Want to develop a massive ego? Become a magician.
You learn a secret that somebody else doesn’t know, practise it for long enough, and eventually you have royalty, celebrities and scientists telling you:
“You’re a genius.”
“You’re incredible.”
“You’re the greatest magician I’ve ever seen!”
That is potentially dangerous feedback if you start believing it.
If someone says something lovely after a performance, I try to translate it internally: I did my job well. Not: I am a miracle worker.
The audience should think what you’ve done is impossible. That’s the whole point.
In reality, you know what sits behind that astonishment: years of practice, psychology, sleight of hand, scripting and – crucially – the secret they don’t know.
The same trap exists outside of magic.
Success can very easily turn from “I did something good” into “I am exceptionally good.”
And once your identity becomes wrapped up in being the most successful or most knowledgeable person in the room, it becomes much harder to be wrong. Much harder to listen. Much harder to learn.
Ultimately, it becomes much harder to grow – and probably much harder to be around.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t enjoy praise and encouragement. We absolutely should.
But perhaps, in the long run, we’re better served quietly translating it to:
I did my job well.
