takes years to pursue. Notice that I did not say “achieve,” but rather I said “pursue.” Most people waste many, many years of their lives not pursuing the ability to see themselves. Paradoxically, it is the view of themselves that obscures the ability to see themselves.

In other words, they are too busy wrapped up in how amazing they are that they forget that they make mistakes, and that other people see them in a completely different light. Eventually, the wise ones realize that their own view of themselves is not the correct view. It is a very distorted and biased view. The eye cannot see itself. However, if the eye tries to see itself, it will be better off than it would be if it thinks that it IS seeing itself.

I know this sounds kind of deep, but reread the above two paragraphs a few times before you move on to the Branch. I want you to truly understand this concept.

Once you realize that you must pursue the vision of what others see, then, and only then will you realize how distorted your current view is. That’s when change occurs. That change is enabled by humility and teach-ability, also known as meekness. Yes. The Meek shall inherit the Earth.

Branches:
Let’s build our branches. Ok so you’ve got the gist of it, I think. You must realize that your view of yourself is very distorted. Your goal or branch for this month is to try to see what others see. Note that seeing doesn’t always happen with the eyes. It can happen with all of the senses and the proverbial sixth sense.

For example, here’s an exercise I want you to do right now. Get a video recorder. Get a friend who doesn’t mind you testing a few magic tricks on him/her. Get another friend to operate the camera. I want you to perform an effect that you are very good at, that you do extremely well. Have your friend film you doing this trick on your other friend.

Then I want you to go to a quiet room alone, and listen, not watch, listen to the video. Listen to your patter, to your friend’s responses to your patter. Listen to your responses to his responses. Do you cut him off? Do you sound cocky? Do you sound insulting? Have someone else that was not present at the time of the filming listen to the audio without viewing the video and critique it as well.

No matter what they say, however harsh, rude or bold, do NOT argue; do NOT justify your actions; do NOT explain; do NOT say, “yeah but.” Just LISTEN and thank them for their time. Compare your feedback to their feedback. How are they similar? How are they dissimilar? Try to change anything that they told you to change, even if you think it’s a bad idea. Just try it.

You can repeat this experiment by watching the video with no sound. You can repeat it again by watching it with sound and video. Each time, get a different friend to critique you.

The intent here is not to get you to change your act to the whim of your friend, but rather to get you to LISTEN and RESPOND to criticism openly without getting emotional or defensive. This is the beginning of the pursuit of seeing yourself.

This idea is one of many that you can try to improve your meekness. The next time someone is rude to you or says something hurtful, do NOT respond. Rather, stop and think about what the person said; remove the emotion from it, and ask yourself if there is ANY truth, however infinitesimal, to what the person said.

Whether you want to inherit the Earth or just inherit the shared joy between you and your audience, you MUST become meek, for the meek truly shall inherit the Earth. Now go study the classics, and go discover your true magical self.

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