Stories, insights, and lessons from a consultant who picked up a deck of cards.
A thousand posts about magic, craft, and the long journey from a hotel room in an unfamiliar city to stages where real people experience genuine wonder. Cal Newport was right: passion follows mastery. But the journey that produced that understanding was the whole point.
Read MoreCal Newport argues that 'follow your passion' is dangerous advice. Build rare and valuable skills — career capital — and passion follows. I did not start with passion for magic. I started with a deck of cards and boredom. The passion came from getting good at something genuinely difficult.
Read MoreInnovation happens at the edges of what is already known — the adjacent possible. Felix's unique position at the intersection of business consulting and magic creates possibilities that neither world has alone. The most interesting territory is always at the border.
Read MoreSteve Martin's comedy used his magic, his banjo, his philosophy degree — nothing was wasted. Rachel Carson: nothing you truly learn is wasted. For an adult learner, the entire prior life is a resource. The consulting experience, the analytical training, the music — all of it feeds the magic.
Read MoreSteve Martin worked at Disneyland's magic shop from age 15, demonstrating effects eight to twelve hours a day. That shop was his 10,000 hours of stage time before he ever had a stage. My hotel rooms were my version of the same thing — a place that looked like limitation and turned out to be foundation.
Read MoreSteve Martin spent ten years learning, four years refining, and four years in wild success. The apprenticeship was invisible to the audience — but it was total. His story is a map for anyone who discovers a craft later than expected and wonders whether the timeline can be compressed.
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