Hypnotic Thoughts.

Lady GaGa Appears at Proctor Academy... Sort of.

I used to have somebody in my show think that they were Kelly Clarkson, and that was fun, but then I thought, "Hey, Lady GaGa would be cool.  And she could have backup dancers!"  And voila!

Four Shows in Four Days. Why I love Stage Hypnotism

It's that time of year when colleges open for the fall semester, which means I end up traveling around quite a bit to do shows for them.  I just finished four shows in four days and traveled to three different states.  Every year something memorable happens during this week of activity, and this year was no exception.

Friday I drove to Potsdam, New York for my first-ever appearance at SUNY Potsdam.  They had a great crowd and the show was fantastic.  There were a lot of people in the audience (I always ask at the beginning of the show) who had never seen stage hypnotism before.  I love this, as it means that I get to be their first experience.  Thanks so much to Ruth and her crew at SUNY Potsdam for giving me that opportunity.

Saturday I drove back to New Hampshire for my annual appearance at Saint Anselm College.  It was my sixth year in a row at St. A's, and I always have a killer show with them.  The students there just bring tremendous positivity and fun to the stage.  I think the highlight for me was the young man who became a pirate.  When I asked him what he was looking for, he replied "scoundrels."  Loved it.

Sunday I hopped a plane to Baltimore for my annual visit to Goucher College.  The show was in their new, very impressive Athenaeum building.  I had to look that word up.  Turns out an athenaeum is a place where books are available (I know, kind of anti-climactic, right?).  I guess they couldn't just call it a library because it is more than a library.  It has a fitness center in it, and classrooms, and a performance space.  It's kind of like the swiss army knife of buildings, for them.  Enjoy your Athenaeum, Goucherites.  It probably cost a gadgillion dollars.

Sunday night I left the campus and returned to my room at the Sheraton, where I stay each year when visiting Goucher.  I turned down the bed, shut off the lights, and climbed in, only to discover (by LAYING in it, mind you) that the previous occupant of the room had apparently urinated in the bed.  My immediate conclusion was that housekeeping did not change the sheets, but simply re-made the bed, therefore not noticing the soaked sheets.  What was Sheraton's response to all this when I called the front desk?  They moved me down the hall and gave me a coupon for free breakfast.  I have to admit that I kind of expected more.

Monday I flew home to New Hampshire and drove to New England College.  NEC is another school that I've gone to for six straight years, and I was sad to not have my usual strong show with them.  I think part of it was that I was tired from not sleeping well after my incident in Baltimore.  I really felt bad driving home.  NEC has always been good to me, and I'm peeved at myself for delivering anything less than a stellar show for them.

Even though it's been a hectic four days, I love being able to do what I do.  To travel around, meet new people, and share the experience of hypnosis with people is such a privilege for me.  To go someplace new like SUNY Potsdam is so fun, and to return to schools like St. A's, Goucher, and NEC is a genuine honor for me.  I really believe I have the best job in the world.

Stage Hypnotism is Being Marginalized by Those Who Benefit From It.

Ask anybody on the street what they know about hypnotism, and you'll most likely get a reply about people on stage clucking like a chicken or barking like a dog.  The most common stereotypes about hypnosis are the image of the volunteer as a powerless victim and the hypnotist as some kind of voodoo master, bending the wills of his subjects to his every command.  Even the most educated folks tend to know little about hypnotism and what it's really all about.

Stage hypnotism has a long history, and these stereotypes are mostly derived from the early part of that history when hypnotists created the persona of being powerful and mystical.  Magicians did the same thing.  Part of drawing a crowd back then was having people believe that you really had some kind of unique ability or supernatural quality.  People didn't buy tickets for something fake; they wanted something real and astounding.  Today it's widely understood that magic shows are just an illusion, yet many people still believe that hypnotists have power over their volunteers, and there's a level of fear for some people.

As the members of the hypnotism community who practice consulting hypnotism (also called hypnotherapy by some, personal coaching by others) strive to make hypnotism a separate and distinct profession, there is also a growing movement to distance themselves from stage hypnotists.  Many practitioners believe that stage hypnotism gives the broader profession a bad name.  Some would even go so far as to suggest that stage hypnotists should be excluded from some of the professional associations. 

I absolutely understand the concerns that my colleagues have with how the stereotypes associated to stage hypnotism get applied to consulting hypnotism, as well.  However, from a broader perspective I would assert that stage hypnotism benefits the profession more than it harms it, and those same professionals who wish stage hypnotism would just go away are taking for granted the benefits they get from it existing.

As a stage hypnotist, I travel all over the United States.  I perform for audiences as large as 600 people.  When I perform, I always do a brief educational talk before I start the show.  I explain the myths and misconceptions about hypnotism, talk about the benefits of being hypnotized, and share some of the ways that people can use hypnosis to increase their wellness.  Basically, I do a little live commercial for hypnotism at every show.  At almost every show that I do, somebody comes up to me after the show and asks a few questions about how hypnosis could be used for a specific need they have in their life.  I answer that question to the best of my ability, and then I tell them how they can find a certified hypnotist in their area.  I'm generating leads for colleagues that I don't even know.

Now the counter-argument is, "Yes, Paul, but every time some other hypnotist does an 'R-rated' show or some inappropriate act in their show they're scaring away people and making our profession look bad."  It's a faulty argument, though, as it's not really about stage hypnotism; it's about poor professionalism.

We live in a culture that values entertainment.  There is no better way to impress people with the potential of hypnotism than a stage show.  When people get that "wow" factor from seeing a live show that is appropriate and compelling, done in a classy way, they are going to leave that show more open to the possibility of using hypnotism in their own lives. 

I've sat through meetings at conventions and trainings on several occasions where people didn't know that I perform stage hypnotism in addition to consulting hypnotism, and when it finally came up in conversation their body language would change, or they would get that disapproving look in their eye.  These people don't understand the potential that stage hypnotism has to promote the other side of our profession. 

We need more stage hypnotism, not less, but we also need to put more peer pressure on our colleagues to conduct themselves in a manner that properly represents our profession.  When we see inappropriate and unprofessional behavior, we need to speak up.  That is the truest sort of professionalism.

The Earlobe Blues.

I visited Worcester Polytechnic Institute for the first time this past weekend, and had a great time with the students there.  Here's one highlight.

Proctor Academy Stage Show

Last night I visited Proctor Academy in Andover, New Hampshire for the first time.  The show was in a fantastic space called the Meeting House.  It's their theater, but it's not a typical theater.  Huge, single span 75 foot long wooden beams frame off the roof, so it has this feel of being in a post-and-beam house.  The stage thrusts out at floor level, with the audience seated in an arrangement that rises a bit more steeply than average.  Just a cool, cool space.

Attendance was fantastic, and the students were really kind and genuinely curious about hypnotism.  I got a lot more questions than I usually do, but was glad to answer them.  I ended up with a really large volunteer group, and we had a great show.  Lots of laughing, lots of dancing, lots of fun.  Today I'll review the video and start editing it up.  I think it will make a great souvenir for people who were in the show.

My thanks to Seth and Terry for their technical support, and to Ben for running my video camera.  And thanks so much to everyone who attended the show.  It was great spending time with all of you.  Hope I get to see you again sometime.

Abraham Baldwin College Show

I'm sitting in the Jacksonvillle airport after a fun visit last night to Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.  It was my first time at ABAC, and my first performance in Georgia, so I was pretty excited for this trip.  The activities gang at ABAC did a great job of putting on a fun night before the first day of finals.  They served pancakes and did a coin auction before the show, and attendance was great.  My volunteer group was smaller than usual, but the students up on stage with me had been hypnotized before, so they were all great subjects.  We had a good time, and I think it's the beginning a stronger culture around hypnotism at that campus.

Thanks so much to Chris, Jennifer, and everybody at ABAC for my first visit to Georgia.  Hope I get to see you again sometime.

Goffstown High School Show

Last night I made my fifth annual fundraiser with Goffstown High School.  We had a great crowd of people, a terrific group of volunteers, and a really fun show.  This school is an excellent example of what happens when you use my fundraiser program to build a fun tradition at your school.  The students at Goffstown now know that this show is a guaranteed fun event, their families come with them, and the whole time that they're laughing and enjoying themselves they're making money for their own student council.  It's a true win-win. 

I was really impressed last night with a new element that the student council added to the night.  They raised their ticket price this year, but said that if you brought two cans of food to the show they would discount that ticket price.  They actually ended up with a couple hundred cans of food to donate to the local food shelter, which is fantastic.

Thanks so much to everyone who attended the Goffstown show.  I had fun with you all, as always.  See you next year!

Husson College Show

Last night I visited Husson College in Bangor, Maine for the third year in a row.  A great crowd of students gathered in the campus center, and we had a fun show with quite a few "whoa!" moments.  Interviews with The Forker and Spoon Man, a rousing blues performance by Timothy, and an amazing peer advice panel were just some of the highlights of the night.

Thanks so much to Greg and the programming board at Husson for another nice visit.  Hope you had as much fun as I did!

Cazenovia College Show

Last night was my fourth visit to Cazenovia College.  They are always so much fun.  Great attendance, great energy, and it was one of those shows where I found myself laughing out loud at points.  I was lucky to be able to bring my wife, Jen, along with me on this trip, and she shot some really great video of the show. 

Thanks so much to Monica and the Campus Activities Board at Cazenovia for another fun visit!

From the Rockies to the Mesa and Back

What a weekend!  Friday I flew into Denver for a show at Johnson and Wales.  My flight was delayed at the infamous Philadelphia airport, and I was 25 minutes late for my show at JWU.  The students were so nice and patient, though, and we had a great time.  Bigger crowd than last year, bigger volunteer group than last year.  Really funny show.  Here's a quick video from the beginning of the show:

From Denver I traveled west through the Rockies.  What a treat!  I drove four hours, passing through Vail and Glenwood Canyon.  The aspens were bright yellow, and it was just an amazing drive.  My next show was at Mesa State College.  It was my first visit there, and it was Homecoming Weekend.  There was a small crowd, but I managed to get a group of volunteers up on stage and work through a modest show.  It seemed that the majority of students wanted to head from the big football game directly to the parties that tend to follow, but for the students who weren't into that the show provided a nice alternative.

Back through the Rockies the next day, and onto a plane bound for Nashville.  I'm staying in Oak Ridge, Tennessee all week training to become a Certified Instructor.  More about that when the week is done.