https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/ Articles on the art, craft, and business of magic performance — from practice methods to creative development, by Adam Wilber and Felix Lenhard. en Mon, 26 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/1000-passion-is-a-side-effect-of-mastery/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/1000-passion-is-a-side-effect-of-mastery/ 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. Felix Lenhard Wed, 31 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/999-the-adjacent-possible/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/999-the-adjacent-possible/ Innovation 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. Felix Lenhard Tue, 30 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/998-be-so-good-they-cannot-ignore-you/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/998-be-so-good-they-cannot-ignore-you/ Cal 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. Felix Lenhard Tue, 30 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/997-you-will-use-everything-you-ever-knew/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/997-you-will-use-everything-you-ever-knew/ Steve 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. Felix Lenhard Mon, 29 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/996-the-magic-shop-where-steve-martin-became-steve-martin/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/996-the-magic-shop-where-steve-martin-became-steve-martin/ Steve 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. Felix Lenhard Sun, 28 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/995-perseverance-is-a-great-substitute-for-talent/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/995-perseverance-is-a-great-substitute-for-talent/ Steve Martin said he had no natural talent for stand-up comedy, so he persevered. This sentence, buried in his memoir, is the most useful thing anyone has ever said to adult learners. Systematic persistence over natural ability is not plan B. It is the only plan that works long-term. Felix Lenhard Sat, 27 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/994-steve-martins-ten-year-apprenticeship/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/994-steve-martins-ten-year-apprenticeship/ Steve 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. Felix Lenhard Sat, 27 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/993-why-your-worst-performance-is-your-most-valuable-data/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/993-why-your-worst-performance-is-your-most-valuable-data/ Carol Dweck's growth mindset treats failure as information, not identity. My worst shows taught me more than my best ones ever did. One performance failure in particular — which I would have happily erased from existence — turned out to be the most instructive night of the entire journey. Felix Lenhard Fri, 26 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/992-fixed-mindsets-favourite-lie/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/992-fixed-mindsets-favourite-lie/ The fixed mindset's most dangerous belief is that difficulty signals absence of talent. I believed this for a while, watching teenagers learn in weeks what I struggled with for months. Carol Dweck helped me see why it was wrong — and what the difficulty actually meant. Felix Lenhard Thu, 25 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/991-the-power-of-not-yet/ https://vulpinecreations.com/blog/991-the-power-of-not-yet/ Carol Dweck's research on growth mindset centers on one of the smallest and most powerful shifts in language available to any learner: adding 'yet' to 'I can't do this.' Those two letters changed my practice sessions more concretely than any technique. Felix Lenhard Wed, 24 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000