So I've always had a thing about other magicians. The amount of magicians I actually enjoying talk to and hearing their views is fairly slim. I just find the majority to be annoying in some way and I think that's because I don't share the same thoughts as most magicians. Now that may sound a bit strange but I'll try and explain.
Most magicians are shit. Lets get that out of the way first. Its not necessarily a bad thing at all. The problem comes when a lot of them are satisfied with it and don't put in the time or effort to get better. How many times have we seen a video on youtube of someone butchering a card trick with Ellusionists newest Black, Ghost, Tiger, Limited Edition, Daniel Madison deck? Too many magicians don't put in the time and effort that is needed to get to a decent level.
I also seem to have very different views from a lot of magicians. For example take the double lift. Everybody does one but for me the only one you should ever do is a pushoff double. It's natural, there is no get ready, no awkward, unnatural way of turning the card over, etc. Obviously if you are using a borrowed set of cards then a pushoff can be difficult but in that situation I'd be avoiding doing any sleights that required a good deck anyway ... Now this is from a Facebook chat I had from another magician a few years ago. We were talking about double lifts and in particular the pushoff double. I told him the best way to do them was to practice and watch the Tony Chang lecture (which used to be on themagicsession before it died, Tony knows his stuff for sure) and the reply that met me was "I can do them but I choose not to". I think that sentence perfectly sums up my thoughts on most magicians.
