Celebrating a 5 Star Show

Engaged audience during my pre-talk about the health and wellness applications of hypnosis.

Entertainment is all about the audience.

A performer needs to connect, engage, read the vibe and do everything possible to ensure guests have a fun and fulfilling experience.

After six years and more than 100 shows, I’ve come to appreciate the challenge this task presents.  I’ve had great shows…OK shows…and…yes…even total misses.

That is why positive feedback from guests is always so welcomed and appreciated.  Below are a few guest comments from my Hypnotic Experience show earlier this month at the Chinatown Cultural Center in Washington, DC.

It’s also important to note the show was graded as five stars by guests.  This is the highest possible rating.

Many thanks to the 20s/30s Group for hosting me for a fourth year in a row!

Holly: Marc was really great. I liked that the show focused on the health and wellness side of hypnosis.

Shelly:  Very informative session. Marc made the presentation entertaining, while explaining the benefits of hypnosis.

Sean Hunbar Tóth: Funny, engaging, entertaining, educational, intriguing, and more.

Matthew: Interesting! I can see this as useful tool in learning to deal with stress. Thanks Marc!

 

Wonderful group of volunteers in a deep and relaxed state of hypnosis.

What Does It Feel Like to be Hypnotized?

The feeling of hypnosis is unique for each person.

One of my volunteers was surrounded by her friends who peppered her with questions.  What did it feel like?  Do you remember anything?  Are you sleepy?

I had just completed a performance of my "Hypnotic Experience" show at the Bradley Farm Haunted House festival and the volunteers continued to be the stars of the evening.  I watched as a few of them relayed to friends their experiences while hypnotized.

It's a frequent question I'm asked as well when people learn I am a hypnotist:  what does it feel like to be hypnotized?

Even having worked with hundreds of people during the past five years, it's a hard question to answer.  That's because hypnosis is very much a personal experience.

Yet, I just came across an article in the San Francisco Chronicle in which a young woman who practices self-hypnosis does an exceptional job of describing how she feels while hypnotized.  Here is a link and an excerpt:


Hypnosis is Akin to Intense Focus 

If you're reading a book and you're really into reading that book and the rest of the world sort of disappears, you don't realize how fast time is passing, someone could call your name and you don't hear - hypnosis is actually similar to that, but instead of focusing on the TV you're watching or the book you're reading or the project you're working on, you're focusing on what's going on inside your head and what's going on inside your body.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/Hypnosis-is-akin-to-intense-focus-3975730.php#ixzz2DiUMad6D

If you're reading a book and you're really into reading that book and the rest of the world sort of disappears, you don't realize how fast time is passing, someone could call your name and you don't hear - hypnosis is actually similar to that, but instead of focusing on the TV you're watching or the book you're reading or the project you're working on, you're focusing on what's going on inside your head and what's going on inside your body.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/health/article/Hypnosis-is-akin-to-intense-focus-3975730.php#ixzz2DiUMad6D

 

If you're reading a book and you're really into reading that book and the rest of the world sort of disappears, you don't realize how fast time is passing, someone could call your name and you don't hear - hypnosis is actually similar to that, but instead of focusing on the TV you're watching or the book you're reading or the project you're working on, you're focusing on what's going on inside your head and what's going on inside your body.

Bravo for Bradley Farm

A wonderful group of enthusiastic and creative volunteers...

...enter a deep state of hypnosis with the sleep suggestion.

This weekend I had the pleasure of performing my "Hypnotic Experience" show at the Bradley Farm Haunted House festival in Herndon, Virginia.  Proceeds from the event will be donated to Herndon-Reston FISH, a non-profit that provides support to families in short term crisis.

Here are a couple of observations from my Friday and Saturday evening shows:

--A successful community event or festival requires a high level of attention to detail by the organizers.  In the case of Bradley Farm, everyone was professional, easy-to-work with and clear in their communication of expectations.  What's even more impressive is the event is put on solely by volunteers.

--It's a challenge to perform a show at a festival because of the activity, noise and distraction.  It can make it tough for a volunteer to achieve the focus required to enter a hypnotic state.  As such, I employ a simple demonstration of the power of visualization at the start of the show to establish credibility with the audience and to identify potential participants.

--I was fortunate to have an eager group of volunteers at both the Friday and Saturday evening shows.  During my introductory talk I define hypnosis, clear up misperceptions and share a few ways hypnosis can positively impact quality of life (i.e. stress management, test taking performance and athletic achievement).  Once people learn a bit about hypnosis there tends to be a lot of interest in experiencing an induction.

--I always keep in mind that community festival and event attendees are there to be entertained.  I incorporate anecdotes in my presentation and make the suggestions funny (yet never embarrassing).  Perhaps the biggest hit this weekend was having the volunteers visualize they were competing in the Bradley Farm American Idol competition for $10,000.           

--I did have volunteers in each show achieve a deep state of hypnosis.  Friday was a better because the group was comprised primarily of teenagers and young adults.  They tend to have vivid imaginations, the ability to focus and are comfortable following directions.  Many of the volunteers on Saturday were tweens and kids under the age of 10.  This age group tends to lose focus fairly quickly. 

Many thanks to the folks at Bradley Farm for a great weekend.  I hope I'm invited back next year!


PS  I'd like to remind everyone who attended the "Hypnotic Experience" show that I am available for parties, social events, small groups, school functions, SAT and test prep, and athletic/team performance sessions.  You can reach me by Email at m.russell.hausman@gmail.com or by phone at (301) 538-8100.

Embracing Life Phases

It's fair to say my exploration of hypnosis as a tool for physical and emotional well being is a mid-life crisis. 

About five years ago I entered a new phase in life personally and professionally, and realized I needed to act on a long-standing interest I harbored in alternative approaches to health.  I reasoned, "If not now...when?"
 
I have also come to recognize hypnosis can serve as a vehicle to help me pursue another long-standing desire -- comedy entertainment.

Yes, I gave straight stand-up comedy a shot and completely bombed.  In fact, I got booed off stage at a free open mic performance.  It was quite humbling.

With my "Hypnotic Experience" show I have developed a unique approach that combines an informative and educational discussion about the power of hypnosis with good fun and entertainment.  My recent performance at Georgetown University was a success and I have gigs lined up this month at the Bradley Farm Haunted Mansion festival and at an event sponsored by Professionals in the City.

Life phases are real and meaningful.  My wife has been incredibly supportive of my endeavors and I think at some level is thankful I decided not to buy a sports car and get hair plugs.  That would have been too cliche.

I've been thinking a lot about life phases since meeting an exceptional young woman yesterday.  She too is in a phase as she transitions to young adulthood, and deals with issues related to career goals, life aspirations and redefined relationships with family and peers.

She also happens to be a truly gifted and creative writer who has the unique ability to emotionally connect with a reader.  I encourage you to block out 15 minutes to click through and read the blog post I have included below.  It's a wonderfully intense experience and captures the emotional toll a life phase has on a person -- both good and bad.

The writing is a bit too much stream of consciousness and the paragraph structure is raw.  That will evolve and mature in time.  Talent is talent though and good heavens does this woman have it.

I introduced her to hypnosis yesterday and suggested that it could be a tool to help her effectively channel her creativity into meaningful outputs (i.e. poetry, short stories, screenplays, song writing, etc.).  I hope she explores this further with me.


Follow Your Intuition

Excerpt

I was unable to see how my mother’s relationship with her own mother affected and influenced the way that she interacted with me for so long. I had mistakenly thought that she was un-nurturing, not wanting me in her life. I internalized that and began to believe that I was incapable of being a nurturing person and genuinely loving something or someone. I couldn’t even bring myself to say the words that my best friend and boyfriend of 4 years needed to hear so that he knew how I felt. I was selfish and stubborn, and I resented my mom for not showering me with the “I love you’s” that everyone else had. I blamed her for my own ruined relationship…and I ran away from home for a number of years because I believed that the easy was the best thing for me.