Cracking magic (6) – Bullshit List

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After having prepared everything from the hardware side, it is time to tackle the material itself. The first thing in my opinion is to be able to properly select material, or sometimes to de-select material. Therefore, I changed the former article “The Bullshit List” into this article, where it actually belongs. The first thing is to spot the material not to use.

Clearly, in magic we arrived at a point of the total information overload. For some years now, I tried to «catch up» but then surrendered. No chance to stay up to date, reading, studying and digesting everything that is being published. What to do? A couple of thoughts …

Become a specialist

At age 51, I decided to no longer waste my time on stuff I won’t use, can’t learn or which is too difficult for me to understand. Of course, talking about the limited field of magic now, not real life. Nobody can cover it all. So the obvious solution is to somehow specialize in something, narrowing the field and becoming an expert in at least some tiny little field. «You can’t do everything, life is too short. Do less and this better. Or the best you can.» How many times have we heard that?

But it is somehow true. So in what should I become a specialist then? Card magic? Coin magic? Comedy? Mentalism?

I think the distinction into categories is not the best way to go. Better would be, to become a specialist of your own. That way, you can still do stuff from all the genres of magic, without limiting yourself. But you will only do stuff that is good for you!

A specialist of one’s better self? Easy—just decide on what your strong parts and abilities _are, choose the according material you _can master and stick to it. That means making decisions and selections. Putting stuff into the garbage. Forgetting stuff. Learning to handle curiosity. Eventually, you should end up being someone who knows exactly what he can do and what he can’t do. What he wants to do and what he does not want to do. That alone helps a lot.

Create The Bullshit List (BSL)

Rather than struggling (and wasting time and energy on the internet in forums, online-shop websites and Facebook) to get the newest material, take another path. A powerful strategy is to build the so-called «bullshit list» or, in short: BSL. This is a list of tricks, moves, gags and material you would never ever use. Sit down and seriously think about what you would never perform and want to learn. Whenever there is some advertising of the new tricks in your mailbox, consider the possibilities of putting it on the bullshit list. Chances are great that you have a couple of hits a day.

Build your own, personal BSL (or, at least, what you consider to be bullshit). Get a very nice notebook and celebrate this BSL. Cultivate it. Hunt for ideas you would never use and write them down.

This maybe sort of a «reverse engineering», but it tremendously helps. You will discover a completely new (and effective) approach towards conquering the newly published stuff. Just keep your bullshit list handy all the time. Scan the new released material. And put everything on the list that doesn’t meet your criteria. Be happy with every new entry. Celebrate to have more bullshit on the list. Feel like being the undertaker of that bullshit material. Bury it. Show it to your friends. Talk about it. Then bury it again.

The W-Questions

Prepare to learn the zen-art of asking the right w-questions in magic:

What is this good for? Why is this so complicated? Who could use this? Why is this bullshit? Why was this invented? What did the author think? Who would ever perform this? Would I really use this?

These questions really help in identifying bullshit. By the time, you will develop a fine sense for the accurate distinction of material. In no time your list should grow into a huge accumulation of bullshit material …

Use Gene Anderson’s Lists

Gene Anderson told us a thousand times in his brillant lecture «The Part-time Pro» how to effectively structure one’s own program. Just use his A-list, B-list and C-list system. These lists are the opposite of the BSL. His system works and helps to keep your mind free and focussed. These lists are the base of your archive.

Build Your Own Archive

This task will get easier as well. Once you have your lists, start to build an archive around these tricks/moves/routines on the lists. Start searching only for stuff that is useful for your A-B-C material. Nothing else. Only things that can enhance your material. Generally speaking, this should be all the material that does not land on your BSL. Collect that, study it and perfect it. The process of making these selections will be easier, the more often you do it.

And that way, in a very short time you should end up being a specialist. A specialist with a thorough understanding of yourself, your abilities, your limits, your material and an intimate knowledge of your own archive of ideas. A specialist in bullshit material, in possession of a huge BSL and someone with a better understanding of magic.

Specialists are in demand. People like specialists. Especially specialists in human beings. People are interested in people. And not in walking encyclopedias.

Don’t forget to enjoy your new «bullshit free» magic …

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