There are many reasons why people want to do magic. Some people want the applause; others want to see the look of wonder on the faces of those in the audience. And then there are those people who merely want to have fun. One of the best ways to astound your friends and family is with mental magic tricks. These tricks are fun to learn and amazing to perform. Every magician even a beginner should have a collection of mental magic tricks ready to impress an audience.

From Your Mind to Their Mind

Mental magic tricks mostly involve staying one step ahead of your audience. With most magic tricks, scientific principles are used. However, mental magic tricks use more of a math foundation, specifically the laws of probability and statistics. When you understand how you can predict your audience's response to certain questions, you will be able to master many mental magic tricks.

1) Pick a Card

You have heard magicians tell their audience: Pick a card, any card. Here is a unique twist. Have your audience member think of a card. You will be able to tell them the card by reading their mind. While this may sound like an impossibility mental magic tricks are done in a very possible way.

In this trick, the magician relies on the fact that most people will think of the Ace of Spades, the Queen of Hearts, the Six of Clubs or the Nine of Diamonds. Before facing your audience, pull these four cards out of the deck and put them in different pockets.

Be sure to remember which card went in what pocket. Your audience will be truly astounded when you pull their card out of your pocket. Mental magic tricks like this one are based on the probability of people choosing certain cards. With that said, this trick will also work most of the time.

2) Pick a Number

There are many mental magic tricks involving numbers. Try this one. Ask an audience member to pick a number between 50 and 100. The number must be even and have different digits. The usual answer will be 68. Once again, the idea is to be one thought ahead of your audience. Research indicates that 68 is the number most likely to be selected.

3) Pick Another Card

Fan out several cards before an audience member and ask them to select a card. The cards should be face cards with a Four of Hearts in the center. Most people will pick the Four of Hearts because it's different and in the middle.

All of these mental magic tricks so far use math probabilities to succeed. Keep in mind that while they may work most of the time, they may not work all the time. In that case, be ready to improvise. Magicians understand that their own performance is the key to successful magic. If a trick should fail to proceed as planned, don't let the audience know. Stay confident and in control at all times.

4) Bending a Coin

Mental magic tricks don not always use probability. With this trick, the minds of the magician and the audience member appear to work together to get an unusual result.

Ask someone for a coin and then palm it in your hand. Have a bent coin ready in that same hand. Tell the person you will place the coin in their hand and together you will bend it. Slip the bent coin in their hand and close their fist around it. Tell the person to concentrate on the coin and when their hand opens, there is the proof!