Win the Crowd: Unlock the Secrets of Influence, Charisma, and Showmanship

Not everyone wants to be a practicing magician, but everyone needs to bring a little magic into their lives. None of us makes a pretension to be as captivating as a professional magician or Las Vegas showman, but we are all captivated by these people and wish that we could harvest some of their charismatic power for our personal and business lives. Wouldn't you like to learn how a magician can focus his eyes on you, so that you become mesmerized by his gaze and feel that you must follow each one of his moves? Wouldn't you like to learn how a Las Vegas showman gives "presence" to his human frame - sometimes despite his actual size - and "fills" the room with his personality? Have you ever wondered how a magician gets you to focus on one part of his body, while another part of his body is actually putting the trick together? What Steve Cohen conveys to you is that these are simple techniques, but they require almost daily practice. Steve talks about "eye contact" drills you can perform while you're walking through the mall, "posture" drills you can practice before your next big presentation, and "misdirection" techniques that, somewhat contradictorily, actually help focus your audience's attention on you. You can read books about public speaking, which all repeat the same mantras about "eye contact," "breathing," and "body language," or you can take Steve's unorthodox approach to give your speeches a little "magic." Steve's book is extremely well-written, and very entertaining. A little bit of talk about "magic," but nothing that would make a non-practitioner's eyes glaze over.

You don't have to be a magician to love WIN THE CROWD by Steve Cohen because it applies to virtually any profession and/or thing that may do in life. Cohen, aka The Millionaires' Magician, entertains celebrities, tycoons and aristocrats at private events the world over . . . he also performs his public show, CHAMBER MAGIC, at New York's famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel . . .and as a result of reading his book, I'm going to try to make a performance in the near future. I want to see how commanding, convincing and charismatic he is--all traits he shows you how to develop in CHAMBER MAGIC . . . now if this sounds like a bit much to promise, consider the following game that the author plays: As quickly as you can, answer the following questions: 1. How many fingers does one man have on his hands? 2. How many fingers on ten hands? If you're like most people, you answered "ten" and "one hundred." The first answer is correct. The second answer is wrong. Go back and read it again. (If you still can't figure it out, I'll help; it is "fifty.") This shows what misdirection is all about. It moves you down a particular path and puts you in a certain state of mind. You'll learn this technique and many, many others as well. You won't become an accomplished magician; in fact, there's only one trick that he actually shows you how to do. However, you'll gain many other valuable tidbits that you can use in countless situations . . . among them: * When I read the previous sentence to a friend of mine, a successful businesswoman, she said, "That is so true!" She lives by the following aphorism: "Don't ask first; just apologize later." Instead of running a new idea by her boss, she just goes ahead and tried it out. According to her, too many "managers" are entrenched in their ways of doing things and are likely to say no to something new. She just plows ahead and does it on her own. * If you're supershy, start in a nonthreatening, location such as an elevator. The next time you are on the elevator with a stranger, break the silence and compliment her. That's right. Find something noteworthy about that person and say, "That's a nice (sweater/hat/watch) you're wearing. I like it." This simple act forces the person to react. You've taken a risk, and you've taken control of the situation. You've done something bold. Bravo! If the stranger ignores you, or thinks you're a creep, don't worry. You'll both be getting off the elevator soon enough. The pain of rejection will come and go so quickly that you'll never even notice it. If you're not in the habit of speaking to strangers, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how easily people will chat with you. If you're shy, challenge yourself to compliment five people daily. This is your first step toward conquering shyness. * When I was a student at Tannen's Magic Camp, professional magician Tom Ogden explained how he handles incoming phone calls. When someone calls for a potential booking, he taught u

I am a professional speaker and I speak more than 120 times per year. These events include crowds from 5 to 5000 and I haven't come across a book in a long time that I really thought brought something new to the table. This does not mean that there are no other books I find helpful, it's just that most newer books simple say the same ol' thing about giving speeches and presentations. Some of the other reviews here are accurate when they say that the book is mostly about working the crowd, but what they have failed to do is put in the mental and emotional effort to apply the concepts to what they do. In the world of speaking, there are those who know how to organize and deliver a speech and then there are those who know how to woo the crowd and ingrain the concepts into their minds through emotional and fact-based implanting. Most speakers have no concept of "Positional Communications: Having a specific spot for delivering certain important messages so the audience expects it without conscious awareness" or "Theme-ing: Having a consistent theme that is used to program the audience and ingrain long-term recollection." While these specific elements are not directly covered, this book provides the possibility of these deep insights. Understanding that it's important to have credibility and not just the facts. Knowing that your confidence determines, in large part, their receptiveness. Grasping that the words you use will impact whether the group remembers, regards, or relies on you and your information for their use and success. The point is that this book is not for the beginning presenter or speaker - he or she should get the basics of an organized speech down first (great opening; useful transitions; excellent ending; a body that is applicable, practical, and useful) then move onto more advanced concepts. This is a book you must read with the following question continually in mind: How does this apply to what I do? If you answer this question, the book will be beneficial to anyone who has to give a presentation and also for sales people, marketers, managers and leaders. If you haven't read this book, you don't know everything you need to know about relating to groups and individuals.

I enjoyed this book thoroughly and highly recommend it. Steve's combination of real-world experiences with a common sense approach make this book a valuable tool for anyone in the business world. His anecdotes and examples are sure to bring a smile to everyone. The book is pure magic and a "must have". You won't be disappointed.

Magicians have an interesting job. Unlike a talent for singing or telling jokes, their performance has to depend on the setting of an expectation in the part of the audience and then performing something that you would normally think impossible. When you strip away the sleight of hand tricks, magicians are essentially masters of attracting and holding attention and impressing audiences, exactly the psychological secrets you need to be successful in life and business. In this book Mr. Cohen talks about, not the magic tricks themself, but the staging of a magic show. How do you keep the audiences attention where you want it? How do you prepare them for something unexpected so that they will remember your point later? How do you make them listen to you carefully so that they won't miss a word, and thus remember it better? How do you sense what people are thinking, and perhaps more important, feeling while you are presenting so you can make them feel like they are getting your points? Remember, he's talking about showmanship, not magical tricks. For those you need a different book. For some interesting tips on how to hold attention while making a presentation, this is the book.