By definition a professional magician is someone makes their living performing magic. However, there’s more to it than that, a magician must also act professional, and be perceived as professional.
If you have tooth-ache you want to see a professional dentist, someone who has training, experience, the right tools for the job and a clean and hygienic room to operate in. You shouldn’t trust a dentist that doesn’t fulfil all these criteria.
Say you drive a nice car and the clutch goes on it, you could spend a weekend with a friend who has some tools attempting to jack up the car on your driveway, but it’s more likely you’ll take it to a qualified mechanic.
People are willing to pay for a professional service
From the first instant a potential client comes into contact with you, you must have an air of professionalism that gives people the confidence to book you.
The professionalism comes across as your tricks, props, patter, website, pictures, videos and marketing materials.
(The How To Be A Professional Magician courses cover all of this, and more!)
Being a full-time professional magician gives you freedom
You are your own boss, and you control your destiny.
Monday to Friday is not spent commuting in rush hour, to work for someone else. A professional magician with a smartphone can run the admin side of their business from anywhere. I have successfully operated the “business end” of my business whilst on a cruise-ship for ten days, only using my mobile for brief internet access when in port.
It does take hard work to set systems up and create the professional act, but once done you are only limited to the times and places you book into your diary.
You have direct control of your income too. Once you get established and your marketing is bringing in a constant flow of enquiries you can book as many, or as few, bookings as you wish.
Being a professional magician is a lifestyle career.
You still have to turn up and provide the shows; but you decide which ones you take, how much you charge, where they are, and when you do them.
Does this sound better than spending 40 hours a week in an office, directly trading your time for money, and ultimately using your skills, talents and resources (time is a resource, and you only have so much of it) to make money for someone else?
If you are going to make some changes to your life, or embark on a big project (such as becoming a professional magician) then you are going to be going outside your comfort zone. It won’t be easy.
So now you know the advantages to being a professional magician, and why to need to act like a professional magician.
This article is a based on a lesson in the “Turning Professional” section of the How To Be A Professional Magician course, as well as the abridged versions
Learning more
The How To Be A Professional Magician Courses cover everything you need to know to set up a business as a professional magician. The Full Course contains all the information (as well as 30 minute Skype consultation to help you get your business launched), and the abridged courses also cover business set-up.