There is no official instruction manual for practicing illusion. However, in

this book I’ve distilled the methods I use onstage into seven core principles

that have centuries of beta-tested success behind them. These seven fundamentals

empower magicians to command a room, to build anticipation, and to appear to work

wonders. They keep us at least one step ahead of the audience, showcasing our

abilities and converting skeptics into supporters. But you don’t have to be

a magician to master these principles. And you needn’t be an entertainer to

benefit from them. On the contrary, they can be game changers for you in any

arena—political, corporate, technological, even in your social life.

In the chapters that follow you’ll learn the rules of human behavior and

cognition that make your audience susceptible to illusion. You’ll meet

thought leaders and innovators throughout history who have used these

tenets to leverage their ideas into industry empires. And you’ll discover

how these seven principles can give you an edge on the competition and

grant you a greater sense of control in your own life.