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When I learnt hypnosis, I was told..
1. Never tell someone that they are going to be hypnotised unless you want to make your own life harder for your self.
2. If you can do a suggestibility test, how much do you really need hypnosis?
3. Hypnosis is a con. The real skill is in knowing how to help someone change their thought patterns, not how to relax them.
And by the previous my teacher meant that hypnosis is about the hypnotist & their ability, not just the hypnosis it's self. If you can stick someone's hands together or make a hand slowly levitate, is that person so un-suggestive, that they (or you) need a special state to achieve anything?? And are you as a hypnotist so poor at the actual art of talking to someone that you cannot make them WANT to change or do something when they are already suggestive, willing & cooperative?? If you really need the extra help from hypnosis that much, should you really be charging for your service??
He always said hypnosis was the coathanger that we used to hang the real skills from. It helped us. But it was not a substitute for a good hypnotist.
My teacher always said that a successful suggestibility test to a good hypnotist should be like a locksmith being asked to gain entry to a building where the door was wide open. Learning how to utilise a willing mind effectively was the hard part not hypnotising someone.
And never tell someone I am NOW going to hypnotise you, as even if someone has willingly come to you for hypnosis, it is easier to show someone how to relax very deeply, or how to induce self hypnosis than work around any fear of hypnosis or fear of not being 100% in control that the person has.
I worked in practice with my teacher for several years & we never gave more than three treatments, we never took a client on until we had spoken to them & made ourselves satisfied that they wanted to change & we never took any money until the final visit & only then if they felt we had succeeded in doing what we said we would.
We always got paid.

I started using pseudo-hypnotism as part of a walkaround set about a year ago. The routines are mostly induction tests and the old foot stuck to the floor ploy as well as memory loss type effects. Obviously DR plays a significant part and a good starting point is Fraser Parker's True mysteries, though you can't go far wrong with Orville Meyer's work which was what I started out with. In terms of 'real' hypnosis, I found James Tripp's Hypnosis without trance was great source material and of course Jerome Finley's Thought Veil.

Well I have spent a lot of time doing some hypnosis alongside my mentalism (mostly in interesting spooky ways as opposed to a more "traditional" style) I always start with some sure fire pseudo stuff then pick out the best participant from the group. Usually at least one person will be a decent enough subject so do some things with them (start small and build up if you don't want to go for broke from the start) and all will go great. Sometimes you get what I like to call my angels. These are spectators that are incredibly receptive to hypnosis. This is where you can break out the big guns and try some of the things you have always worried may not work or that you have always wanted to try. As for approaching a group be confident not cocky you want them to want you in charge get them on side and excited before you even start. I always say better to have a crowd hungry and waiting in anticipation than to force feed them.
(oh and the first time is always the most difficult but will teach you more than reading all the books ever written on the subject).

Matt

Here is my favourite hypnotist at work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQRIAp7OYSE

That's a good example of what you can achieve though for me I really am not comfortable with participants leaving the stage (or if close up the immediate vicinity). It makes me feel uneasy especially in the UK where councils are often not particularly on board with it all the time. When performing hypnotism the things that really ought to be the most important are the safety of your participant, your audience and yourself. This might be just me being overly precautions but this is an instance for me which is very much better safe than sorry.

Matt

Oh, they're not hypnotised in the first place (no hypnotic subject is) so there is no need to worry about their safety. They are perfectly aware of what is going on. With regard to going into the audience that was a very small room so there really is no problem there. When you are on a big stage then you have to be a bit careful that they don't fall off and kill themselves as that disturbs the show a trifle. I try very hard not to have too many dead people participating.

When you realise that there is no such thing as "hypnosis" you are far more effective in your work. Oh, and there are MANY eminent psychologists who agree with me that the trance state does not exist. And some of the greatest stage hypnotists have whispered to me quietly that it is a load of old cobblers. Of course once I get hold of a great secret I blab it all over the internet. Now you know.

And just in case you don't know I suggest reading a book which will enlighten you. It is called "They Call it Hypnosis" by Robert Baker. Some council members in the UK should read it too.

Whilst I agree with the fact that there is no such thing as the trance state and is just people allowing themselves to be more suggestible and the hypnotic framing is just a tool to encourage that I am also well aware that most people especially lay people are not. Couple that fact with the possibility for people to get a little carried away sometimes there is the potential for accidents and such a way that people may try to land the blame on said hypnotist. Now since I have no desire to form part of Britain's case law on hypnosis I personally take a cautious approach to such situations. As i said in the first place this is one of those times for me in which better safe than sorry, puts me more at ease.

Matt

Do you do it on the stage or do you perform it in this rather awful fashion nowadays of annoying people in pubs and on the street with it? I do agree that the latter is more prone to dangerous situations.

As for the canary thing it is a standard stage hypnosis skit first described by Ormond Mc'Gill. If you do it in a small room it is fine to have them running all over the place. And remember that of course, as I already stated they aren't hypnotised in the first place so there is no danger whatsoever. If you do this on a bigger high up stage you give them a suggestion that they are not to run into the audience. Simple as that.

I tend to do a lot of walk around usually for events and such and often work on open mic nights doing some stuff while I MC for the evening. And I do agree in that room as it was just a small room it's not so bad but in other places I like people to stay a bit nearer. As for the canary skit I have used it quite a few times sometimes depending on the audience the canary poos on the volunteer to a fair amount of childish giggling from the audience. I have done hypnosis a few times in pubs with fiends and friends of friends because when my job gets mentioned they usually ask to see some things so I tend to stick with the whole hand stuck, feet stuck and a few other little sit down things. But eugh definitely not just on the street I can only imagine that being quite annoying and have never understood the street magic thing it, to me, makes very little sense. The only thing I will say is whenever you are performing anything safety should be at the front of your mind I suppose that comes from a circus background with a fair amount of fire performance so I may be a bit more ott with it than I really need to be.

Matt