AGameofReadings

A Game of Readings

This is fun and super cool at the same time! This was born out of the back of
wanting to be able to deliver a super smooth reading when I meet someone.
There is nothing worse than an awkward silence where you are lost for words
while reading a participant, which is for most of us our biggest fear when
giving a reading. Learning to read someone is a lot like learning to drive.

When you first start you are nervous, you will make the odd mistake but when
you get going you wonder why you were ever so worried!

Just like learning space and distance perception in a car, when reading
someone you learn to pick up on certain characteristics or traits that describe
that person and a lot of the time the participant will tell you what you need
to know about them, a lot of the time without saying a word.

This little game helps you practice “reading”, get faster at making estimations
about a person and at the same time boosts up your confidence and
success rating.

Just to quickly make a point, success rating is something you should not worry
about at all. Just say what you feel and do it with conviction. Conviction is
the biggest key YOU have to believe in what YOU are saying. If you don’t
believe it, how can you expect your participants to?

This game essentially makes any cold reading situation a warm reading as
you are loaded with knowledge before you meet the participant (but not in
the usual sense of an imp device, pre-show etc) real time.

To practice this, it’s simple but might sound stupid - sit on a bench in a town
center (or well-built area) and when someone is thirty seconds from reaching
you, start in your mind reading the person. Pick someone that looks interesting
to start with, the more you have to go on and you will notice things you never
thought you would notice.

When the person is walking toward you what can you see?

Do they look stressed?

Happy?

Content?

Start to think and feel about what this person is going through. Is this person
wearing a wedding ring? Does the person's clothing give you an indication
into what kind of music this person likes? (This will tell you about the sort of
people this person associates themselves with). Do they have any tattoos? If
so, what are the tattoos and what images do they instantly cook up in your
mind.

Do you believe (estimate) this person has children (again this is not something
you would ever need to point out BUT it gives you an extra basis to give a
reading from). Children can be time consuming so a sentiment like "You often
find that you give your time to others a lot more than you do yourself and it
can be difficult because at times it feels like you are stuck in a cycle". This is
the sort of reading that would cook up if I thought the person did have
children, but it doesn’t matter if they don’t as this sort of statement can mean
a lot of different things.

The aim in not in your head to make up specifics but something that alludes
to the thing you are thinking of, as an example – If the person looks happy. If
you were to read that person you wouldn’t just say “You are happy”
– You would say something like “It’s really interesting, it almost feels like you
have started a new chapter in your life, you are finally free of a situation that
was causing you stress and for the first time in a long time it’s almost like you
can breathe freely again”.

If the person looks sad, you wouldn’t say you look sad you might say – “I am
feeling there is something that is happening right now that is playing on your
mind. Its making you feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders”.

Notice how it is longer and alludes to the exact same thing BUT makes it seem
like you are picking up on more than you are.

This is the strange part - When you have read the person in your mind, just let
the person walk by and in your mind focus on the fact you have just given an
amazing reading! – The last bit sounds strange but honestly if you visualize
that you have and do this a few times it will help with your confidence.

Lots of fighters, athletes visualize in their mind that they have won and how
they are going to win long before a fight, race/ competition takes place. It is
proven that with a positive mind the success rating was much higher, and I
know it carries over here. Start reading the person from 30 seconds away until
you feel you are picking up on things a lot faster, this is just like brain training. If
you are struggling with thirty seconds, then start doing it when someone is a
minute from you.

When you get quicker start reading the person when they are 20 seconds
away, the same principles apply.

This will help give you confidence in what you are saying, confidence in what
you’re doing and you will be surprised at just how accurate your readings
are.
This also helps you form readings in your head on the spot as that is the hard
part and the one thing I can’t share with you, the real secret is like anything
practice.

When you finally reduce it down to ten seconds, this is coincidentally the
average time it takes a volunteer onto a stage from the audience! This
means that if you wanted to add readings into your stage act you could as
well by quickly reading the participant on the way to the stage and fitting
that information around whatever routine you were going to perform.
Now you can successfully make estimations about someone very quickly and
have an idea and direction to base your readings off without too much
thought.