In Pursuit of Peak Performance
September, 2008You want to be a great magician. We all do. Each of us has that vision of ourselves, performing our favourite trick, with the entire audience spellbound by our words, and mystified by our polished moves. That's the goal. The details may change from person to person, it may be a different trick, or a different venue, but we all seek to perfect our magic, to realize our peak performance.
Personally, I always fall short. Sure, the trick will work, the audience will laugh, and it will end with applause. Nothing went wrong, necessarily, but did it go... perfect? I may have stumbled over my words, confusing the effect. My movements may have tipped to the keen observers that... somethinghappened. Somehow I fell short of the movie in my mind showing the perfect performance.
After every show I come home thinking “maybe if I did this...”, “next time I should try...”. So much room-for-improvement, and if the suggestions are implemented, the next performance will be inching closer to the goal. I think that's the only way to do it. We can rough out the shape of a routine at home, through practice and rehearsal, but it takes the fire of live performance to sharpen and harden it into fine form. Reaching your peak performance is just a matter of putting in the time and effort to improve. Inch by inch, show by show.
I believe we can help each other. If two of us share the goal of reaching our peak performance, and are really willing to put in the work, we can coach each other. We could offer suggestions, point out the weak spots, and offer the outside-eye of a caring director that magicians rarely have available. Now, instead of just us two, what if there were four or five of us. Watching from different angles, coming from different areas of expertise and experience. Do you think that kind of thoughtful, considerate input would help you to perform magic at your very best?
So let's do it! Let's get together and spend some time sharpening our acts. I'm not talking about a night at the restaurant talking about our acts (or more likely, talking about the latest news, tricks, and gossip). I meanworking on our acts. On our feet. Performing for each other, then taking the time to brainstorm and workshop with focused intent. If something isn't working, we go over it again and again until it does, or at least until some progress is made. Yes, it sounds like hard work because... it is. It's the only way to be that magician you picture in your imagination.
But first, there's a few ground rules.
-
Don't waste my time, and I won't waste yours. When we get together, let's be ready to take our magic to the next level. That means we've done as much work as we can on our own. We can perform the trick competently, without errors. The sleights are well practiced. And hopefully, we've gone so far as to work on the script of the presentation, so we're not just making it up as we go along! Only then are we ready to take it to the next level.
-
Be open to improvements. Don't bother showing me anything if you just want to hear “good job!”. This is serious. The goal is to improve. That means you might have to hear something like “That wasn't very good”. But, fortunately, I will continue... “that wasn't very good, because...”, and offer a suggestion for improvement. For this to work, you not only have to be willing to hear that, but you also have to be willing to say it to another performer, in a helpful constructive way. We won't grow if we don't address the weak spots together.
-
Every dedicated magician is welcome. Improving your performance is not “for professionals only”. You may have been in magic for a year, and only have one trick... but if you bring it to a workshop, we'll be willing to help you make it better. It's the mixing of different experience levels that will make the whole thing work so well. (and for the more experienced magicians, I've found that the simple act of teaching something helps the teacher to understand it so much better. You may find yourself learning your own lessons!)
So let's get to work. The first Peak Performance Workshop is going to happen mid-October. I'm looking forward to spending some time with you all to reach our peak performance!
-Ryan