Hi this is my first post here and I thought I would just introduce myself and stuff. I've been a student of magic for over a decade now, 95% of which has been spent with a deck of cards in my hand. I recently added a load of new books to the library and am looking forward to gorging myself silly over the Christmas holls.

Every trick I have ever done has been in as an amateur and am fairly certain that that will always be the way, not because I lack the will or I don’t believe I have the ability/talent but because I find it very difficult to appear calm and composed when faced with an audience (which is itself an ability so that’s a little bit of a contradiction but you know what I mean) Whether its adrenalin or fear, I cannot seem to stop my hands from shaking. Even though people have said that they thought it was part of the act, that I was purposely looking like I was unsure of what I was doing so the finish would pack an extra punch, I cant help but feel that I am neither doing myself or the art justice. I really want to appear smooth and in control. This is hard to do when a simple overhand shuffle results in cards on the ground. Where once I thought that this would be overcome with practice and experience I have found that if anything its actually getting worse so that its gotten to a stage where I duck out of a performance for even friends and family. Maybe it is not the amount of practice that counts but the type. Though what I am doing wrong, if anything at all, remains a mystery.

Anyway, I don’t want this introduction to be a whinge. I still love magic as much as ever. Every time I choose a book from the shelf I am still filled with that sense of wonder and anticipation of discovering some secret that will allow me to unleash the moment of astonishment, even if it is just onto my always-appreciative girlfriend.

All the best
D

Ps part of the reason I have never posted before is because it take me ages to write anything due to poor typing skills and a constant need to correct and revise what I just wrote. This post has taken over an hour!

Welcome to the Café!

Welcome Darkend and believe to yourself. happy magic!

Welcome D,

I enjoyed your story - looking forward for more

Andy

Thanks for your message and welcome to the forum. Maybe you can find some tips on the forum on how to overcome your extreme nervousness.

I think almost everyone is a bit nervous before performing. Only when it stays it can be a problem. I overcome my nervousness by succesfully completing my first trick. So I make my first trick simple and effective. I might even do some preshow work.

You might want to ask yourself where the nervousness comes from so you can work on it more effectively. Is that from all the eyes that are on you, or the chance that you might fail etcetera?

Good luck,

Jeroen

Welcome to The Magic Café Darkend.

Thank you for such a great first post. Don't worry about your typing skills, that can easily be improved. You may even be able to down load a free typing program to help you. Mavis Beacon (sp?) is a program that has helped me learn how to type and you can learn it in no time at all. If you are worried about your spelling, before you send a post, copy it into Word and let the spell checker look it over.

Everyone gets butterflies before a performance. Okay, maybe not Max Maven but MOST everyone does. Being nervous is normal. I still get that way too. For me, it's because I don't want to screw up and fail. So to help me NOT screw up and fail, I practice more AND perform more.

Perfect practice makes perfect. Practice so that the moves are automatic to you. Perform so that you gain confidence and become comfortable around people.

People want you to succeed. Your audience is on your side. Relax, be yourself. And when you screw up, it's no big deal, laugh at yourself, shrug your shoulders and say, "woops, we all have days like this". Look at it as a learning experience and you will do better next time.

Magic is fun. Darkend, you will be just fine. Like Juliano said in his post to you, believe in yourself. We believe in you!

Now have something to eat and drink and join in the forums here.

:hamburger:

Joe

Welcome to the Café.

There are tons of posts here about dealing with nerves, so you've got a ready made source of information about your particular problem. Enjoy the Café.

Welcome to the Café!

Welcome to the Café

Cheers for the greetings and thanks for the help, some of it has worked for me. The other night in the pub I had a decent size group applauding my first trick and then I felt that adrenaline rush and my hands start to shake so I tried that breathing exercise as I they were selecting a card and by the time it was put back in the deck the hands weren't shaking so much. Things are looking up!

Ohh, to read the familiar lamentations of a nervous performer. Stage fright has come and gone for me over the nearly 50 years I've spent performing magic (even the most experienced of celebrities and performers -- Laurence Olivier comes to mind -- have had crippling, out-of-the-blue nerve attacks.
My opinion is it comes from overly high expectations of oneself. I kinda sensed that in your self-consciousness about your ability to express yourself in your first post, which actually was better written than thousands of other posts on this site and elsewhere.
I suggest just going easier on yourself. Practice, practice, and practice some more until you're pretty sure you've got a trick down. Then go out, do it for some friends, and LET YOURSELF HAVE FUN while performing it. So what, if you should blow it? (We all do now and then.) Nobody's burst into flames. Life will go on. Laugh a little at yourself, and just try to learn from what you goofed. Usually going back to practice a little bit more, focusing on fixing whatever didn't work the first time, will prepare you to perform it (probably really well this time) for somebody else.
Try to relax...and let it be fun for yourself.
The fact that you were applaued by the group in the pub, AND that you yourself interrupted your adreneline-induced mini-panic attack with your breathing exercise tells me that: 1. You're probably a pretty good magician already 2. You're resourceful and can think on your feet (to remember how to stop the panic attack while it was happening) and 3. You've got guts (for performing in the pub in spite of your concern about your nervousess).
All of that adds up, in my opinion, to someone who will do well. Maybe really really well.

Welcome to the Café!

Hello,

I am new also, but welcome from a newcomer too!

Rick

Hi there,

Welcome to the Magic Café!

Hope to see you around!

Many thanks

Magical Mark Watson
(mark1991)