When I work in restaurants I find the best way to get tips is to have a table set up with your magic and a tip jar. Have the table at the front of the restaurant so when the people walk by on the way out they tip you. I do work
at a diffrent restaurant where I cant set up a tip jar and I dont get very many tips because people dont know that I work on tips too. But I get paid more from the restaurant owner when I dont get tips.

What ways have you found to get tips, and what things do you say to get a tip. Like Jay Sankey teaches that if you do 5 or 6 tricks then with the last trick you ask to borrow a $5.00 bill and do a bill switch to a $1.00 bill and hand it back they usally let you keep the other four as a tip. But that doesnt work very much, I have tryed.

I have also used my hat in ways to get me tips, I keep a small card in my hat . On my hat inside I have the word TIPS in big black letters. I do 5 tricks then on my last trick I force them a card out of the deck. I play dumb and act like I thought it was a diffrent card, more like you would do with the insurance policy.......Then when they feel like I have messed up the last trick and are laughing I tell them that you know I really had that card on the top of my head........They say ya right,.......And then I take off my hat and show them inside is their card but much smaller. They then see the TIPS sign on my hat and the money comes out. Im still a bit shy to do this one but dont worry "No guts no money"

If you have any ideas for tips , please help I will try them out.

Make sure there is some money in the jar, I learned this bartending nobody tips an empty jar, there is psych research on this, the concept is called social proof. Also another documented human reaction is reciprocation, try giving each table something, a playing card from a trick a piece of candy anything, people feel an obligation to return this favor, the same way people usaully tip big when you give them a free drink.

It's my personal opinion that Magicians shouldn't work for tips. Get your money from the Restaurant, not the customers.

I feel if you work for tips, you are hindering the performance. They want to be entertained, and already paying for a meal. The last thing they want is someone saying "gimme gimme". Whether it's stated or not is irrelevant. If it's implied, you've risked the joy of the magic.

dan,
I never thought of it that way, I see where you are coming from, and in a strange way I find myself agreeing with you

I understand where you are coming from, Dan...but I don't necessarily agree. I work for tips at my restaurant, and honestly I feel fine doing so. I don't feel it hinders my performance at all (and trust me, I am fanatical about having a stellar performance). I feel that people pay for all sorts of other entertainment, and what I and other magicians provide is an entertainment that is not easily found...and, if the magician performs well, should be tipped.


Cmon, if Im going to tip waiters for bringing my food out, or grocery baggers for bagging groceries, I certainly will tip a magician. They are all (in most cases) being paid by their establishment, but the tips make what they do more worth it, and is a sign of deep appreciation for their service. I find nothing wrong with that.

The difference is they didn't necessisarily come to the restaurant to see you work. They came for the food so they don't mind paying for it. If they went to a magic show then they wouldn't mind paying for that either.

I feel that trying to get tips tends to take money away from the wait staff. You end up getting part or all of what the server might have otherwise gotten. I tell people that I'm here compliments of the management and the best tip they can give me is to say they enjoyed the show to the manager on the way out. If they insist on giving me a tip I give it to the server after they leave.

I make $35 - $45 per hour at a restaurant and the wait staff makes around $3 plus tips. You do the math.

You all have good reason to make and not make tips. I find for one if im makeing tips and the severs know that im getting some of what could have been theirs they use me more, they send me to tables that have people that want to see magic and in return they sometimes tell the guests that I make tips then in return gets me more in my pocket and more in the waiters pocket for getting me to entertain...........Wow that was alot of words without a .... or a ,,,,,,,,, ok anyways I make good tips plus pay from the restaurant plus the restaurant feels that if I work on tips to then I will work harder to entertain the guests vrs someone that gets paid the same weather he works hard or not.......Understand? It is all in how you want to work your magic skills, im makeing good money doing it my way and if your makeing good money doing it your way then congrats and keep up the good work............

.But that part about giveing something away at the table is great, thank you, that is the kind of info I was looking for..........I will use that tomorrow when I go to work at Outback Steakhouse......

I am really interested in joining the restaurant scene. I'm 17 and have been doing magic for about four years now off and on. The sad thing is, I was a really close Blaine follower trick wise because that is what I found people would ask me to perform, and after that punk in a mask started giving away my tricks, I had a hard time getting good reactions from people if they had seen the TV show.

Fast foward to today, where I have changed my whole routines around and I am much better than I was back then. I work a crappy job at a concert pavillion doing parking where my job is to deal with people who won't listen to me and go where I tell them to go, and then I have my boss looking over my back giving me grief.

It sucks.

I would love to be able to get paid from doing what I do all the time. Magic. I have cards next to my keyboard right now. I have my M5 strapped to my knee right now. When I go out with my friends I'm always practicing.

Anyways, the point of this rant is that I have a great idea for when I actually do decide to approach a manager about a job there doing magic. Instead of getting paid by him and trying to get tips from people, negotiate with the manager and tell him that people do tip you sometimes, but you would like to work something out with him. If you got paid more from the manager, you could tell the people attending the restaurant that you won't accept their tips and that the magic is on the house. This would result in those people wanting to come back and tell their friends, "Hey, the new Chili's that opened up has a free house magician that's is really good."

Just an idea....

[/rant]

Make a resume and get out to your reataurants, find a job doing magic......it is that easy. If you want magic work then go look for it and you will find it. Put in 10 resumes this week and I bet you will have 1 or 2 places to work starting next week. If you want to make a easy and good resume go to 10minresume.com

Fellas, fellas, fellas. Bill Malone, Jim Sisti, Michael Close, all of these guys have been working restaurants longer than we've probably been alive. What's their advice? Don't solicit tips, but don't decline them either. If you find this profession to be a part-time gig then feel free to do with your tips as you see fit. But any working professional will tell you that this is how we earn our bread and butter. You can't compare what you make to what a server makes simply because a server does not spend 2-3 hours a day, every day, for countless years perfecting their craft. You can't put a price tag on what we do. My opinion is that every table has a right to decline you, so to argue that a person goes to a restaurant to just eat is benign. People go to restaurants to enjoy themselves, providing that entertainment is where we come in.

As I read each of the posts above, I felt myself agreeing with each of you. Now that I've read them all, I don't know what to think!

this thread was not about the reason why we should or shouldnt work for tips, this thread was about if you work for tips what ways would be good to better your tips. I have heard some very useful things to help me out and I hope to hear more...... But folks please remember what this thread is all about.......

I have an electronic badge, It looks like the letters you see on the goodyear blimp. the words are large, lit, and VERY easy to see. the letters start from the bottom and go to the top like the first starwars movie. You can program it to say up to four sentances. mine looks something like this (remember one sentence at a time)


Your card was the 10 of spades.

Pretty cool huh!

Tip your friendly neighborhood magician!


The badge has already paid for itself a few times over. I also wear it at my DJ gig. (tip the DJ tonight or dance to micheal bolton tomorow) The thing cost me about 90 bucks but it is more than worth it. Mick

Great Idea I will look into buying that.............

I love it!