How to Organize Your Magician Life

Updated: Dec 31, 2022

Magicians have a lot of stuff. Magic show props, gimmicks & gear, lecture notes and playing cards. Lots of cards. What do with it all? Closet? Room? Bin?

On the Magicians Talking Magic Podcast, we chatted with a veteran of magic who has over 40 years of professional performance experience as a stage and close-up magician.

Full-time magician, Peter Mennie shared some important and specific sorting and organizing strategies for magicians.

I think you’ll discover many nuggets of wisdom here that will help improve your overall organization. Peter is going to make you think about your own approach and how you should organize your magic life.

How to Organize Your Magician Life

➡️ Jump to 51:20 to see how Peter organizes his magic collection and show props.

MAGICIAN LIFESTYLE TIPS & IDEAS

6 Tips & Resources for Sorting & Organizing Your Magic Tricks & Magic Routines

Here are Peter Mennie's key sorting takeaways for magicians:

Jump to Section:

Store Each Routine with ALL Items Needed
What are the Best Storage Containers?
What should magicians do with their magic trick instructions and lecture notes?
Keep all your magic in one location
Have a Spreadsheet with all your magic effects
Store your magic shows in marked locations
Summary

Let's dive into how to organize your magician life.

1. Store Each Routine with ALL Items Needed

Each and every routine in your magic show should be stored solo with everything needed. A self-contained storage container or envelope (see below) that's clearly marked and labelled.

You (or someone else) should be able to pick up the routine off the shelf and it contains everything you need inside.

2. What are the Best Storage Containers?

Peter has used various storage containers over the years but has recently upgraded all his effects to an affordable see-thru envelope sold on Amazon. These see-thru storage envelopes are durable and come in 18 various sizes for about 20 bucks. A perfect accessory for magicians.

Check these out on Amazon here

3. What should magicians do with their magic trick instructions and lecture notes?

We get new magic tricks all the time, so what do you do with the instructions? Peter recommends downloading all instructions and having them printed and standardized. He first prints and labels the trick in large letters on a half-page card-stock reference card.

All new effects and tricks instructions are attached and stored so you can easily find them.

4. Keep all your magic in one location

Peter keeps all his shows, books, tricks and magic instructions in one location. All his instructions and books are kept in the "library" and his show props just a few steps away and stored by the different styles of shows.

This will make your life significantly easy in the long run.

5. Have a Spreadsheet with all your magic effects

Have a Google Sheet or Excel file that lists all your stored effects and instructions

6. Store your magic shows in marked/color coordinated locations

Make it easy for yourself or someone else to grab the items you need for your show. Peter has both stage show and close-up show storage locations with all routines clearly marked.

For additional magician organization and storage ideas, listen to part 2!