Mentalist Decoded
A mentalist has to bank on some convincing techniques to converse or interact with his audience, while playing mind tricks. Following are the ways in which a mentalist succeeds in his act of keeping his audience entertained and mesmerized.
Cold Reading
Cold reading is a technique used by mentalists to establish a rapport with the audience by arousing interest and projecting enigma. This refers to a method used by every mentalist to predict a person prior to any communication with him. Cold reading demands keen observation skills of a person’s body language, clothing style, choice of colors worn or carried, hairstyle, religion, race, age, gender, facial expressions, mannerisms, manner of speech and language usage. As cold reading is done in a matter of minutes, it demands quick review of details and comprehension of mannerisms. All it takes is one correct guess about the person’s mood to establish a comfort level determined by trust.
Shotgunning
Shotgunning is similar to cold reading. It refers to throwing a lot of generic information at the audience, which they can usually relate to. For instance, talking about someone’s death in the family, loss of a pet, anxiety related to marriages and so forth are common topics that most people can associate with. Once the information hits the right nerve, the audience automatically connects with the mentalist at an emotional level.
Hot Reading
Hot reading is a technique used in combination with cold reading. Contrary to the former, hot reading involves careful research of the subject’s background, conversations, home and basically collecting as much information as possible. This helps in understanding the subject’s psychology and state of mind. A lot can be derived from the company the subject keeps than from what he may actually speak about.
Warm Reading
Warm reading is similar to hot reading. It refers to making generic assumptions that most of the audience can relate to. However, these assumptions are drawn out of prior research. For instance, talking about a piece of clothing worn by your subject may have a relation to death of a near one. It might be worn in memory of someone or as a good luck charm. Talking about these common human experiences helps the subjects to establish an emotional bond with the mentalist.
Signs and Signals
Picking up small insignificant signs and signals from your subject’s mannerisms can tell you lot about him/her. For instance, disheveled hair, dark circles, puffy eyes, receding hairline, outrageously mismatched clothes and chipped nails can be signs of stress and overwork. Similar signs which are often missed by laymen, but picked up by keen observers are starting points of deciphering your subject.