Greetings Magic-lovers,
I’m inspired to share some of our plans for May.
“I have always loved the desert. One sits down on a desert sand dune, sees nothing, hears nothing. Yet through the silence something throbs, and gleams…â€Â
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
I love touring, meeting new friends and seeing new places… but now and then, I just want to get away! It is important to share time with my love, Abbi. We go deep into the desert and join some of our friends to play music and dance under the moonlight and around the campfire.
“The desert has its holiness of silence, the crowd its holiness of conversation.”
— Walter Elliot
Each year, Abbi and I take some time to retreat into the desert for our MayFire celebration. It is a music retreat , and we invite some of our friends to join us. We have been re-creating ourselves each year in the Valley of Fire State park. We love the beauty and vastness of the land, and each night we build a fire and make music with our friends. You can see a bit of what we do here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfpwPt0a2Tk
When we end our vacation each year we come back refreshed and renewed, full of ideas to share with our friends and families. This is where we get inspiration that often finds its way into our performances.
A few years ago my time in the desert inspired a new magic routine… The BEKOS effect! See Abbi perform it 1 minute into this video:
http://www.yourmagic.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=253
If you watch the following clip, you will see that the future of magic is in good hands! You’ll see the young magician Deanna perform the BEKOS effect at 1 min into the clip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXdOi3T5xKg
“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing. That’s why we recommend it daily.”
–Zig Ziglar
Every Monday we host a magic class online. Our aim is to inspire your creativity… you are invited! It’s like a global magic lecture:
Mystery School Monday
This month, we talk about how to structure a proper show. The faculty of our school will take turns each month talking about the best show formats and what we can learn from the masters on how to construct the perfect magic show!
You can become a member of our online school here:
http://virtual.magicalwisdom.com/tv
The Secret Arts Journal
…has a new essay by Brian Watson on Cups and Balls, you may also want to read about Simple Gifts, and John Tudor’s Experiments in Magic Theater. This online zine is free to all of our friends! Be inspired and read more: http://www.secretartjournal.com
Wonderground
…continues to gather the Las Vegas stars of magic. We are the hub of the Las Vegas Magic community and it seems everyone shows up! Last month saw Murray, Jan Rouven, Juliana Chen, and Kevin James in the audience and onstage was Xavier Mortimer from Cirque du Soleil’s Michael Jackson show: One. I even debuted my Magic Castle close-up show in the Diamond Parlor room!
This month Dan Sperry will be onstage with a new creation! I have part 2 of my Magic Castle act to show you!
As I sign off now, I’m packing for the camping trip and will be seeking new inspiration to share with you soon!
See you on tour or around the fire!
Jeff
“No man is an island.â€
— John Donne
Hello friends,
Bryce here, with what is possibly the most important story I’ve ever told (at least to date).
Most people strive for a life and career that is stable and consistent.  Honestly, it freaks me out.
Every five to ten years I start getting anxious about my life path, especially in terms of business. I can sense it coming on and, without fail, some event will drastically alter my direction. I never know when or what that event will be. Sometimes I try to force it (that never works, by the way).
The first one I can remember was showing up to the first Mystery School. Without question, it changed my life forever. It brought me together with some of the closest, most supportive friends I’ve ever known (Thank You Eugene, Jeff, Tobias and Abbi!).
Then there was a marriage to the best life partner I could ever imagine. A move to Phoenix and a job developing satellite systems for Motorola was next.
A really big one took place at Firedance, thanks to The Wizard, Gary Stadler, and Paul Harris. They’re the ones that convinced me that the corporate world wasn’t for me (unless I’m President / CEO).
There have been other, less spectacular shifts since then, but nothing major… until last weekend.
Before I tell you about it, let me explain the three key ingredients to all major shifts in my life.
First, it only happens when I push way beyond my comfort zone. Forget getting outside the box. I want to get to a place where I can’t even see the box anymore.
Second, it’s always about connecting with a community.
Finally, it always ends with finding a mentor.
“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.â€
— Jim Rohn
Back to the story…
My new friend, Robert Merlin Davis, invited me to a joint-venture conference. Robert is a personal branding expert, creative director and expert copywriter. He’s also a magician and old friend of Jeff’s, which is how we met.
Let me be clear: I have never been to an event like this. The idea of “networking” usually creeps me out. To add insult to injury, my business is in a state of transition, so I didn’t even have a solid answer to the mandatory networking question: “what do you do?â€Â And did I mention that the event was one week away?
If you’ve ever been to one of our Magic & Mystery School in-person events like a Master Class or Magic & Meaning, you know what it’s like to form deep, long-lasting, supportive friendships with people in a very short period of time. Until now, that’s been the only place I’ve witnessed this sort of behavior… until now.
Honestly, I was expecting a lot of ego and “what can you do for me?†attitude. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Every one of the 100-or-so people at this conference were there to help each other grow, even if they were in the exact same field and might otherwise have seemed like competition.
I should also point out that about 1/3 of the people in attendance were presenters, speakers and panelists. Oh, and did I mention that many of them are multi- (and multi-multi-) millionaires?
Observe any conversation and you would never have known who was a highly-successful “expert” and who was a first-timer just getting started (or re-started, in my case).
I went with no expectations. I left with a new family and, most importantly, a new mentor who is ready, willing, able and committed to helping me take my business (and my life) to the next level.
I think only fools believe they can do it alone. Look at the successful people around you. Yes, I’m sure they worked hard. But I’ll bet they also surrounded themselves by great mentors and community.
Who are your mentors?
Who is in your community?
Are you surrounding yourself with the people who can and, most importantly, really want to help you grow?
I know I am.
Oh, and if you’re wondering about the subject of this email, here’s a photo of Robert (the one on the right) taking a break from a pillow fight at the conference. It was part of an intensive small-group breakout session hosted by Steven Memel, a business and personal coach with a background in voice and acting. You might have heard of some of his clients: Drew Barrymore, Adam Levine and Lauren Bacall, just to name a few.
I’ll leave you with an exercise from another small-group session, this one taught by author and expert sales trainer, Mitch Axelrod.
I challenge you to do this tonight:
Figure out about the single most important thing you could do to enhance your life, work or relationships.
Write it down.
Now ask yourself the following four questions:
Most poeple will easily anwer “yes” to the first two. The third one, if you’re really honest with yourself, might not be as resoundingly affirmative as you might think. Of course, it’s the last one that makes all the difference.
Are you committed to a better future for yourself and those around you?
If you decide you can say yes to all four, I invite you to drop me an email and tell me about it.
Wishing us all a brighter future,
Bryce
bryce@brycekuhlman.com