You can impress a crowd without magical props or even buckets of skill.
All you need to do is play mentalism tricks on them.
What exactly is that?
It’s when you somehow give the illusion of choice to your audience. In reality, you’re suggesting an outcome, be it a color, word, thought, or number.
The best part?
You can perform impromptu mentalism tricks anywhere!
Here, we’ll help you master 4 impromptu mentalism tricks that you can perform anywhere, and we guarantee that you’ll be the life of the party everywhere you go.
Plus, we’ll also discuss how to prepare before a mind-blowing mentalism trick.
So let’s begin!
The 4 Impromptu Mentalism Tricks to Master
Here, we’re going to teach you how to do the:
- 3 of diamonds card prediction
- Grey elephant from Denmark
- Black magic trick
- Triangle inside a circle
So let’s get to the steps of mastering these tricks.
1. 3 of Diamonds Card Prediction
One of the easiest and most powerful mentalism tricks in the book –– the 3 of diamonds card prediction.
Though it’s been used countless times repeatedly by mentalists around the world, the trick remains as effective as before.
To do this trick, ask a volunteer to think of a card and you’ll try to guess it by reading their minds. As you speak to them, keep sending non-verbal cues with your hands. For example, you can subtle from your hands into a diamond shape or put three fingers up.
Check this video to see how famous mentalist Derren Brown does it:
These non-verbal cues are sending a message to the subconscious mind to think about the 3 of diamonds.
Watch as your audience’s jaw drop to the floor as you tell them exactly what card they thought of. I mean, you were the one who made them think about that card after all… but nobody knows that!
Sounds impressive right?
To be sure you need to practice how to send out these non-verbal cues subtly.
2. Grey Elephant from Denmark
This impromptu mentalism trick is a little simpler as you won’t need any skills at all. You do need to memorize some math equations, though.
Don’t worry. It isn’t hard.
Here’s how you can play this mentalism trick:
- Ask a volunteer to choose a number between 1 to 10.
- Tell them to multiply the number by 9.
- If the result has double digits, ask them to add the numbers up.
- Then tell them to subtract 5 from the new total.
- Ask them to match the subtracted number to a letter from the alphabet, with 1 = A, 2 = B, and so on.
- Now, ask them to think of a country that starts with that letter.
- Moving on, let them get the second letter of the country they thought of and think of an animal that starts with that letter.
- Lastly, ask them to think of the color of the animal they’ve chosen.
All that’s left to do is to impress your audience by announcing that they’ve thought of a grey elephant from Denmark!
Who knew math could blow minds at a party, right?
How this mentalism trick works is that whatever number your subject chooses at the start, when multiplied by 9 and the two digits are added up, the result will always be 9.
Think about it: 9 x 5 = 45. Add those two digits up and it becomes 9.
Now, after subtracting 5, you get 4, which corresponds to D.
When your volunteer’s mind is still focused on the math questions, the first country they will think of that starts with D is Denmark (unless they first thought of Djibouti).
The next letter they’ll get is E, and the odds are that most people will think of an elephant. And, of course, the color of the elephant is grey.
Yes, there is a bit of risk with this mentalism trick. But the math questions will throw them off, making their mind think of the easiest answers.
3. Black Magic Trick
For this trick, you’ll need a secret accomplice.
It’s also best when done in a bigger crowd, like a birthday party or family gathering.
Here’s how it works:
- First, gather everyone in a room.
- Next, tell everyone that you’ll leave the room while they all choose one object in the room.
- When you return, tell your audience to think about the object they chose so you can read their minds and know what it is.
- Your secret accomplice will begin naming objects in the room, say something like, “is this the object they chose?”. When your accomplice names the object the audience chose, you tell them that that was the object they chose.
Again, you will be met with amazement. Especially if you do it many times to prove that the first one wasn’t just luck.
How is this trick done?
You just need to wait for your accomplice to name a black object in the room. That’s your cue that the next object he or she names will be the object the audience chose.
It’s very clever!
If you want, you can discuss another plan where the accomplice uses subtle signals like scratching his/her head.
4. Triangle Inside a Circle
Here’s another mentalism trick with zero props.
This trick is similar to the 3 of diamonds. So this means you’ll need to use non-verbal cues and strong but subtle suggestions in your wording.
How does it go?
- Ask your participant to imagine a shape but not a square.
For this first part, subtly trace a rectangle and then a triangle in the air.
Most people will automatically think of a triangle if a square isn’t an option.
- Ask them to imagine another shape around that shape.
The phrasing of this line is critical! When you ask them to imagine a shape “around” another shape, you’re already suggesting a circle.
Again, your non-verbal cues and phrasing will speak to the subconscious mind. Let me think about a triangle inside a circle.
This is yet another great impromptu mentalism trick that you can perform anywhere!
How to Prepare for an Impromptu Mentalism Trick
We know.
It’s an impromptu encounter, so how can you possibly prepare for it?
We’re not talking about bringing out your cards or your metal spoon.
Mentalism preparation is all about reading your audience.
Here’s how you can have a successful impromptu mentalism trick:
Make a quick audience reading
Scan your audience and keep a mental tab on their clothing, age range, and attitudes.
You can also use certain questions to gauge their situation and possible responses.
For example, audience members who might be pressured to give quick answers will give the most basic answer, like saying red when asked to choose a color.
Pick the best audience member to work with
Don’t make life complicated by going for participants that are difficult to read.
As you may have guessed, it’s not the person who avoids eye contact.
Neither is it the person who is the most excited.
Choose an audience member that fits right in the middle of these two extremes.
With just the right level of engagement and excitement, you’ll find an audience member that interacts with you but will not steal your spotlight.
Watch body language
Study your participant’s body language.
Whether they’re aware or not, their body will give you subtle hints to show if they’re receptive to your suggestions.
Keep your participants at ease
Try to make your audience feel at ease by mirroring their movements and asking about their interests.
Not only are you helping them be more comfortable, but you can also incorporate their interests into your act.
Sell your performance
Most mentalists will say that half of your performance is actually encouraging your audience to believe in your mentalism prowess.
Take the time to concentrate on what your subject is thinking about. If you’re working with props, wave them around and try to emphasize your magical powers.
Conclusion
There you have it!
You don’t need a lot of props and items to impress crowds with your magical prowess.
All you need is to muster up the confidence to have the power of suggestion in your favor.
With these simple impromptu tricks, even beginners can become the life of the party!
Once you’ve mastered these impromptu mentalism tricks, you can try some of the most popular mentalism tricks performed by professional mentalists.