I love doing mind reading effects. As a result, it is not uncommon for people to just come up to me and say, "read my mind now. What card am I thinking off". As most effects require the audience to reveal their cards, how do most of you guys answer these people?

I would appreciate witty answers or ideas in dealing with such questions without offending them or turning them away from magic. If it is funny, all the better.

Maybe I would say: "reading your mind is too easy. So maybe we could try something more challenging and harder?". I would maybe start a mental magic trick with cards. I would then tell them mix it all well up to make sure i can't find it. By this time, they would really think that they are really mixing it well and make sure its impossible for you to find it. After the trick, you could just walk away because they would be stunned. Haha. :D

"I could read your mind...

*...but I'm not interested in what you did last night..." :P
*...you just taken breakfast/lunch/dinner!" :o
*...oh no...no, hmm...yes...erm...oh!" <_<
*...I can also control your mind, don't believe me? Raise your right hand ~slowly~ like this..." (they get cheated if they really raise their hand) :g:

"Read my mind now, what card am I thinking of?"

*Postcard...
*Name card...
*Christmas card...
*Poker card...duh? <_<
*Pay card (cut)? get back to work lah!
*You're not thinking of any, you just ask for fun...
*Pokemon card!
*Read my mind now. What colour underwear am I wearing?

"You're wrong..."

*I never say I'm right...
*You're right...
*You know why? Cos I'm not pay for this...

Hope ou can get a good laugh! ^_^

-Alan-

These are some interesting remarks that will get a laugh. Will be using some of these lines. I especially like the mind control part. Almost everyone falls for it and it gets a good laugh.

Glad you like it, it's my fav joke during my sec sch days when I just started learning mental magic, but I'm not doing mental effects now so hope you can put it to good use..

-Alan-

In cases like that, I'd just work towards the invisible Deck.

"Read my mind. what card am I thinking of?"

My reply would be,

"It would be amazing if I could read it now... But wouldn't it be more amazing if I knew you were going to ask me this?"

Then of course by then, I'd work towards the direction of using the Invisible Deck.

-----------------------------

Other times I'd change the subject and take 3 things out...
eg. A pen, A wallet and my pack of cards, and I'd go say,

"A card? Let's make this more interesting. Choose one object in your mind among these 3."

Then... get it right using cold reading or real "mind reading" and presto!

R™

I read from Psychological Subtleties 2, Banachek says that he always get responses like this after the show and he reply that he read the thought, not their mind. Then u just do any psychological force, and name out the thing.

Fish for it, then take a wild guess. Alot of the time your guess won't be too far off. Knowing this, you'll probably want to open it with a 'Hmmm, I'm having a little trouble getting it. Your not concentrating hard enough, keep saying it in your head'. If you DO miss, just close with a 'Yeah I thought it might be the other one, It's ok wasn't too far off'. If you take a complete miss, with the wrong suit and everything, make a joke out of it.

'Five of spades!'
'Wrong...'
'NO! YOUR WRONG!'

And just laugh a little. Something like that. Keep emphasising (pardon my disgusting spelling) how hard it'll be to get what their card is, so when you miss you've got a little crash mat to land on. If you hit though, you've got a miricle on your hands. I wouldn't pass up chances like this, because they are potential reputation makers. Just what i think =D. I hope I helped. (Yes...I have used that 'NO! YOUR WRONG!' joke, tounge-in-cheekly of corse, the guys friends thought it was pretty funny)

I think reframing the question can help. Its not meant to be funny but closer to it being more realistic. Something like ,

" Actually what i have become quite good at is not the ability to read minds which i dont think is possible, but the ability to read subtle changes in a persons body language.

It has been proven that there is a connection between our thought process and our physiological reactions . We all have that talent of reading body language , its just that some can read it concisously and some use it unconciously.

Here let me demonstrate it for you...( bring out your cards or any other mentalism effect )

Upon time for the revealation , make open observations about the movement of the spectators eyes, posture, breathing patterns etc etc and link that to your revealation. NLP will give you lots of advice here.

Refrain from using words like " check out this trick " or watch this mental magic effect " because this sends out a message to the spectator that at the end of everything it is still a trick.

Hope this helps.

Usually I save myself by saying before hand that I am only a trainee Psychic. I am not very good and I need to ask a few questions (to get a few clues) in order to "calibrate" or "warm-up"... heheheh... This way, they won't try to be funny by making you read their minds cold.

They are more likely to make you read their minds cold if you pass yourself off as a psychic rather then an entertainer.

Yup. That was why i emphasized that I am a trainee. I think people won't usually let you "read" their minds straightaway especially if it is your first trick. So, it usually is a third or fourth trick in my routine, where you are building up slowly to more impressive and impossible stuff.

I usually dont claim to be able to read minds...kinda got this idea from Derren Brown. However, yes I do get the usual wat am i thinkin off qtn. They way i usually respond, is...
"Its not as easy as it seems. The brain usually thinks of many different things and the best way to tap into your mind is to be able to channel these thoughts. Thats probably why magicians use cards in the first place. Why dont i show you an effect with card and you'll see what I mean"
And i get into a card routine...
its about the channel...haha

Spec: "Read my mind now, what am i thinking of?"

Magi: "I have a feeling that you are thinking of..... 'I bet you can't read my mind now you sucker!', was it something like that!?"

Spec: "Read my mind now, what am i thinking of?"

Magi: "I read minds when i feel like it and most importantly i need to have a connection. But if you insist that i read your mind, you are asking for my service, that means you have to pay me for that despite me being right or wrong"

Spec: "Read my mind now, what am i thinking of?"

Magi: "I can't really read minds. What i can do is sublimary influence your thinking and that's what's actually happening. But to do that i need the correct environment and choose the correct type of mind. It doesn't work on everyone... (like for example you! you have a strong mind and doesn't need me to read/influence it)"

Spec: "Read my mind now, what am i thinking of?"

Magi: "Ok. i need to make a connection. Concentrate hard and look into my eyes. Be serious... don't smile... look into my eyes" (pause for a moment.... BANG! do a sudden move and give them a scare/shock) (see their reaction... if they got a shock.... you say : "hmm... i read your mind and it was blank"
if they laugh, think of an alternative.... you can also try and reach for their wallet when they are concentrating.... whether you get caught or not.. then at the end you can say you don't really read minds... it's misdirection for pickpocket actually... so watch out for your wallet....)

Try to give them a sense of you can't read mind when they want you to... and next time when they are unsuspecting, and when you read their mind or someone else, they will be impress.. it will kind of like wind them up... and make them go crazy that you fool him again..

Many ways of handling it... but i leave it to your creative minds.. i better get back to work now.. LOL.

First try to read their mind. Then say it's hard because the image is fuzzy. Say you need them to have a card to really focus their thought. Throw in a line about this being the reason why you use cards on stage/in your show. Whip our your deck of cards from your pocket/shoe/cleavage/behind your ear and proceed to do K.E.N.T.

It's impromptu, you don't have to have anything prepared (just a normal deck of cards), and hits 9.5 times out of 10.

Wave your hand over their head or in their general direction, frown a little or otherwise to convey a tense mood, and then just repeat slowly "nothing... nothing..."