Hypnotic Experience at the South Silver Spring Street Fest

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of performing "Hypnotic Experience" as a strolling entertainer at the South Silver Spring Street Fest,which was held in a wonderful community located just outside of Washington, DC.

Over the course of nearly three hours, I shared a simple hypnotic induction with nearly 20 volunteers.  The small group environment of community and street festival performing is always a lot of fun as I have an opportunity to more personally connect with each volunteer.

Many thanks to the South Silver Spring Neighborhood Association for including me.

Colorful characters are typically present at street festivals. 

What a cool t-shirt!

Street festival included music, food and neighborhood groups.

The Color of Hypnosis

The woman I met with earlier this week because of a shared interest in self-hypnosis is what my buddies and I refer to as an “if only girl.”

--If only I wasn’t married with children

--If only I was 20 years younger

--If only she didn’t have a boyfriend

Well…you get the picture.  She’s smart, articulate, passionate, opinionated, professional and stunning.  Yet, she harbors a similar set of insecurities about life and career that plague many young people as they transition to a real world work environment.   

Can hypnosis be an effective tool to instill and reinforce a well deserving sense of confidence to help achieve success?

I guided her through a basic hypnotic induction to get her comfortable with the process.  We took time to talk at several natural breaks in the session because I was interested in her feedback on the experience.  She studies psychology, so I perceived she might have a unique perspective on hypnosis.

A couple of fascinating comments:

--She felt like she was “floating in time.”  A sensation similar to what she experiences during meditation.  She reported being of clear thought and mind.

--She visualized the color purple during the induction.  My voice was that color and when I asked her to experience an instant induction the color was the dominant sensation.  Candidly, hearing about a personal color of hypnosis was a first for me.

We concluded the introduction to hypnosis with one of my favorites – the use of a power word to build a subconscious bridge to feelings of empowerment and confidence.  That was meaningful for her.

While under hypnosis, she experienced color all around her and in my voice.

Positive and Personal Inspirations from Hypnosis

My message about the power of positive visualization to achieve health, happiness and success is the core tenet of my “Hypnotic Experience” show.

I perform three versions:

1. An entertaining and informative discussion about and demonstration of hypnosis with an emphasis on its use as a tool for stress management, self confidence, and career, academic or athletic performance.

2. A more comedic show that is perfect for college and high school events, community festivals and charitable fundraisers.  I steer clear of the over-the-top Las Vegas-style antics associated with hypnosis shows, although I do suggest volunteers visualize some rather entertaining situations.

My recent show at the Burke Centre Festival is an example.  In October, I’ll perform two shows at the Bradley Farm Haunted House event in Herndon, Virginia.

3. An informal, walk around approach to demonstrate hypnotic inductions at street fairs and other events.  This coming Saturday I’ll be at the South Silver Spring Street Fest and in early October I’ll be a strolling entertainer at the South Riding Fall Fest in Virginia.  

This past Sunday I was invited by one of the most profile Washington, DC based social organizations to speak with a group of nearly 30 professionals about hypnosis and positive visualization.

It was a rewarding evening because of the exceptional people I had an opportunity to meet, and their shared commitment to health, wellness and self-improvement.  Selfishly, this interaction with such high-performers who aspire for continued growth serves as personal inspiration for me – as a parent, business owner and performer.

Here are a few of the comments from attendees after the event:

“I enjoyed Marc's stories and his journey on how he got into hypnosis. I'm learning to meditate and do find the similarities as Marc stated.”

“In case anyone is wondering slept the best I have in years.”

“This was a fun and positive experience. Thanks, Marc, for all the goodies you shared with us. Just like Jill, I slept well last night…

“I truly enjoyed this event! Learned a lot.”

Earlier this year, my "Hypnotic Experience" show entertained the members of the Welcome Club of Northern Virginia.

Why Business Leaders Turn to Meditation

In the past few weeks I have come across a number of exceptional articles in the mainstream media about the meaningful benefits derived from the practice of meditation.  Here’s a post I wrote that overviews a Fast Company article that explores what happens in the brain during meditation.

This morning I reviewed an article about how CEOs from companies like Ford, Tupperware, Salesforce and News Corp. employ meditation as a tool to facilitate decision-making.  It’s worth the read!

Hypnosis is simply a form of meditation.  In fact, the induction I use during my “Hypnotic Experience” show combines the basic principles of meditation with guided visualization.  It’s an enjoyable, relaxing and positive experience.

Meditate for More Profitable Decisions

Written by Zoe Kinias

More on Sleeping Well with Hypnosis

In February I wrote a blog post about the top five outcomes people desire to achieve through the use of hypnosis.  The runaway #1 was better and more restful at night.

The issue of sleep was top of mind last week when I met with a friend who has struggled for a couple of months with insomnia.  She falls asleep just fine, yet finds herself waking up each morning between 2 and 3 AM with little prospect of returning to rest.

Moreover, the situation has worsened with each passing week as the prospect of another listless night weighs on her mind.

I took her through a hypnotic induction and then shared two visualizations:

1) “Healing Waters” – a personal favorite of mine because it helps reduce stress, tension and anxiety.   

2) “30 Second Self Hypnosis” – a simple process that helps a person slip back into a deeply relaxed state.

I also forwarded her this wonderful article entitled the 7 Sleep Habits of Successful Entrepreneurs about how to create an environment conducive for sleep.

How’s she doing? 

Last I heard she reported three straight nights of peaceful sleep and, more important, she has a more positive outlook on life.

Photos from Hypnosis Show at the Burke Centre Festival

This weekend I had the opportunity to perform my "Hypnotic Experience" show at the Burke Centre Festival in Burke, Virginia (a suburb of Washington, DC).

On Saturday evening I was one of the entertainers at the festival's Wine Garden, a relaxed gathering that featured tastings, light snacks and performances from local musicians.  It was a family friendly environment, yet attended mostly by adults.

Sunday brought me to the festival grounds to interact with guests in small groups with simple demonstrations of the power of positive visualization.  I only had an hour at the event because of my son's baseball game, however I was able to interact with a number of creative individuals who were open to giving hypnosis a try.

It's this more informal version of Hypnotic Experience that has proven popular with street festivals and community fairs.  I'll be at the South Silver Spring Street Fest on Saturday, September 28 and the South Riding Fall Fest on October 5.

Here are a few photos from my show at the Wine Garden:

Show includes a pre-talk, which is an entertaining discussion of hypnosis and its applications.

"Sleep" suggestion brings volunteers to a relaxed and suggest-able state.

Instant induction is a crowd favorite.  This volunteer gently returns to hypnosis.

What's your name?  A volunteer cannot seem to recall while in hypnosis.

Great Read on Productive Powers of Meditation

An absolutely wonderful read in Fast Company magazine about the practice of meditation.  The author dives into these topics:

--What happens in the different regions of the brain during meditation?
--How does the practice of meditation affect a person?  (less stress, better focus, more creativity, etc.)
--What's the best way to get started with meditation?

The hypnotic induction process I employ is based on the principles of guided meditation for the reasons described by Fast Company.


Science, Your Brain and the Productive Powers of Meditation
Fast Company Magazine
September 4, 2013

Georgetown University's Hypnotic Experience

When the fall semester kicks off at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, the school hosts a Welcome Week for new and returning students which include a series of events and activities.  A highlight of these festivities is a Midnight Carnival that features food, music, carnival rides and entertainment. 

 

This past Friday evening I had the privilege to perform Hypnotic Experience for about 75 students at the Carnival and then hang around for nearly 90 minutes after the show for a series of informal demonstrations of the power of positive visualization.

My participation at Welcome Week was particularly gratifying for a few reasons.  First, this was my second year at the event after a successful performance in 2012.  It’s always nice to be invited back by an event organizer.

And second, I have a close connection to Georgetown because of my proximity to the campus.  My family attends a number of sports events and theatrical productions each year.

Here are a few observations from Friday evening’s show:

1) A successful performance is very much about setting audience expectations.  There are a myriad of misconceptions about hypnosis and what might happen on-stage. 

Hypnotic Experience is not a Las Vegas-style show defined by outlandish volunteer antics.  Rather, it’s an entertaining demonstration of hypnosis and how it can be harnessed as a tool to improve health, wellness, self-confidence, and athletic, academic and career performance.

My goal is to leave an audience with a positive view of hypnosis and visualization.

2) With that in mind, I keep the suggestions simple and fairly vanilla.  My “go to” is the instant induction, which typically draws a reaction from the crowd when they witness how quickly a volunteer can re-enter hypnosis.

I do try to introduce more complex suggestions (i.e. visualize competing in an American Idol completion), yet these are more challenging to pull off and based on volunteer suggest-ability.

3) Volunteer comfort and a positive impression of hypnosis are paramount.  That’s why I focus on two post-hypnotic suggestions related to confidence and wellness.  I want my volunteers to tell friends, family, etc. they tried hypnosis and it was fun and helpful.

A simple sign encourages students to enjoy a hypnotic induction.