Dustings #135

/

Uhm… just to clarify the plot of Firestarter, Drew Barrymore’s character can’t only start fires with her mind. I’m pretty sure she can start fires in all the normal ways and with her mind.

I wouldn’t bet my life on it, but it would seem like a strange, needlessly complicated plot detail if she couldn’t start fires the normal way. “This little girl can ignite anything with her thoughts! And she can’t operate a lighter!”

That’s a different book.

This Wants To Be A Trick

This is a possibly recurring featurette in the Dusting’s posts where I share something that isn’t a magic trick, but it seems like there’s a trick buried in there somewhere.

Five years ago I wrote a post on this Mystery Card found in a reader’s grandfather’s wallet from the 1930s.

I thought maybe our collective brains could figure out what it was, but I apparently overestimated the power of our collective brainpower.

But now, five years later, I realized that I could ask ChatGPT to sort it all out for us.

Here was its answer:

🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖

It’s a backward-word / mirror-reading puzzle table—almost certainly cut from an old puzzle book, word-game book, or children’s activity annual from the early–mid 1900s.

Here’s why we can be confident about that:

1. Many of the entries are simply words spelled backward

Examples:

  • SMOHT → THOMS

  • DEROF → FROED/FORDE

  • NYPLU → ULPYN

  • EZEL → LEZE (old crossword-style filler word)

  • Ffulb → Bluff

This kind of reversed spelling is extremely common in vintage puzzle pages.

2. The pointing-hand glyphs (“manicules”) were a standard graphic device

Puzzle and cipher pages from that era loved using pointing hands to show:

  • which direction to read,

  • which items pair together,

  • or which word to decode.

Those little hands are a huge clue that this is from a puzzle/cipher page rather than a technical or academic table.

3. The layout matches early 20th-century puzzle tables

The grid with:

  • short abbreviations at the top (“Wp.”, “Sw.”, “Sp.”, etc.)

  • numbered rows (“1p”, “2B”, “3S”)

  • and a strange title (“PHORU”)

…is exactly the kind of pseudo-scientific formatting puzzle books used to make the page look mysterious.

It resembles sections from:

  • 1930s–1950s British puzzle annuals,

  • magician club newsletters,

  • “secret writing” pages in juvenile puzzle books,

  • and cheap pulp puzzle digests.

4. The content isn’t consistent with chemistry, comics, languages, etc.

People sometimes confuse this sort of thing with:

  • a periodic table parody,

  • a code from a novel,

  • a magic trick instruction sheet,

  • or a foreign language.

But none of the abbreviations match technical fields. They do match nonsense headings used in old wordplay pages.

So what is it, specifically?

It’s a puzzle table where each cell contains a backward word, phrase, or partial cipher.
The solver was supposed to:

  • read them backward,

  • possibly combine them across columns,

  • and derive a hidden phrase or meta-answer.

The title PHORU is probably itself a warped/misspelled clue—possibly a scrambled version of “For You” or “Phon. Rv.” (phonetic reverse).

🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖

Oooooohhhhh, now I get it. It’s so clear now. NYPLU is just ULPYN backwards. (Never mind that that doesn’t make sense or that NYPLU doesn’t actually appear on the card.)

Mystery solved. The robots tell us this is simply a very fun puzzle from something like a “children’s activity annual.” Fun!

Gather ‘round, children. The annual activity book of indecipherable gibberish has arrived.

Is there a setting for AI where you can be like, “If there is no answer, you don’t have to give me one.” By default, it seems to operate like the dumbest people I’ve met: unwilling to say, “I don’t know.”

Fat Shit

/

I highlighted John Bannon’s trick, 51 Fat Chances in my post on Failsafe Tricks.

If my email box is to be believed, a lot of people overlooked this trick when it first came out (as I did).

Essentially it’s an elimination procedure, narrowing down the deck to one card which is forced, or at least known to the magician before the elimination begins.

I wanted to share a few ideas with you that have come in, to help frame this as a tool that could be used in numerous tricks, rather than just the one specific trick you learn on the download.

From Salim K.

I was gonna keep this to myself but I'm sharing my favorite premise for 51 Fat Chances...

Nikolas Mavresis & David Jonathan's Charms Deck.

I bring out my coin wallet and take the coins out, "we'll use these later" if you'd like...

In the meantime I ask the participants if anyone has a good luck charm?  I ask rhetorically to set up the following point.  Do you know how these luck charms came to be?  Well as a matter of fact while most people walk around and just choose their luck charm, only a few get them by the ancient tradition.  One of the first spells magicians across time learned was how to connect people to their true charm.  Kind of like how the Navi connect to the banshee in Avatar.  Would you like me to help you find your's?  I think I have a good sense but first please confirm that my coin wallet is empty.  Now, take these cards and give them a good mix and a few cuts (I start a wash shuffle for them, easier on the participant and the cards)...

Perform 51 fat chances.  Once they've "connected with their charm" I have them place the wallet on the card for a moment then allow them to open the wallet only to find a physical version of "THEIR CHARM" that has been chosen for them through this bit of ceremony.  This is now your true personal luck charm that's yours to keep.

Method:

51 Fat Chances with the Charms Deck and a pre-loaded Quiver.

After they shuffle and cut I spread the cards in my hands just to show all the charms and show the random order, culling my force to the top.  I never touch the cards again.

One can buy many small variations of many of the charm images in the deck from amazon in bulk, I literally found ten then stopped because that should be more than enough for a good while.

With two quivers one could switch the wallet and have an alternative charm loaded for an immediate repeat performance with different results just by finding and forcing the next loaded charm.  

Taking the coins out adds the subtlety that surely nothing else is in there but even still the participant can stick their finger in and not find anything if the loaded side is uppermost.

From Madison H.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I think it makes a really great trick to do with Chris Rawlin’s roulette cards. Have them shuffle, you read the mark of the top card and place that number as your bet. Every number that gets turned face up is out. Yours will be the last man standing. 

The process feels kind of like the card version of a random spin of a roulette wheel. 

I would probably say that I get one number and they get all other 37 numbers. So the odds are astronomically in their favor. You need some imp for why you never lose. 

Piggybacking off Madison’s idea, this technique is exceptionally strong when using a marked deck of any kind.

The nature of the elimination procedure is such that you have an eternity to do anything tricky you might want to do from the point you know what card is going to be revealed to the point the card is revealed.

For example, you put the deck and a folded prediction on the table. They shuffle the cards as much as they want and then go into the elimination procedure. While they do this, you lap-write the card that is set to be revealed on a duplicate billet and long before the card is revealed you can switch in that prediction for the dummy billet at a moment of zero heat.

Or you could put a Mystery Box on the table with the deck. Have it shuffled as much as they like. And while they do the elimination procedure you have easily a full minute to get a matching folded card from an index to be produced from the Mystery Box.

John’s procedure is funny because it combines two methods magicians generally think are trash to produce something that is quite good, given the right context.

In 51 Fat Chances you have something that is both:

1. A force from an examinable deck, shuffled by the spectator, and never touched by the magician.

and

2. A procedure that naturally generates a time gap for you to accomplish any furtive actions necessary for the trick.

That’s already very strong.

And if you add in other deceptive elements like marked cards, billet switches, secret writing, indexes, etc., you can craft something incredibly powerful.

What's the Worst Thing About: The Invoked Marked Deck

/

The What’s the Worst Thing About posts are a form of free advertising I allow on the site, where people can send me their product and I’ll let everyone know the worst thing about it.

This has not proven to be popular, and most people have suggested the exact opposite: they send me their product, and I tell everyone only the best things about it. That’s understandable, but then this site would turn into pretty much only that.

Today we’re talking about the Invoked Marked Deck from Magic and Cards.

When I first saw these cards online, I thought the “worst” part about them would be clear—and that is, that the markings were too obvious. That would make this a very easy article to write.

Q: What’s the worst thing about this marked deck?
A: That everyone can see the markings.

Fortunately, that’s not the case with these. Yes, the markings stand out when you’re looking for them; if not, they just fade into a random scattering of dots on the back of the deck.

So I don’t think the markings are bad or “too obvious.” In fact, this might be my favorite marked deck in the “reader” style.

It’s both the fastest read and the easiest to see from a distance of any marked deck in my collection. That’s a powerful combination.

But, you’ll say, I saw those markings within seconds. I’m sure others could too.

I get it, but I think the markings walk the line perfectly between readable and hidden.

When you get into magic, you think the best marked deck is the one with the most invisible markings. But if you use marked decks ever, you learn the best one is the one you can read the fastest.

People don’t bust you with a marked deck because they spot the markings. They bust you with a marked deck because they see you staring at the back of the card.

Personally, I’d prefer a deck that takes half a second to read—where the markings are somewhat hidden—to a deck that takes two seconds to read and the marks are completely invisible.

This is the Carefree-style approach to a marked deck: I want the information in a glance.

I don’t want them thinking, “I don’t think he’s using marked cards because I examined the backs with a magnifying glass and didn’t see anything.”

I want them thinking, “I don’t think he’s using marked cards because I didn’t see him really look at the deck, and he’s all the way over there.”

The thing is, it almost doesn’t matter how “hidden” the markings are. If they suspect you’re using marked cards and they look at the back and don’t see anything, they’ll still think you’re using marked cards—they’ll just assume they can’t see the markings.

This deck eliminates the need for a studied look at the back of the card or for you to be particularly close to the card you’re reading. Combine that with other ploys like a Gypsy Peek, stacking the deck (so you don’t even have to read the card they’re looking at), and things like that, and you’ll have the best chance to avoid them thinking a marked deck is in play.

Of course, if you have them pick a card and place it on the table in front of you and you say, “It’s the 10 of Diamonds!” they’ll assume the deck is marked whether it is or not.

The deck is also edge-marked in two different ways—one on the short end and one on the long end.

I’m not an expert in edge-marked decks, but these markings feel easier to read than most I’ve played around with.

I still doubt I’d ever use them to find a named playing card or anything like that—it just takes too much studied attention to the edge of the deck, in my opinion.

But using this marking to determine which card has been reversed in the deck can be done quickly and leaves no clue to a lay audience as to how it was done, because the concept of “edge marking” isn’t something they know about.

Here, he gains the information in a brief moment while touching the deck in the spectator’s hands.

Just judging solely on its use as a marked deck, I’m a fan. And the quality of the deck itself is excellent.

So what’s the worst thing about the Invoked Marked Deck?

For me, it’s the box the cards come in. It calls attention to itself in a not-great way.

The design on the card back is reminiscent of a mid-century modern pattern like you might see in the 1950’s and 60s.

The card case is something else though.

The name “Invoked” implies something almost ritualistic, and in that context the oddly angled font and extra marks read less playful and more like a strange sigil. It doesn’t pair naturally with the upbeat, geometric pattern on the back.

The design of the writing gives you a little Easter egg: the reflection of the deck’s name says, “Marked.”

Which is cute and all—but who gives a shit? I mean, it’s not like you’d use that in performance. “And… ta-dah! All along this deck was… Marked!”

I’d personally prefer something that matched the cards better. Even something more generic. I don’t think the Bicycle name helps make the deck seem more normal. If anything, it draws more suspicion from anyone familiar with Bicycle cards: “Here’s a name I know, but a box that looks unlike any Bicycle deck I’ve seen before.” That draws more scrutiny than a generic deck.

A box of “Cheese Crackers” can look like anything—but if it says “Cheez-It” and doesn’t look like the typical box, that’s going to draw people’s attention.

So you have a box that:

  1. Doesn’t match the card’s aesthetic.

  2. Doesn’t look like a normal Bicycle deck.

  3. Has the marked deck’s commercial name printed on it for easy Googling.

What’s the worst thing about the Invoked Marked Deck?

The box.

Outside of that, I recommend them. They’re available through Magic and Cards for $27.

Copperfield Survey Results

/

Last month, I asked a simple question of anyone who has seen Copperfield’s current Las Vegas show: “Is it good or bad?”

The responses are in. Drum roll, please...


66% of respondents said the show is…

The other third said it was good.

This is just about the least exciting result for me.

A movie with a great Rotten Tomatoes score and a movie with a 0% score can both be worth watching (albeit for very different reasons).

But a movie that’s two-to-one negative isn’t good—and not bad enough to be interesting.

I will say that anyone who took the time to write in and give their impression of the show said that it wasn’t good. Phrases like…

“tired”

“uninspired”

“he only lives for his museum tours”

were echoed throughout those emails.

And there’s a surprising number of non-magicians saying the same if you read the reviews of his shows:

“The performance was interesting and creative, but we were disappointed by the routine manner in which Copperfield presented his material. It seemed rote—like he’s presented this hundreds of times before and was not actively engaged with his audience but just giving another presentation.”

“I found his presentation a bit lackluster, and I can't help but think that he might be approaching retirement, especially after performing 500 shows a year.”

“David Copperfield was hard to understand, talked too fast, and seemed bored with his own show. Totally phoning it in. My daughter commented, ‘He is so over this.’”

“There were also a few suspected plants in the audience and also a few happy clapping staff members who hid in the aisles and at the end of a trick stood up and started rapturous applause which gave a false atmosphere. David himself looked fed up and a bit bored.”

To be fair, there are many positive reviews as well (although those seem pretty generic).

But the bad reviews are particularly biting. Saying “you seem bored by your own show” is just about the worst criticism I can imagine.

I’d rather see a bad show done with enthusiasm than watch someone sleepwalk through a “fine” show.

Look, Copperfield’s the reason a lot of us ever picked up a deck of cards. Sp hearing he's going through the motions now is depressing.

Seventy is too young to spend your life doing something without any passion.

And the plants in the audience? Come on, David. You’ve eliminated one of the surest ways to inject some unpredictability, spontaneity, and life into the show.

Yes, but real people might not give the response I want.

Oh, grow up. You’ve been performing for 50 fucking years. You need to have every interaction scripted? Sad. What’s the point? Film your act and just show it as a movie every night if you want to play it that safe.

Or be a man and burn it all down. Invest your energy in doing something new. Something that scares you a little and demands you be engaged with the show as you perform. It will add decades to your life.

Might I suggest getting thrown in jail for a long weekend and taking the cards off the black guys in the corner playing Spades in order to show them magic tricks? My understanding is that this is a reliable way to kickstart (or in your case, reinvigorate) a career in magic.

Mailbag #154

/

Magicians hold things differently from regular people.

Being a magician, I get magic on my feed every now and then. […]

I often recognise that I am watching a magician before reading the title of the reel, before they have said anything about magic, and before seeing anything on the screen (like a pack of cards) that specifically relates to magic.

[M]y useless ability derives from the fact that magicians hold things funny.

I mean, take the guy above.[…] Who else holds an object at their fingertips away from their body, shows the other hand empty, and stares at it like it's a prop from an Indiana Jones movie?

Incidentally, this guy performs the sleight well - I'm not knocking him.

And I can see the advantages of handling objects this way for non-social performances. You want your movements to be slow and deliberate. Choreographed, like a dance. And people need to see the thing you're holding, so it makes sense to hold it at the edges - that way, they can see more of it.

But, for casual performances, does this way of holding or handling or treating objects -- we could call it 'object fascination' or 'performative handling' so we have a term to refer to -- detract from the overall effect?

I think Dani DaOrtiz senses this and goes to the other extreme, chucking cards about like he couldn't give a f***, which works for him very well. I tried this once in a card trick and my wife looked at me like I had lost the plot. It didn't seem natural to her.

I'd be curious to hear your thoughts - how does the attitude and manner with which we interact with objects affect the effect, and what should we think about (or not) when handling objects in our casual magic performances?—JB

Yes, I’ve been writing for over a decade about how the amateur should do what they can to eliminate “performative” elements in their magic: obvious scripting, planned jokes, tricks that have been “routined” together, objects that are transparently magic props, etc.

But it’s also in the way we handle objects.

I made that point early on in this post about my favorite coin vanish.

This can be hard to manage, because a lot of methods require you to handle an object in an odd or unnatural way. They only work that way.

That means the library of sleights available to someone chasing a casual aesthetic is smaller than you might like.

That’s okay. There are still plenty of techniques that fit into a more natural style. All you’re giving up are methods that seem fishy in the first place.

I stick to two kinds of handling: A) what looks normal, or B) what looks extra fair.

I might hold a coin on my flat hand (normal). Or I might hold it at my fingertips (in a way that seems explicitly fair). But I wouldn’t hold it in a contorted position just for the sake of doing a sleight.

That’s my only real test: does it look normal—or, if not, does it look like I’m going out of my way to be fair?

And then it’s just a matter of being willing to eliminate anything that doesn’t live up to that standard.

I recently purchased Outsmarted by Green Lemon, which includes the ESP Finger set (also available separately as Finger Match).

Over the weekend, I performed the classic Jazz Mentalism by David Humphrey as the first phase — presented as if the spectator, using intuition, was able to mirror the cards I laid down. I then followed it with Echo Sync, as a second phase without any cards, to demonstrate that no trick deck or sleight was involved.

 This combination worked beautifully — Echo Sync seemed to eliminate the last remaining doubts the audience had after the first, more “prop-based” phase.

I’m now also thinking about possible variations where, perhaps with a bit of humor, I could integrate a phase that includes the presentation of the Twickle Hands.

Just wanted to share this with you, as I found the flow between these routines very effective and the reactions fantastic.—MH

I think that’s a good combination of ideas.

I would likely do them on different occasions. Do the card version one night, and then the video version some other time because you want to try it again but you “don’t have your cards on you.”

You could then do a third beat at a later date with a Twickle hand and a “Here’s how I really do it” premise. Where the little guy clues you into which number they’re thinking of.

This is a nice stack of effects:

  1. A strong card-based version. It’s fooling, but still has the feeling of a more traditional trick.

  2. A non-card version that makes it feel more real and lends credence to the card version.

  3. A comedic brush-off that’s still fooling.

This is a way of keeping people off balance in regard to what to expect from your magic, while still adding continuity to the stuff you do and a feeling like these things are taking place in the same weird universe.

I bought some NOC cards because I wanted the black backs for Adam Elbaum’s Awe Struck but it made me laugh when I found they're marked with a totally bonkers system that's fully disclosed on the web!

If you count the number of sharp corners on the outer border you get the suit. One sharp is spades, two sharps is hearts, three sharps is clubs, four is diamonds, and no sharps mean’s it’s a joker. To get the card value first orientate the card by making the inner top left corner sharp. Then look at the inner area. Starting at the top left, work anticlockwise noting the sharp corners. The first has a value of one, the second two, the third four and the fourth the value of eight. Add everything together and you get the value of the card… Zzz…

Even a lightning-fast teenager with eyes of a hawk, in a brightly lit room, is going to struggle to do this without telegraphing. I need to put on my reading glasses (always a bit of a tell) turn up the lighting some more and suggest everyone makes a cup of coffee… If I really want to know the name of the card, I’ve found there are some really nice clear markings on the card’s front.

However, here is the thing. As the House of Playing Cards is dumb enough to have disclosed their marking system, they can’t object if a presentation discloses it. Non magicians will find it curious and it’s a cute “garden path” to lead them down. I don’t think the magic world is being deprived of a useful tool as no sane magician would use this system!—DM

You’re correct in assuming no performer has ever actually used this system in performance. Unfortunately, it’s not completely value-less, as the round/sharp corner concept is usable for marked ESP cards. And therefore, not something I’d want to expose to people.

If you want a truly bad marked deck—one you can expose—to convince people that marking systems are absurdly complex (without burning anything useful), check out this post.

Dustings #134

/

In my ongoing attempt to find the perfect product to add some tackiness to my hands when performing sleight-of-hand magic, I gave this product a shot.

And it actually does a really good job of giving your hands that little extra grip you need for sleights, without being greasy or wet in any way. So I recommend it…

… just so long as your performance character is, like, a fun magical corpse.

Silly me for thinking something called Chalkless might not make it look like your hands were covered in chalk.

Supporter Zachary A. sent along his simple but intriguing display for the Princesses of Darkness effect.

This sort of thing works beautifully as a way to hook visitors to your home and get them to ask about the item on display, leading into any effect you have with a haunted or demonic premise.

Magic tricks are always stronger when the other person initiates the moment. And a hook like this makes it almost automatic.

You don’t even necessarily have to perform the trick on display. You can put it off, to build tension. Or say, “Oh, that? I like to collect items with strange histories. I don’t mess with that one much. But I did just get something in the mail you might find interesting...”

This Week in Unfortunate Truncating

Oooookay. Uhm, look, I guess there are some fringe elements of society that are okay with this sort of thing, but I think even they wouldn’t suggest putting this information in your marketing emails.

This one references Josh Jay’s customization of his own Real Doll where he “moved the face” completely off and installed a second asshole in the head. “I’m tryin’ to nut here, not gaze in some bitch’s eyes. Sheeeeeit,” he told me.

Mailbag: Pre-Tricks

/

Something interesting happened today, something I honestly thought wouldn’t happen to me anymore after all these years reading your blog and following your style of magic — which has basically shaped mine ever since.

I went to the barbershop I usually go to once or twice a month. The barbers always ask me to show them something, and even after years, they still react really well. But today, while I was performing for one of them, he got genuinely amazed. Then a customer getting his haircut started paying attention and asked what had just happened. When I tried to explain it briefly, he immediately said, “Oh, do it on me.”
From his tone, I could tell it wasn’t a good idea — and that leads to my first question:

When you know someone won’t be a good spectator and you don’t want to perform for them, how do you say no without sounding arrogant?

I ended up doing WikiTest anyway, and he was like, “Ah, you must’ve connected it to your phone.” So I said, “Even if that were true, you only thought of the word, right?”
Then he had that look of “I was fooled, but I don’t want to admit it.”

It’s weird because this kind of reaction hasn’t happened to me in years — not since I started reading your blog. Of course, it was a specific situation — a stranger. But it made me think: just like in hypnosis, where you have the pre-talk — where you explain what’s going to happen, clear up myths and fears, build rapport, and prepare the subject to accept suggestions — couldn’t we have something similar in magic too?

Like, disarming the person first. Something like:
“I’ll show you something, but honestly, it probably won’t work — it only works every now and then.”
Or:
“I want to show you something, but I want you to know it’s not me versus you — it’s not a game where someone has to win.” —DM

There are a couple of different parts to your question.

On the subject of “pre-talk,” I don’t think it’s that useful in magic—at least not in the same way. Hypnosis pretty much requires it because if people aren’t primed to go along with the process, you’ll have no success. Many people assume hypnosis is some kind of spell or trance that they’re “put under.” These people have to be educated that, no, it’s a process that they have to take part in and go along with, or else it doesn’t work.

Magic is a different animal.

If you have a potential spectator who you think might be an asshole and you say to him, “It’s not me versus you—it’s not a game where someone has to win,”—and he truly is an asshole—then that’s going to do you no good. He won’t think, He’s right… magic should be a collaborative, joyful experience! He’ll just double down, trying even harder to fight you because he smells weakness.

Instead of “pre-talk,” think “pre-trick—a quick, low-stakes effect that qualifies them and suggests a performer/audience dynamic that isn’t, “I’m going to fool you. Try to stop me from fooling you.”

So if I was in your situation, here’s what I would do:

“Yeah, sure. We can try something. I don’t know you, so there’s a good chance it won’t work, but let’s give it a shot.” [Write down something.] “Okay, I wrote down a number. It’s a two-digit number, less than 50. I’m going to try and send that to you and see if you can pick up on it.”

I write down 37.

Yes, the 37 force. I wouldn’t even bother with the “two odd digits, different from each other” part because I don’t care if it works.

You see where I’m going with this. It’s a quick, simple trick that’s presented as Spectator-as-Mindreader. There’s a decent chance of it hitting, but that’s not really what I care about. What I’m trying to do is threefold:

First, I want to move what I do outside the usual “magic trick” frame. There’s no process, no sleight to spot, no prop to suspect. From their perspective, the only way it works is dumb luck—or something more mysterious. And that’s the point: simply presenting it as something that could genuinely work shifts their thinking beyond the idea that there must be a trick for them to uncover.

Second, because it’s a Spectator-as-Mindreader effect, it suggests that the goal is something cooperative, not a battle of wits.

Third, and most importantly, I get to see their reaction to the experience. Are they interested in it and having fun? Or are they on guard and making a competition of it? If so, I know they’re not going to be fun to play with, and I can bail without a second thought.

Let’s look at the possible outcomes:

If he doesn’t say 37 and it seems like he’s a tool

“That’s okay. It’s not the sort of thing that most people can just pick up on with a stranger. But I thought it was worth a shot because sometimes, even with strangers, you’re on the same wavelength almost immediately.”

Notice, I’m framing this as his failure: “You weren’t able to do it. But that’s okay.”

Now I can shut it down gracefully—we clearly don’t have the kind of connection we’d need to do anything interesting.

If he doesn’t say 37, but I’m getting a good vibe from him

“That’s okay. It’s not the sort of thing that most people can just pick up on with a stranger. You might be better with words. Here, let’s try this….” And I can transition into a different effect.

If he says 37 and he seems cool

I can say,

“That’s incredible. Have you had these types of insights before? Or did it just feel like guessing, or what?”

Now I’m building him up a little. And again, I can delve into a more substantial trick with him. (Or, if he’s truly blown away, just end it at this point.)

If he says 37 and he seems like a douchebag

“That’s incredible. Have you had these types of insights before? Or did it just feel like guessing, or what?”

Let him respond a little…

“Actually, I’m just messing with you, man. Everyone says 37. Well, not everyone, of course. But certain types of people are very predictable in that way. I generally don’t have much luck connecting with that kind of thought process.”

This would be a very strange situation for them. You wrote down the number they named. It should be a minor miracle. So they get the experience of a successful trick—exactly what they asked for—but then you get to frame it as evidence of a type of thinking that you probably wouldn’t be able to connect with.

It’s kind of mean on your part, but as I said, I would only go this route if I was getting true douchebag vibes from the other person.

Again, the goal is not to get a hit here. Don’t worry about that. You’re just doing what the “pre-talk” does in hypnosis: establishing a baseline and qualifying the person so you can decide if you want to go further with him.

Later this month, I’ll share a variation on this “pre-trick” idea that I’ve been using for a while—though I didn’t think of it in those terms. It’s another quick number guess, but this one actually has a method behind it, so you can control the outcome.