Hallway Practice

As Andi has shared a practice hack in a blog post about close-up pads, I thought I would share an old one of mine. I thought of it many years ago when I was trying to learn second deals. For some reason I just couldn't get it and I would slog for hours and hours.

Those who know anything about practice, learning styles and circadian rhythms realise that this was completely the wrong approach. What I should have been doing was little and often. So here's what I did, I set up a table in the hallway with a close-up pad and a deck of cards on it. I made a pact with myself that every time I passed that table I would deal until I performed one perfect second deal. When I had performed one perfectly I could then continue what I was doing.

It's amazing how quickly this teaches you remove or sleight. It has all the elements of good practice; little and often, not pushing yourself too hard, giving you small rewards by stopping when you do on perfectly and and creating good body memory buy finishing when you do it correctly.

Try it when you're stuck on a move or slight you'll be amazed how quickly it improves.