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The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Time after time » » Deliberate Practice Tips, Please! (2 Likes) Printer Friendly Version

martydoesmagic
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Essex, UK
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Hi,

I recently published an article on my blog about deliberate practice (this is a topic I'm very familiar with because of my day job at a UK university).

This is the first of several articles for my "Hocus Focus" column on my blog. I want to write a companion piece that provides more practical tips on deliberate practice. Do you have any practice techniques that you think I should include in this future article?

Thanks,

Marty
AlxRosekoski
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I would say don't practice one move at a time for too long because it will become boring, you will dread doing it, and it will be discouraging if you can’t do it. It’s all about how frequently you practice, not about how much in each practice session. To a certain extent. I know this is over a year later but I thought I might as well respond.
Mary Mowder
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I like to leave the things I want to practice in reach of my chair in the living room.

It makes for a messy living room but a lot more spontaneous practice.

"Magical Mary" Mowder
Hudson52Sleights
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Have decks of cards (or whatever type of magic you do) put in places around the house so that whenever you have some time, you can easily find your magic. Also, know what you are going to practice before you start practicing, that way you know what to achieve in your practice.
Azzaro
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Unpopular different approach:
Raise the adrenaline!

Perform an effect almost unpracticed in front of spectators. It wont be good, it might be fun, could go both ways. But the adrenaline level helps to focus on the important parts of the routine.
Performance makes perfect. Trial runs are essential.
You also learn to recover or hide sloppy moves though gestures or verbal misdirection.
It evolves your toolbox.
Sincerely,

the mind of a hypocritical paradox,
portraying the art of serious mischief.
Mary Mowder
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Yea..., I get the unpopular bit.
David Todd
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I just recently ran across David Alexander's advice for learning the torn & restored newspaper (or any other trick that you're serious about performing at a professional level), posted on the Genii forum way back in 2007. If you don't know who David Alexander was , he was the protege of the great Senor Jose Frakson who taught him for seven years. He was also close to Charlie Miller and learned many things from Charlie Miller. A short bio. of David Alexander: https://tinyurl.com/Bio-of-DavidAlexander )


David Alexander wrote:

Quote:
"Whatever version of the torn & restored newspaper you decide to learn, here's a protocol to get it down. Make up three hundred papers.

Study whatever illustrations there are in the instructions.

Speaking slowly, make an audio recording of the instructions, three or four times all the way through.

Stand in front of a full-length mirror, pick up a paper and turn on the recording. Watching yourself in the mirror and NOT looking at your hands, tear and restore 50 newspapers, slowly following your recorded instructions.

When you feel comfortable with the newspaper in your hand and you are doing it without error, re-record the instructions speaking at a normal speed.

Tear up and restore another 50-75 papers. Doing the movements slowly at first will train your muscle memory and make you comfortable with the movements.

Once you've torn and restored at least 150 papers over a few days, you're on your way. With the remaining papers practice them as part of your regular routine, determining where you'll put the paper and how to pick it up so you don't fumble in the early handling.

After you've gone through the 300 papers you've prepared, you should have it down and not have to think about it as you do it.

That is exactly how I learned to do the Slydini Newspaper Tear when I was a kid.

Starting off slowly, learning the proper movements from the precise instructions that Slydini wrote up, prevents the student from learning bad habits that will require un-learning later. The Slydini instructions are quite detailed and there is no "flawed assumption" in them...not from my years of experience anyway.

I have torn and restored literally thousands of papers without a problem over my decades of performing, using Frakson's plot/presentation and the Slydini methodology, learned exactly as I described the process.

Because I don't have to think about what my hands and arms are going to do I can adjust my presentation to the needs of the audience...a little slower here....a little faster there...a look or expression at the appropriate moment for the particular audience...all without thinking about what I have to do next. That gives me the opportunity to interact with the audience, to look at them, smile, talk if I want, all the while knowing that my hands and arms will be doing the right thing. Doing the mechanics on auto-pilot gives me the opportunity to customize the presentation to the audience, as every experienced pro worth his salt can do.

When I performed this as a kid at a SAM show, one of the old timers wrote that I had "torn and restored a newspaper the way it should be done." This comes out of knowing what you're doing, not floundering around until you accidentally stumble on the proper movements and then hope to remember them.

At the beginning the movements may seem mechanical , but like learning to dance, new movements are clumsy only because they are new and unknown.

By the time anyone who follows this protocol finishes his 300th newspaper, he'll have something few others have: a presentation he can rely on."


-David Alexander , March 13th, 2007
https://forums.geniimagazine.com/viewtopic.php?t=5990#p66154




.
Thomas Henry
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Hello Marty,

Do you consider mental practice an aspect of your question? If so, here's something I've found helpful.

I employ a memorized deck in two of my routines (in separate acts). I use a flash card app on my Android tablet to run through the numbers/cards/keywords every day, in both directions. I give it a half hour each session.

So here's my tip: I deliberately practice the mental translation while distracted by other thoughts. Typically, I'm thinking about a new routine, or perhaps memorizing a bit of Shakespeare while actually reciting the cards and numbers aloud. I haven't had television in thirty years now, but if I did, paying attention to a show might be another option.

Thus my mind is focused more on the distraction, and almost not at all on the cards.

Thinking about two things at once works well for me in making the mental translation automatic yet accurate.

Thomas Henry
Omne ignotum pro magnifico.

Curious who I am? See my quick video bio.
Gerald
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Some folks get distracted from the task at hand if magic books, props, videos, etc. are around. If you are easily distracted, put the props to the trick you are working on or want to learn out on the table. Have no mess or other props on the table. You might have a note pad and a pencil handy to jot down ideas about the trick and start a storyboard.

Some people practice in their magic room with all their props, pictures, posters, books and videos readily available. No doubt, this provides a good practice "atmosphere". But your magic room might offer too many distractions. If you get distracted and lose your focus easily, it might be best to practice elsewhere.
Best,
Gerald
David Todd
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Quote:
On Jul 5, 2024, Gerald wrote:
Some folks get distracted from the task at hand if magic books, props, videos, etc. are around. If you are easily distracted, put the props to the trick you are working on or want to learn out on the table. Have no mess or other props on the table. You might have a note pad and a pencil handy to jot down ideas about the trick and start a storyboard.



Excellent advice, Gerald.

If at all possible rent space at a rehearsal studio (this may most commonly be a dance studio). Bring along only the props you intend to rehearse with. Set up a video camera (or your phone camera on a stand) and record your rehearsals. Review the recordings with a critical eye.

A while back I was able to get permission from my church to rehearse in their fellowship hall space, which included a small stage. If you borrow or rent space from someone , such as a church or local civic organization, be especially scrupulous about cleaning up after yourself (no bits of confetti, etc. left behind for someone else to sweep up).
Julie
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Be careful to not practice too much in front of a mirror. You can become dependent upon the reflection and be completely lost when the mirror is not there.
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