Intersection #8 of 10: To create a culture not afraid to embrace change.
By Mitch Praver, The CEO Magician (www.theceomagician.com)bundy kilpi damske red-gricciplac.org wiener-bronzen.com teplakova suprava panska wiener-bronzen.com truhlarstvibilek.cz tutobon.com villapalmeraie.com sevilenotocekici.com ribstol elan tutobon.com modré sandály na podpatku villapalmeraie.com feinsmecker strømper teplakova suprava panska

The worst thing you can hear in business or in magic is “Well that’s the way it has always been.”

The ability to overcome resistance to change can be a key success factor. To experiment with new ideas, learn from failure, and evolve a service to deliver even more relevant, impactful and memorable experiences for customers.

In magic, it was a fairly abrupt change in shifting customer needs when new names rose to the forefront to take advantage of new approaches and trends. It’s not usually the top successful magicians at that time, entrenched in their success, that rise to the new challenges and opportunities of new performance venues such as the street, Instagram, Tiktok, and Zoom.

1. It was newcomer Doug Henning, who was the first in 1974 to combine magic with art and a casual hippie feel to achieve fame on Broadway’s The Magic Show, which ran over four years.
2. It was newcomer David Blaine, who in 1977 was the first TV magician to focus not on the magician, but on the visceral reactions of spectators being astonished.
3. It was the young brothers team of Dan and Dave Buck in 2003, who became fascinated with card flourishes when there was extremely limited information on what is now known as cardistry.

Likewise, in business, it’s not usually the successful, entrenched companies that have the incentive to only focus on their successful core, legacy business – and ignore the changing market landscape and consumer behavior: The worst thing to say in company is “Well that’s the way it has always been.”

In magic, it is key to embrace changes in what your audiences deem relevant or irrelevant. When a magician takes out an odd-looking prop or trick, then the focus is on how the odd looking prop works – rather than on the magic effects. One of the most important books on magic, back in the day, was titled “Modern Magic”. What’s interesting is what was considered modern back then consisted of tricks using brass pillboxes, silk foulards, lanterns, thimbles, top hats, walking canes and lots of cigarette magic. I can envision a time 50 years from now when a lot of the magic done today with coinage, dollar bills, newspapers, magazines and phone books will also be considered outdated, out of fashion, much less relevant to audiences.

Likewise, in business,typically it’s not the successful, entrenched companies that embrace change. They have a greater incentive to only focus on and protect their successful core, legacy business. They often ignore the changing market landscape and consumer behavior – and that can quickly lead to failure. Magicians can help businesses confront resistance to change, transform change to action. We can turn the way we think upside down. Question everything!

● It was Netflix…not Blockbuster Video. Blockbuster was focused on videotapes, not video entertainment.,
● It was Wikipedia…not The World Book encyclopedia. The World Book was focused on a book…not learning and information.:
● It was Waze…not Magellan Maps. Magellan Maps was focused on maps, not point to point navigation.
● It was Amazon.com…not Borders Books. Borders Books focused on books on bookshelves based on available inventory – not on any book at any time at cheaper prices.
● It was AirBnB…not Hilton Hotels. Hilton Hotels was focused on Hotels, not business and vacation lodging.
● It was Google News, not The NY Times. The NY TImes was too focused on the paper and not the news. Their motto continues to be: “All the news that fits to print.”
● It was Flickr, not Kodak Film. Kodak Film was too focused on film, and not on photography.
● It was Venmo, not the US Mint. The Mint was too focused on coins rather than on payment systems. Especially post-pandemic, when consumer habits changed and they didn’t appreciate the germs and bacteria on their coins and bills passed along to them.

At NPR, back when I was Chief Operating Officer there, one of my first acts as COO was to invite Ted Leonsis, CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment and owner of the Washington Capitals and Wizards to speak with our NPR senior team. When he approached the podium, Ted kept looking “inside the frame” containing the National Public Radio logo. He shook his head – and then I asked him if anything was wrong. He looked at me quizzically and asked:: “National?” ( when media companies were international), “Radio?” (when people were listening to music and podcasts in many ways other than radio). “If I were you, I’d focus on the “P”.
And that is exactly what we did. At the start of “The Arab Spring” NPR encouraged journalists and observers alike to provide first-hand accounts, photos and videos captured by cellphone. This innovation turned the broadcaster’s use of social media from 1 to many for promotion, to leveraging first-hand accounts as a two-way form of public journalism. – focusing on the P.

Successful magicians as well as successful CEOs need to be able to see clearly both “inside the frame” and “outside the frame” to avoid the blind spots of potential failure.
Sometimes, the solution to a problem lies “inside the frame”, where you can evaluate (in the mirror or in video recording) the current situation, limitations and constraints, and identify opportunities for improvement. Being able to see “outside the frame” encourages creativity, forward-thinking new solutions and approaches that can lead to performance breakthroughs.
Most magic books and videos focus on execution “inside the frame”, but magic’s true impact occurs “outside the frame” – presence, presentation, communication, psychology, timing and interaction with the audience.