mayb because i am still a newbie, sometimes when i am being surrounded(by 8 or above ppl), my hands will start to shake.
sometimes little bit only, sometimes really ALOT, and ppl keep asking y keep shaking -.-"
however i still manage to finish perform without revealing anything, but just hate it.
anyone have this kind of experience when u guys are new?
any advice to overcome it? ;)

More performing in front of ppl is the key. It's different compared to just practising in your room. Shaky hands are just due to the adrenaline rush. You'll get used to it eventually.

This is normal when you are new in magic.I was like that too last time.You need to find a way to overcome this thing.I will give you a tip that I found work with me.First,you need to build up your confidence.This is very important.If you are confidence,you wont be shaking.Try to learn several self working trick and perform it while you being surrounded by many people.By doing self working trick,you dont need to worry so much about revealing anything because its self working.This will help you to get used performing to many people at once and at the same time build up your confidence.Secondly,try to enjoy yourself as much as your spectator enjoy your magic.This will help yourself to be relax and more casual.Lastly,try to imagine yourself as a pro magician when you were performing magic.This can also help you to become more confidence and prevent you from shaking.Hope this will help you.

Yup if your new this is all normal... Even now i get them if I'm performing for a large group of people... Just as Azim said be confident when you perform. When you are confident you tend to shake less... XD

Also if you really are scared that you might reveal your tricks then I recommend you do a trick that requires less sleights or in fact no sleights at all... But you need gimmicks for that... =p

It is normal to be nervous... I remember my first performance I was so nervous my hand was trembling while doing my multiplying balls routine....

Haha. I was planning to create a topic on this asking for advice... 'coz I'm encoutering such problem too at the moment... :mellow:

I'm still new... ^_^

You're into cards right? Usually start off with something really really really simple! I mean it! No sleight of hand trick! Somehow this usually blows some people off, then again it takes some audience management to get people engaged in your magic.

By doing something really simple, you are more relaxed. Your audience get a lil friendlier too! It's like running. You so need to start slow, pace yourself before heading off to a full, heart pumping run. Kan?

wha.. thanks for all the replies and advice!
i think there are none other solution than perform more.
need to build self confidence d ^.^

Having shaky hands is normal. Happens to everyone, shaky hands i dont mind but when i get sweaty palms, dat really suck...... :lol:

yea man, the best way is to keep performing. Practise makes perfect :)

My problem is not shaking hands but sweaty hands :) . My hand will sweat more when i perform. lol

Sometimes you can use your shaky hands to misdirect... XD

Ya I also suffer from very sweaty hands when performing that will destroy my cards almost instantly... I go through a lot of decks so far...

Also when your cards are soggy its like your double lift is so much more visible... TT

... I'm the victim of another sweaty hands case. <_<

Sweat when I don't need it... but dry when I need some grip. Sigh...

shaky hands.. i get it al l the time too! can be quite frustrating indeed.. i agree though tat confidence has a big role, when performin tricks tat hav little or no sleight of hand involved or tricks tat i can comfortably perform as i hav done it many times, i realize i dun shake as much or all. I found myself concentratin on the presentation, which is rilly wat performin is all bout.. : )

Shaky hands.. me too. It's the adrenaline.
Hate it, but have to live with it..

Yes is the adrenaline

Its because the brain is too excited and so so so, refer to your doctor :P

Get yourself a Svengali Deck . After the routine , switch the deck and let them examine all they want .

Svengali is simple and yet stunning , thats why your hands will never be shaky . :P lol .

Good luck

Went to the Mcbride lecture and he talked about shaking during performance. He was so funny when he was acting as how a inexperience and 'shaking' magician will be. End of the day, we can only overcome this shaking problem by doing more and more performances, so we learn to control our excited brain.

Hands shaking is juts a minor problem, everyone did on their first tricks (unless they somekind of Genius) you'll get used to its very soon.

Oh, about that wet hands, be sure to bring a towell along :P

I think shaky hands is not card-specific, so I moved this here. It seems that a lot of guys have some pretty good advice and anecdotes about this, so it's appropriate that I put in the Theory section.

I still shake a bit when I perform close-up mentalism, but it usually disappears when I get into the full swing of it.

I was in choir when I was 12..
I held a girl's hand and then I sweat..
When I was 14, I performed magic during a camp trip..
My hands were shacking terribly..
To overcome it, one ought to do his tricks in a relaxing manner..
No pressure in doing..
In order to be be at that state..
Perform more to overcome..
shake more.. sweat more till it no more..

Me myself don't sweat nor shake when performing.. but will sometimes murmur words that laymen cannot understand..

exp : e.. take d car end put yit in ur hant and...... :ph43r:

Good luck

Let me share something i gained from Mcbride lecture, he emphasized on magician 24/7 .

FLIGHT TIME
Penn Jillette often uses the analogy of "flight time" to convey the importance of performance experience. Penn says that airplane pilots get their license after a certain number of hours spent in the air, actually flying the plane. This is called putting in your flight time. At the end of this flight time, one doesn't need to be a good pilot, one just needs to be a live pilot! This same idea applies to magicians. The magician who does the most shows for the live public gets the most experience


Perform whenever you got a chance to.
Street magic is a platform for you to brush up your skills and presentations
Make strangers, your friends, families your free hired stooge and sharpen your skills

You can stay at home practice day and night, to the mirror, and manage to do a perfect DL, perfect P**s, Perfect retention V, perfect sleights. Everything seems so perfect. You think you are good enough?
(When you are out to the real world, you'll shake, You'l flash, You'l expose, but that is completely NORMAL
Is there any child who never falls in the process of growing?)

There is no one in this world born perfect.
As you gain experience, you get better
and as you gain experience, you will overcome your fears and tremblings

These are what I quoted from Jeff Mcbride
you may not completely agree with it, but I do,

Here's an idea.

FIRST : Get a bunch of friends together, friends who are not magicians, and who are willing. Then perform for them. Get them to critique you and watch for your mistakes.

THEN : Get a bunch of friends together, friends who are magicians, and who are willing. Then perform for them. Get them to critique you and watch for your mistakes.

THEN : Critique your own performance. Are you shaking? Are you making silly mistakes? How is your presentation and technique? How is your language and patter, your tone and inflection, your vocal clarity, etc?

THEN : Learn from all that.

BUT DON'T : Perform indiscriminately in public places. I used to do that, and I regret my unprofessional-ism.

BECAUSE : That's not practice, that's just being an attention-whore.

IN CONCLUSION : Be a consummate professional, even in practice.

Just jerk it off.









I mean your nervousness.

Huh? It's a bit ambiguous isn't it, telling him to jerk it off? How is he to jerk it off? Any suggestions?

VERY ambiguous ;)

Lol jk aside, shaky hands is a common thing to any aspiring performers. Magicians, artists, musicians, rock stars, stand up comedians, they all shake at one point during the beginning of their performance. And there's no quick route to get rid of it. In fact, many great artists never actually get rid of it completely, but rather they now can contain it from happening involuntarily.

Everybody here has posted many good ways to achieve that. To sum it up, the more you're in control of your craft/effect, the more confident you'll get i.e. it's better knowing 2 tricks done inside out, than 15 on the surface. Total understanding of timing will get you there too.