We’ve all been in that dreaded situation where you’ve been asked to perform and you’re completely blanking out. It’s never a fun spot to be in. Despite knowing a countless number of effects and routines, you’re not able to produce any of them during the moment any of it actually matters.

It’s not a matter of not knowing enough, it’s a matter of insufficient organization. Are you actively doing something to organize the effects that you know? If not, it’s something I urge you to prioritize. Organization is scarcely spoken about in the magic community. The only place I recall reading about it in recent memory is over at The Jerx (I recommend you check out the posts “100 Trick Repertoire Redux” [part one and two] , and “Minitoire and Shadow“). I enjoyed reading his organization tools and systems. Ultimately, I wanted to create a system specific to the social situations I find myself in, and for the effects that I usually perform. I hope you will be inspired to do the same by these ideas.

At first, I’d write down the strongest tricks that came to mind in my notes app on my phone, and when I found myself in a situation where I knew I’d be performing, I’d peruse that list. It was a short term remedy. The problem with this solution is that many excellent effects fall through the proverbial cracks, mostly due to forgetting them. Also, it was hard to pick appropriate effects for the given context. I took the time investment to create a much more thorough list, see below.

I sat down and slowly tried to recall all my favorite effects over the years. I also only chose effects that I am completely comfortable doing. This recalling process might take place over some days, weeks or months as some effects won’t come to mind immediately. The list was made on the IOS native notes app. As you can see, there are a few categorical organizations happening all at once.

First, notice the overarching category, “card effects”. I know if I throw a deck into my pocket, I can do almost any one of these effects.Then in bold, you see what the permitting situation is to do those effects. For instance, “FASDIU effects” are effects from a shuffled deck in use, anytime, anywhere. Then the effects are color coded (with a legend at the top), further specifying the conditions required to perform those effects. Is it an effect that can only be done in the hands, on the table, or is it flexible in that it could be done in either the hands or on the table? Then there are further requirements like set-ups or slight modifications to the card box for example (as seen in the picture). The idea is that now you’ll be able to cherry pick the effects and routines that fit the situation you find yourself in the best. You can do your list perusing subtly with a nip to the toilet for a pretend piss, or you can actually say to the participant that you’ve wrote a list of stuff to show to people and need a second to remind yourself of what you wanted to show them. Another option is to tell them that the trick you’re about to show them is something you’re still practicing, so you wanted to consult some notes first.

You’ve probably noticed that I’ve blurred out some of the effect names. It’s taken me a long time to curate an extremely strong list of effects, so I’m a little secretive. For sake of explanation though, I’ve left some unblurred. I chose red for “in the hands” because red can be mnemonically associated with body warmth, and blood. I chose blue for the table because it’s the opposite of red. Purple is a mix of red and blue, perfect for an effect that can be performed both in the hands and on the table.

You can create multiple versions of these repertoire lists for the different types of magic you do (you do other types of magic…right?), you can make one list for mentalism, coin magic, magic that uses only your body, app magic, and so on. Once you do that, then you can organize it all into one hyperlinked masterlist. Here’s what it’d look like in action. Say you’re going to a card magic jam session, you can check your card repertoire list for those magician-fooler card tricks you’ve stocked up on since your last jam. If you’re going to line up for that new brunch spot with a friend, you’ll know to think about doing one of those green or blue effects. Then out of those green or blue effects, you can have a guess as to which of those your friend would like the most, based on their personality.

If you’re approaching the situation with a few effects in mind, you won’t be hesitating if the opportunity to perform arises, the problem that got me to make this damn list in the first place.