I find it interesting that people try and give talks on how to be creative without actually showing you clear proof of their own creativity. What I mean by this is that it is easy to tell someone how to be creative, but far more difficult to show. This is what I hope you gain from reading this essay.

My intentions are to open up your creative process. I want you to start thinking outside of the box. I am going to go back in time and share with you how I got started in magic and the steps I took to get to where I am today.

I was 10 when I went to the Dr. to find out I could no longer play sports. I was diagnosed with aortic stenosis. This is a defect in your aortic valve. Before that day, I was a sports maniac. I played baseball, football, and soccer at very high levels and was pretty devastated to find out I wasn’t going to be able to play them competitively anymore.

I sat around my house moping and watching television. Flipping through the dozen or so channels that we had back then on the black and white, I landed on a show where they had a magician named Wizzo who totally entranced me. I realized many years later this was Marshall Brodein and the show was the Bozo show. From that moment on I was irreversibly hooked. I knew that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I was bound and determined to be a professional magician!

My first step was to go to the library. I didn’t know anything about magic shops back then. I got a magic book and started reading. I learned a couple tricks and practiced them over and over again. I then went out and performed for anybody and everybody. Family, friends, strangers and anyone else I could get to watch.