Magic and social judgments...

thetophatfirm · 08-04-2012, 04:07 AM

Hey guys,

I have a question. Do you guys get judged socially when you pull out a deck of cards or a few coins and practice in public in a corner? Like people look at you weird and walk away as though magicians use devil magic and are dangerous..

This happened to me today in my town. There was a concert for the community by the community type event, and before the main event started I was standing around minding my own as I was practicing a few sleights, using the outside viewers from my vision as angles and realizations of angles I was not aware of such as certain angles from my sides and in front of me. I was not staring at anyone nor soliciting or even speaking. I was practicing. I finally warmed up and my sleights soon began to become magical, and I was practicing variations and such, I felt good that I was getting some practice done. After some time, behind me I heard a man whisper to someone else, "see that man with the deck of cards, stay away from him, he can hurt you."

I then heard a reply from a little kid, "He hurts people?" and a quick scuffle as I assumed it was a show, tell, then leave.

Has this happened to you guys? Have you been judged?

OliveroG · 08-04-2012, 08:14 AM

A magician should never practice in public unless you're completely aware of every angle you might be being watched from, just saying.

And about the being judged, everyone gets judged, in fact, we judge other people so much that is pretty hard to believe we we think about it, it's a normal self defense mechanism of the humans, sometimes you might like that other people will think of you, sometimes you won't, it has nothing to do with your hobbies, it's a matter of what you constantly communicate, with your clothing, body language, way of speaking, even with the way you look at people, those little things will generate a profile about you to other people almost instantly.

You can do like most of the smart people, and simply not give a damn about it, but as an artist and entertainer it's better for you to examine yourself to correct little the things you might notice (without in anyway changing who you are, of course), this is only an advice to the people who lives of magic, for example, because they NEED to bond easily with people in order to negotiate contracts (nobody will easily bond with someone they don't approve in the first couple of seconds).

That being said, there will always be misjudging, no matter if you completely change everything in you (which is strongly discourage people to do), it's better to be comfortable with yourself, because the more comfortable you are with yourself, the more will be the people around you.

thetophatfirm · 08-04-2012, 03:03 PM

That's what gets me wondering... I'm not socially awkward and I spend hours learning and developing self.

About the public practice, it helps me sense new angles. I take very careful steps when practicing in public to ensure that I stay a magician. That day I found two new angles, which I didn't know were there until I was outside.

It's not really my preservation I'm worried about, but about that if that kid one day goes to see a master magician, or one of his friends wants to be a magician, or one of his family members is a magician, or maybe he goes to youtube and wants to learn a youtube effect, there is a chance that what his father did will affect his value towards something both of them really have no understanding over. It has a potential for fear, which can lead to racism, and here in virginia... there ARE dangerous people out there.

This really caught me off guard and I wanted to share it with you guys

Des · 08-05-2012, 01:07 PM

That's quite strange.
Does it happen often, or was it just that once? Because maybe you just happened to chance upon a peculiar family.

thetophatfirm · 08-06-2012, 12:02 AM

This was a first time thing for me, and I have seen that man since the incident. He goes to the community college I attend, so I am curious to see how this event will develop if at all hahaha

08-04-2012, 04:07 AM	#1
thetophatfirm Red Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 162	Magic and social judgments... Hey guys, I have a question. Do you guys get judged socially when you pull out a deck of cards or a few coins and practice in public in a corner? Like people look at you weird and walk away as though magicians use devil magic and are dangerous.. This happened to me today in my town. There was a concert for the community by the community type event, and before the main event started I was standing around minding my own as I was practicing a few sleights, using the outside viewers from my vision as angles and realizations of angles I was not aware of such as certain angles from my sides and in front of me. I was not staring at anyone nor soliciting or even speaking. I was practicing. I finally warmed up and my sleights soon began to become magical, and I was practicing variations and such, I felt good that I was getting some practice done. After some time, behind me I heard a man whisper to someone else, "see that man with the deck of cards, stay away from him, he can hurt you." I then heard a reply from a little kid, "He hurts people?" and a quick scuffle as I assumed it was a show, tell, then leave. Has this happened to you guys? Have you been judged? __________________ -This the bottom of my thread.

08-04-2012, 03:03 PM	#3
thetophatfirm Red Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 162	That's what gets me wondering... I'm not socially awkward and I spend hours learning and developing self. About the public practice, it helps me sense new angles. I take very careful steps when practicing in public to ensure that I stay a magician. That day I found two new angles, which I didn't know were there until I was outside. It's not really my preservation I'm worried about, but about that if that kid one day goes to see a master magician, or one of his friends wants to be a magician, or one of his family members is a magician, or maybe he goes to youtube and wants to learn a youtube effect, there is a chance that what his father did will affect his value towards something both of them really have no understanding over. It has a potential for fear, which can lead to racism, and here in virginia... there ARE dangerous people out there. This really caught me off guard and I wanted to share it with you guys __________________ -This the bottom of my thread.

08-06-2012, 12:02 AM	#5
thetophatfirm Red Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 162	This was a first time thing for me, and I have seen that man since the incident. He goes to the community college I attend, so I am curious to see how this event will develop if at all hahaha __________________ -This the bottom of my thread.

08-04-2012, 08:14 AM	#2
OliveroG Marcos Olivero Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Venezuela Posts: 103	A magician should never practice in public unless you're completely aware of every angle you might be being watched from, just saying. And about the being judged, everyone gets judged, in fact, we judge other people so much that is pretty hard to believe we we think about it, it's a normal self defense mechanism of the humans, sometimes you might like that other people will think of you, sometimes you won't, it has nothing to do with your hobbies, it's a matter of what you constantly communicate, with your clothing, body language, way of speaking, even with the way you look at people, those little things will generate a profile about you to other people almost instantly. You can do like most of the smart people, and simply not give a damn about it, but as an artist and entertainer it's better for you to examine yourself to correct little the things you might notice (without in anyway changing who you are, of course), this is only an advice to the people who lives of magic, for example, because they NEED to bond easily with people in order to negotiate contracts (nobody will easily bond with someone they don't approve in the first couple of seconds). That being said, there will always be misjudging, no matter if you completely change everything in you (which is strongly discourage people to do), it's better to be comfortable with yourself, because the more comfortable you are with yourself, the more will be the people around you.

08-05-2012, 01:07 PM	#4
Des Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 75	That's quite strange. Does it happen often, or was it just that once? Because maybe you just happened to chance upon a peculiar family.