Mind Games with Christophe Fox

Summary

Podcast Summary: Kennedy Saves the World

Episode: Mind Games with Christophe Fox
Date: February 11, 2026
Host: Kennedy (FOX News Podcasts)
Guest: Christophe Fox, World-Renowned Mentalist

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Episode Overview

The episode’s main theme is the fascinating world of mentalism and the human mind, explored through a vibrant conversation between Kennedy and mentalist Christophe Fox. Blending humor, logic, and compassion, they discuss Christophe's personal journey, the psychology of magic, the power of preparation, and practical advice for embracing life's challenges—even when fear is present. The conversation is peppered with live mentalism demonstrations, insights about courage and self-belief, and relatable anecdotes from both host and guest.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Christophe’s Origin Story & Parental Influence

Timestamp: 01:33–04:42

• Christophe reveals how supportive parents nurtured his curiosity and adventurous spirit.
  • His father focused on separating behavior from identity—“If ever I would misbehave … he would say, this is unusual. This is not like you, Kristoff.” (02:01, Christophe)
  • His mother immigrated from France and instilled confidence through courage: “… the world might not reward you for what you want or maybe even how smart you are, but it will reward you for how courageous you're willing to be.” (02:59, Christophe)
• Early exposure to magic as a child fueled his dream of having “superpowers,” with family encouragement laying the foundation for his future as a mentalist.

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2. What is Mentalism?

Timestamp: 04:31–06:49

• Christophe explains that mentalism is a branch of magic, learned and honed over time, not an innate psychic gift.
  • “You get into mentalism through magic. Mentalism is a type of magic the same way that you might say playing the piano is a type of music.” (05:04, Christophe)
• Human behavior is patterned and often predictable: “There are definitely certain patterns of human behavior that you can get accustomed to…” (05:20, Christophe)
• Techniques involve a mix of misdirection, psychology, and understanding human attention, drawing parallels with modern algorithms and social media.

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3. Live Mind Games & Audience Participation

Timestamp: 06:49–12:14

• Christophe demonstrates his skills by “reading” Kennedy’s mind to reveal the name of her childhood tarantula:
  • Kennedy: “What was that tarantula’s name?”
  • Christophe’s reveal: “Belinda.” (09:17)
• He deconstructs the process as a blend of magic, psychology, showmanship, and “a little bit of lying.”
  • “Magic, a little bit of psychology, showmanship and … lying.” (09:34, Christophe)
• Kennedy’s producer Mara participates in a similar mind-reading feat, successfully having her thought-of name (“Kelsey, my hairdresser”) guessed with uncanny accuracy.
  • “I think I'm already there. … Kelsey.” (11:58, Christophe)
  • Kennedy: “That's amazing. That's scary.” (12:05–12:09)

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4. The Power of Preparation & Psychological Insights

Timestamp: 13:08–25:16

• Christophe emphasizes the role of preparation in creating “magic”—not just on stage, but in any pursuit.

  • “A lot of magic can simply be explained by putting more preparation into a moment than anybody else would reasonably expect.” (24:18, Christophe)

• He describes his atypical life as a performer—traveling for corporate events where 'mentalism meets keynote speaking’ and tailoring his messages to organizational culture.

• Three core messages Christophe shares with audiences:

  1. Do it scared:
     • “If you can't overcome the fear, if you can’t beat the fear, just do it scared. That's always an option.” (20:18)
  2. Effort as magic:
     • “Putting more preparation into a moment than anybody else would reasonably expect... that will feel like magic.” (24:18)
  3. Believing in the impossible:
     • “Magic is a really cool metaphor … for letting go of any kind of limiting beliefs and allowing yourself … to believe that maybe anything is possible.” (25:10)

• Kennedy relates with her own story about managing fear before triathlon swims, echoing Christophe's mantra:

  • “Thank the butterflies for showing up because when they don’t show up, that's when you're in trouble. … Let the butterflies run your engine.” (21:36, Kennedy’s coach advice)

• Discussion about reframing nerves as excitement (referencing a Harvard study):

  • “Nervousness and excitement are two sides of the same coin and physiologically, your body can't tell the difference.” (22:51, Christophe)

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5. More Live Mentalism

Timestamp: 13:26–15:21; 26:44–28:19

• Celebrity Number Trick: Kennedy thinks of a two-digit number (51), which coincides with Tom Hanks’ position in Christophe’s “Celebrities” note.
  • “Tom Hanks is 51.” (14:48, Kennedy)
• Book Page Mind-Read: Kennedy randomly selects a page and focuses on the word "looking", which Christophe correctly intuits.
  • “Looking. … Sorcery.” (28:19, Kennedy)

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6. Deeper Discussion: Magic Beyond Tricks

Timestamp: 29:03–32:08

• Christophe reflects on what inspires him:
  • It’s not just tricks, but performers who move people emotionally—“…when you get on stage, and they're just overwhelmingly charismatic … they know how to move you in a way that goes beyond.” (29:10, Christophe)
  • He namechecks magician Jon Dorenbos as a model for weaving human storytelling into magic.
• The transformative power of believing you can start from the impossible; parallels drawn to innovation, personal growth, and overcoming limits.
  • “A magician’s job is fun because it’s your job to think of the most impossible thing you can, and treat that as your starting point.” (25:20, Christophe)

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7. Memorable Moments, Quotes, and Laughter

• Mutual banter about “serum” and the nature of value (30:21–31:30):
  • Kennedy: “You are serum in a meat sack, and I appreciate you very much.” (31:38)
  • Christophe: “I'm gonna try to take that the best way I can possibly …” (31:45)
• Kennedy observes Christophe’s resemblance to Tobey Maguire, a recurring joke in his online following (18:28–18:35).

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Notable Quotes

• On parental wisdom:
  • Christophe: “The world … will reward you for how courageous you're willing to be.” (02:59)
• On overcoming fear:
  • Christophe: “If you can't overcome the fear … just do it scared.” (20:18)
  • Kennedy: “Thank the butterflies for showing up … let the butterflies run your engine.” (21:36)
• On preparation as magic:
  • Christophe: “A lot of magic can simply be explained by putting more preparation into a moment than anybody else would reasonably expect.” (24:18)
• On possibility:
  • Christophe: “Let’s put all limitations aside and let’s just think big for a moment. … All the great inventions of the world at some point probably sounded impossible.” (25:10)

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Important Timestamps

• Christophe’s background & parental lessons: 01:33–04:42
• Explaining mentalism: 04:31–06:49
• First live demonstration (Belinda): 06:49–09:17
• Producer Mara’s turn (Kelsey): 10:53–11:58
• Celebrity number/Tom Hanks trick: 13:26–14:51
• Discussion about performance, fear, and magic: 17:53–26:37
• Book word reveal: 26:44–28:19
• Serum banter & closing: 29:03–32:08

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Tone & Style

The conversation is relentlessly upbeat, witty, and conversational, marked by Kennedy’s trademark playfulness and Christophe’s self-deprecating humor and thoughtfulness. The episode balances entertainment with practical, human insights, making mind-reading both magical and accessible.

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Conclusion

This episode offers an inside look into the world of mentalism while blending personal development lessons and plenty of laughs. Whether you’re curious about magic, fascinated by how people think, or looking for motivation to “do it scared,” Kennedy and Christophe provide an engaging and enlightening listen.

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Recommended for:
Fans of magic and illusions; those interested in psychology, performance, and mastering fear; anyone seeking inspiration and entertainment in equal measure.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Hello and welcome to this episode of Kennedy Saves the World. If the one thing that would save your mentals is an interaction with a mentalist, then, boy, is this your day of salvation. Christoph Fox is here. He is a world renowned mentalist. I believe you came to us through the Will Kane show.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

You have phenomenalized people on every major network. You've done TED talks, you've got a million followers on social media. All because you have burrowed inside the minds and psyche of people across the world. Kristoff, welcome to Kennedy Saves the World.

[C]

Oh my goodness. Easily top two introductions I've ever heard.

[B]

Wonderful. I'll take it anytime I'm on the podium.

[C]

Oh, thank you.

[B]

Yes. How should we begin?

[C]

I don't know.

[B]

How did you know you were a mentalist?

[C]

Well, it's not something you really learn about yourself. It's something that you slowly gain an interest in over time. Do you want to hear the story of how I really got into this world? Cool. So I have. I have. I'm lucky enough to say I have the greatest parents in the world. By far. My dad was supportive of me no matter what I was doing. Didn't matter if it was soccer, T ball, magic, theater. He was there to support me, maybe coach the team, and then read me a bedtime story later that night. That's the kind of dad he was. In fact, I'll share one thing he used to do that is just so powerful. If ever I would misbehave, like every kid does sometimes, he would never make me feel like that's who I was. In fact, he would do the opposite. He would say, this is unusual. This is not like you, Kristoff. And he would separate me from whatever bad behavior I was doing.

[B]

That's very smart.

[C]

Oh, my gosh.

[B]

A lot of parents don't do that.

[C]

He's the best.

[B]

They go, what is wrong with you?

[C]

Oh my gosh. And we do it to ourselves, don't we? What's wrong with me? Yeah, that's not what's wrong with you. That's not like you. I think it's such a.

[B]

That's a much better way of reframing parenting.

[C]

So that's my dad and then my mom. She's my hero for another reason. She was in her early 20s when she immigrated from France to America with. With English as a second language, all on her own. Total rock star. Like, the confidence, the courage it takes to do that. Unbelievable. And she taught me something by example that I carry with me to this day, which is that the world might not reward you for what you want or maybe even how smart you are, but it will reward you for how courageous you're willing to be.

[B]

Oh, that's beautifully said.

[C]

And by the way, she said, and.

[B]

Also, a baguette with ham and butter can save just about any day.

[C]

Goes a long way, doesn't it?

[B]

Yes, it does. And I miss it.

[C]

So for the last 15 years, she's had a successful career in real estate, which is funny, because now, growing up, she didn't teach me how to fold laundry or cook a meal, but I did learn how to structure a 1031 exchange to defer capital gains taxes.

[B]

You can always learn to cook on YouTube videos.

[C]

The point is, I had the most.

[B]

That you can take to the bank.

[C]

You sure can. And by the way, I'll get into it in a second. But I learned so much of what I do now on YouTube. Like, that was a starting point. You can learn anything on YouTube now.

[B]

That's true.

[C]

But being as I had the most supportive, awesome parents in the world, they took me to see a magic show when I was maybe five or six years old, and they saw me fall in love with it, like, right in front of their eyes. And I know they saw it because they started buying me little magic tricks and things that I could practice with on my own, and I started performing here and there, and they encouraged it and trying to decide what level of detail to go into for this whole story. But the point is, that's where it started. Right. I was just a kid who really wanted superpowers, and magic was the closest thing I could find, and my parents were there to encourage it. And one thing leads to another, and here I am on Kennedy Saves the World.

[B]

Oh, my gosh.

[C]

Trying to save the world with you right now.

[B]

Just from one defining moment to the next.

[C]

Yeah. Yeah. And I could tell you about how I sort of accidentally fell into this as a career and all those different things and whatever, but I'LL let you direct where you think we should go.

[B]

Well, how did you. How did you learn it? Now, is being a mentalist like being a psychic? Like you're imbued with these special powers, or is it a skill like welding that you learn through practice over time?

[C]

Yeah, I would say no. I'm innately better than most people. Just.

[B]

No, you've got some natural skills.

[C]

I'm not better than most people. It is.

[B]

I mean, mentalizing you might be better.

[C]

Maybe in very specific ways. I have a skill set that's probably unusual compared to most of the time.

[B]

I'm sure it's a competitive field, right?

[C]

Yeah, yeah. And I'll say you get into mentalism through magic. Mentalism is a type of magic the same way that you might say playing the piano is a type of music or instrument.

[B]

Is it? The people are very simple and they're much easier to read than they think they are.

[C]

Yes, yes. There are definitely certain patterns of human behavior that you can get accustomed to. And. And now we're still talking about magic, Right. A lot of magic is based in sleight of hand, but misdirection, and you could very easily define misdirection as what we're talking about. It's like, how do people think? Can you predict how people are going to respond in a certain moment? Can you take advantage of.

[B]

I mean, that's all of sales and all of social media. I mean, that's what algorithms are built to do.

[C]

And some people get so good at it, you know, every video they're going to make is going to get 100 million views because they can predict human attention and behavior. I would say very similarly to a magician, but just applied in a different, you know, domain. A different way. Yeah, you can absolutely sort of begin to predict and play with people's attention and thought processes and patterns to kind of create deception and illusions and all kinds of fun stuff.

[B]

Do you find that that helps you in personal relationships or do people distrust you for a while?

[C]

People can be scared of me.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And I would say for the most part, they shouldn't be, because it's such a specific, narrowly applied skill set that it's not like I'm walking down the street and I know what everyone's thinking. I think your question initially was like, am I a psychic in some way? And no, the answer is no. In fact, I wouldn't even really describe what I do as reading people. And maybe it is in a very limited sense, but at the end of the day, if you're Gonna do what I do. You need people to be willing to participate.

[B]

Well, I want to participate. So let the games begin.

[C]

Wonderful. So let's do this. If you were going to talk to a mentalist, hey, kind of like we're doing right now, and you were going to ask a question that really nobody should know the answer to, what question do you have in mind?

[B]

I've only owned one tarantula in my life.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

What was that tarantula's name? That tarantula was a gift for my eighth birthday.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

It was like 15 years ago.

[C]

It's been a little while. Here's what I'll ask you to do. Can you close your eyes for a moment and just imagine. You don't have to do anything but imagine you've got your phone out. Imagine you have maybe your notes app. And imagine.

[B]

Do you want me to open my notes app?

[C]

Just in your mind. Okay, Just imagine. Imagine you type out the name of this pet so that you can see it like really clearly just in front of you. And imagine now in your mind, nothing out loud, but imagine reading this name to yourself. Like you're imagining just sort of hearing the name of this pet in your mind over and over. Let's start with the first letter. Don't tell me. Just imagine saying that first letter in your mind. I'm writing something on my end. Kennedy, you can open your eyes now. Oh, what's the first letter of this pet's name?

[B]

B.

[C]

As far as you know, Kennedy, it's not like. It's not like people know. This is like really obscure. You thought of an 8th grade tarantula's pet's name?

[B]

As far as you know, not even eighth grade. I was eight years old.

[C]

Eight years old.

[B]

Tiny me.

[C]

Okay, ideally, this isn't even on the Internet. Nobody should know what this is. But I want you to imagine saying the rest of the name in your mind right now.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Over and over, just in your mind. It's like that little voice in your mind that you use to read stuff to yourself out loud, but just in your mind, over and over. Mm, a little louder. Yeah. Is that three syllables? Da da da.

[B]

Mhm.

[C]

Okay. No peeking.

[B]

No peeking. No peeking.

[C]

Yeah. For the first time, out loud, in a nice clear voice. You can open your eyes if you want. What is the name of that tarantula from when you were eight years old?

[B]

Belinda.

[C]

Belinda. Yeah. Yeah. So that's Belinda right there. We'll go with it. That works for me.

[B]

That's very funny.

[C]

Thank you.

[B]

How did you do that? I know people ask you that, but you can't tell because that's a trade secret.

[C]

It is. And it's difficult to try and talk around what I do without sort of compromising the experience for someone. The closest I can get. This is a fun kind of answer that maybe a lot of mentalists use, but it's a combination of things. Magic, a little bit of psychology, showmanship and. Hang on a second. Magic, psychology, showmanship and lying. There's some lying involved. You know what I've loved about the experience so far, Kennedy? You have, like, a whole team of people who are really supporting at every.

[B]

Step of this, the best, who are in the building.

[C]

I talked to one of your producers. Mara, right?

[B]

That's right.

[C]

Would it be all right if we were to bring her in for a moment?

[B]

Let's bring Mara in.

[C]

Maybe ask her the same question.

[B]

Absolutely.

[C]

Okay, cool. I'm assuming she can hear us right now, so maybe we're just waiting for.

[B]

Join me.

[C]

Cool.

[B]

Come on in.

[C]

Cool.

[B]

Hello, here is Mera.

[C]

Look at that.

[B]

Oh, my God. Hello. Yes. I think I'm too tall for this. No such thing.

[C]

Okay, I'm really putting you on the spot. Is this your first time? Like, on the.

[B]

Yes, yes. Oh, I got fun. Cool.

[C]

So the same question I just asked Kennedy, like, if you were going to talk to a mentalist and you were going to come up with a question, what question do you have in mind?

[B]

Who am I thinking of?

[C]

Who am I thinking of?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

So just. You have a name in mind?

[B]

I do.

[C]

Okay. Okay. I don't want to know any more than that. I don't want to know your relationship to this person. I don't want to know why you thought of this person. Just close your eyes and imagine hearing this person's name in your mind over and over. Imagine you're in a crowded room. They're across the room. You can see them. They haven't seen you yet. You need to get their attention. So you're going to start to scream that name in your mind over and over. Okay. What's the first letter of this name, please?

[B]

K. How?

[C]

All right. I think I'm already there. I kind of see what you were going for. Can you close your eyes one more time? I just don't want you to see what I'm writing before I show you. And I'm not sure if the spelling is going to be right, but hopefully the sounds are basically there. All right, you can open your eyes and for the first time, out loud, what is the name you just Thought.

[B]

Of Kelsey, my hairdresser.

[C]

That'd be close enough for us right there. Kelsey.

[B]

Yes. You're just missing an I, but yes.

[C]

Am I?

[A]

Wow.

[C]

Wow. Could it be like I. I don't know. Yes. You see what I was going for?

[B]

That's amazing.

[C]

That's scary hair.

[B]

That's scary.

[C]

I'm just writing hairdresser to kind of complete the whole thing.

[B]

Oh, my God. That's so cool.

[C]

Any questions? How?

[B]

But she just asked me how. So.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, you know, magic.

[B]

I was actually trying to throw you off because while she was thinking that, I was in my head going, ernesto, Ernesto.

[C]

That's why I had Ernesto in mind. Man. You did make that a little more difficult.

[B]

There would be no world saving without mera. Join me March 5th at Langan's in Midtown Manhattan for my 1K soiree. That's right. We're hitting a thousand episodes of Kennedy Saves the World. So come save the day at Langen's with me. This is Ainsley Earhart. Thank you for joining me for the 52 episode podcast series the Life of Jesus.

[A]

A listening experience that will provide hope.

[C]

Comfort and understanding of the greatest story ever told. Listen and follow [e-mail] or wherever you listen to podcasts.

[B]

Let's see another one.

[C]

I'm actually. Yeah, we could try something.

[B]

Kristoff Fox.

[C]

Would it be appropriate if I were to ask you what it means to save the world? Super curious about the name. Okay. I have an idea here for us. Can you just think of a number? Like a two digit number, let's say.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Basically 1 to 100. It's best if it's a two digit number.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

You got one in mind?

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Do you want to change your mind?

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Good. Change to a new number here. Yeah, I think this will be okay. I feel better about this number, by the way. The second number. I feel better about it. I think let's try saying it together at the same time. I just want to see how close maybe I can get. Not that it'll necessarily be exactly the same, but we'll just see how close. So maybe not on three, but after three. I'll give us a count. And not on three, but after three, I want you to say the number out loud. We'll both say it together.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Ready? And you really have to say something.

[B]

I will.

[C]

Okay. One, two, three. Tom Hanks. I said Tom Hanks. You said 51. This could work here. I'm assuming you're familiar with iPhone. You have an iPhone, right?

[B]

Yes.

[C]

So in the. Just the notes app there.

[B]

The notes app. Was it on Voice Memo? Is that why.

[C]

Yeah, well, it's tucked away in the Notes app right now. Do you see how I have a whole bunch of notes?

[B]

Celebrities playing cards, list of animals, fears, beverages, all kinds of notes.

[C]

But I said Tom Hanks, who's a celebrity. And the celebrities notes was already right at the top. You can open that up, Celebrities, and you'll see there's dozens of names. There's actually exactly 100 names.

[B]

Oh, Tom Hanks is 51.

[C]

That's awesome. Thank you.

[B]

That's amazing. Wait, can I see what. Okay, let me see the other one.

[C]

You want to see the other.

[B]

Yeah, let's see what the other one was. See if you can get it.

[C]

Yeah. Oh, the other number.

[B]

Yep.

[C]

One was the number one. No, I said two digit number. Was it 10?

[B]

No.

[C]

11?

[B]

No.

[C]

12?

[B]

No.

[C]

13? I think we're going downhill from here. I think I should quit while I'm ahead. But did you see how every other name was a. Every other number was a different name?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. In fact, did you see who was at your name, your first number?

[B]

Yeah. Walt Disney.

[C]

Yeah. So you know, another. Another number, another name wouldn't have worked. Had to be. Had to be Tom Hanks.

[B]

That's amazing.

[C]

Thank you.

[B]

So is. Is your phone program to. When it hears a number, it just automatically.

[C]

That'd be pretty cool, right? That's a slightly different skill set. I don't know how to do all that. Kind of.

[B]

That's very. That's very technical.

[C]

If I could do that, maybe I'd be an engineer at Apple. That's. That's my guess. If I had that skill set. Yeah, yeah.

[B]

But like for. If you were gonna get like a 9 to 5 job, I would take my mentalist milieu and wow them.

[C]

Sometimes a 9 to 5 sounds terrible.

[B]

Terrible, right?

[C]

Well, both on the one hand. My goodness, am I impressed by people who know how to show up every day on time, prepared and ready to do their best work nine to five, five days a week.

[A]

That's a lot.

[B]

What is a typical week like for you?

[C]

Can I tell you about my last week?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

I'll start by saying it's not typical.

[B]

Okay. So your weeks are atypical. You don't have a normal, predictable number of shows, appearances. Okay.

[C]

Last week, five events in five different cities scattered all over the country. It was Las Vegas, Salt Lake city, Albany, N.Y. emporia, which is sort of kind of near Kansas City and Atlanta.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Those are all different. Events within the span of six days.

[B]

Yep.

[C]

Most of my mornings started between about 2am and 4:30am to be able to.

[B]

Like, oh, because are you doing like morning radio?

[C]

Those were all different, like flights. Oh, I'm doing, I'm doing corporate events.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

So companies will bring me out. You know, if you're holding a conference or a sales meeting or something like that and you think, how do we make it fun? Like we've got all of our different, you know, speakers and you can hire an athlete or an author or a business expert, but we're looking for something that's going to be like fun and interactive. And interactive, yeah. Right. And memorable. Because as soon as you get people engaging and participating, it's more memorable. It's also fun. It's culture building. That's when corporate planners and whoever else might be putting together an event within a company will look to someone like me and we'll start to have a conversation and I'll learn about the event and I'll learn about what are we trying to do here, what's the goal of the event, what's the messaging, what are your values, what's the culture of the room? And what's really fun for me is instead of just getting on stage and doing like a 45 minute program that's copy paste the same every time you start to learn about their values, culture, customs, message. And you can weave those ideas into the program to make sure that any kind of message can land just as powerfully as the entertainment.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

So it's a program that lands sort of in that spot between entertainment and let's say like a keynote presentation, if that makes sense.

[B]

And if you were going to leave people with a message or a feeling in addition to the things you do that make people go, oh my God, now what would it be?

[C]

There's three. Okay, I'll share them all with you, depending on how much time we have.

[B]

Go ahead.

[C]

Okay. Maybe it'll be quicker than I think the first one is kind of a personal message for me. Like you wouldn't necessarily know it, but by default I'm very introverted.

[B]

You seem like an introvert.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yes. You're like a shy Tobey Maguire.

[C]

Oh my gosh, you're taking me off on it. I know.

[B]

I'm not a Tobey Maguire.

[C]

So you mentioned the social media stuff. I used to know that one of my videos was going viral, in other words, reaching a whole group of people that had never seen me before. Because the top comment was always something about Spider man is that Spider man is that Tobey Maguire? But yeah, you know, you're a mentalist too. Now you spotted it. I'm pretty naturally introverted, but this is the career that I chose and I love it. That's not to say at times it's difficult, you know, getting on stage night in, night after night. And I still feel it to this day, especially if I'm doing something kind of different, maybe big, if I'm going on national television or if I'm doing Hey, Kennedy Saves the World, or if I'm performing for some VIPs, celebrities, athletes, like, there's a certain amount of stress and pressure that can surround those opportunities. As exciting as they are, it's two sides of a coin. Stress, excitement, nervousness. And I'll get on stage and I'll explain, like, this is part of my world, this is part of my life, but. And most people can't relate to that exactly because they're not on stage night after night. However, I think any person with ambitions or any company that's looking to grow can relate to the idea that growth is stressful. No matter who you are. I don't care. Your age, gender, religion, race, money. We all have moments in life where we're trying to do more, be more, reach a new level, serve new people. And there's growing pains. And so part of the message that I'll share throughout my program is like the different tools, techniques, ideas that have helped me in my career overcome any of those moments that on its face would be like, stressful and at times sort of seemingly insurmountably stressful. And the biggest thought is simply this, Kennedy, if you can't overcome the fear, if you can't beat the fear, just do it scared. That's always an option. And that's the option that I have taken many, many times in my career.

[B]

That is such a great lesson for people because it's very interesting because that fear is the thing that overrides your ability to comfort yourself, especially in the middle of the night. And I watched a video about this recently because I used to suffer from panic disorder. And now we get panic attacks in the middle of the night. And that's where the most primitive part of your brain, the one that throws up the fear, it completely overrides the rational part that is capable of letting you know everything's gonna be okay and self soothing. And if I made most my decisions in the middle of the night based on those fears, I would never do anything because like, in the middle of the night, I'm Like, I'm not ready. I can't do that. It's too much. And. Or I come up with, like, a scenario where the travel is impossible. You know, I have nothing to wear, whatever the case may be. And it's so easy to give in to that. So I'll give you an example. Whenever I've been doing triathlons since I was. I don't know, how old was I then? 22. And my biggest, like, fear is at the beginning of the swim, at the beginning of the race.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

I am overcome with, like, I can't do this. I don't want to do this. I'm a horrible swimmer. Why did I sign up for this? And I've been racing for 30 years now. My coach taught me a very important thing. She said, those are the butterflies. First of all, thank the butterflies for showing up, because when they don't show up, that's when you're in trouble. And she said, second of all, let the butterflies run your engine. Take the energy from the butterflies and let them be the thing that propels you through the water. And every time I have to fight that, and every time, I go right back to that, and it works. And sometimes I do it not only scared, but I feel like I'm going to barf all over myself in the beginning of a race.

[C]

And. And you feel that. I'm guessing most before the race even starts. Right. It's that moment leading up to it. But once the race starts and you're in it.

[B]

Yeah. I'm not even thinking about the butterflies.

[C]

It goes away.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. I used to do a little bit of flying trapeze. It's like the thing you climb the ladder and you hang on. The scariest part is climbing the ladder, standing on the platform. Once you're holding onto the bar and you're swinging in air, you're good. You're fine. Your brain will adjust. But getting to that moment is very scary. So that's a message that I share. And by the way, I'll share one more.

[B]

Do it scary.

[C]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

That's such a good mess. That's such a good way of doing it. Like, what if I'm scared? Then do it scared.

[C]

You know, I remember reading some research that said basically, nervousness and excitement are two sides of the same coin. And physiologically, your body can't tell the difference between them. And so if you're feeling nervous, maybe you can just tell yourself out loud, I'm excited. And there was actually some studies, I think, out of Harvard that showed that People who just said that to themselves, I'm excited, and then were given a task to do performed better than people who would first say to themselves, I'm nervous, or didn't say anything at all. Now, that might be helpful to some extent. Now, I'll be honest. There are many times I'm ready to get on stage, hey, I'm excited, I'm excited, I'm excited, and I'm not buying it. That's when, you know, just do it. Scared takes over. Another message or two that I really like to share kind of lean into what magic is. So I'll share a definition of magic that I really like because I think it goes well outside of what I do and can begin to tap into what you do and what anybody listening does. A lot of magic can simply be explained by putting more preparation into a moment than anybody else would reasonably expect. Again, that goes well outside of what I do, and it touches what anybody does. If you're willing to show up in a way that is just more prepared than anybody else would reasonably expect, you kind of build in that level of awareness, thoughtfulness, and intention. Whoever's on the receiving end of that effort that will feel like magic, they might not know exactly how much effort you put in. They don't see, let's take your show, for example. The amount of people that go into this production, the amount of preparation that goes into it, they don't understand the ongoing training and repetitions and whatever and the editing. They don't see all that. But at the end of the day, they know that they have a product that feels like magic. And that's a message that I really like to share.

[B]

I mean, but that's when magic is so amazing, when it seems like. So it's like figure skating, when it's so effortless and it just occurred to you in the moment. And then you produce something that is just seamless and flawless, a final product.

[C]

And you go, how's that possible? Well, 20 years of training and a lot of early mornings in your room.

[B]

Like, over and over again. Repetition.

[C]

Yeah. A certain amount of, like, dealing with butterflies, letting them run your engine, all that stuff. You know, you do that over and over for 20 years, and you'll put on a performance, whether you're a figure skater or a magician or podcaster or.

[B]

Whatever you do, and it'll be the goddamn best performance you've ever seen.

[C]

There you go. And the last one, maybe you could say is the cheesiest. But I think there's something to it. Magic is a really cool metaphor for. For letting go of any kind of limiting beliefs and allowing yourself, even for a moment, to believe that maybe anything is possible. I think when most people are trying to solve a problem, they'll work on it right up to the point that it. It seems impossible. And that's where you stop, you cut your losses, you pivot, you try something else. A magician's job is fun because it's your job to kind of think of the most impossible thing you can and treat that as your starting point. That's not the quitting point, that's the starting point. And you go, how am I going to bring this to life? How am I going to build this into reality? How am I going to share this experience with other people? Even though on its surface, by definition, it seems totally and truly and sincerely impossible. And if you can just sort of adopt that thinking for a little bit, I think it can be helpful. You know, all the great inventions of the world at some point probably sounded impossible. And if you were to go back in time and Talk to your 10 year old self and show all the things that you're doing today, that probably seems impossible to that 10 year old version of you. But I like the idea of just allowing magic to sort of become a metaphor for this idea of like, let's put all limitations aside and let's just think big for a moment. And if you're willing to think that way, what might come out of it? Maybe nothing. But, you know, I think it was Steve Jobs who said, like, it's the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world who end up doing it. Or something along those lines.

[B]

Oh, Steve Jobs. God rest his soul.

[C]

Right?

[B]

Do you have time for one more?

[C]

Maybe you want to try something like with the book. I'm just sort of looking around. I'm noticing a book at the bottom of the stack.

[B]

Oh, boy.

[C]

What do we got here?

[B]

I have not read that book.

[C]

Okay, that's fine. I'll tell you what, let's just. How about you say stop wherever you want and we'll stop. Okay. Hey, is there a word at the top of that page? Can you just see a word there?

[B]

Oh, wait, yes.

[C]

Yeah. Okay, cool. And this is not my book. We just picked it up out of your studio and you didn't know. I didn't know we were gonna do this. But you have a word in mind?

[B]

I do.

[C]

Good. Focus on the first letter of this word. Imagine saying it in your mind over and over and over, screaming it over and over like L L L L so far, so good.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Okay, I'm running out of paper. I'm gonna write this down on one of the papers we already used. How about the Belinda paper?

[B]

Yeah, that's lovely.

[C]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

Belinda would have wanted it that way.

[C]

I think so, too. Maybe she's in the room with us. No, I don't pretend to be psycho.

[B]

My mom killed her by accident.

[C]

I'm sorry to hear that. Yeah, maybe she wasn't.

[B]

She didn't make it to my ninth birthday.

[C]

I'm gonna keep going with the word that I think you might. I'm gonna pause halfway because I'm trying to decide how long the word might be. Yeah, I think it's probably a little bit of a longer word. Hopefully. What's the word? I just wrote it on my end looking. Ah, Looking so kind of like that.

[B]

Sorcery.

[C]

Looking.

[B]

He's a warlock.

[C]

Something like that. Yeah. Yeah. It's funny because people never know what to call me. Magician, illusionist, mentalist, whatever.

[B]

I'm. Hey, man, I'm good with it. It's wildly impressive. I do not know how you do it. One time, Yuri Geller drew a picture that I had drawn in another room.

[C]

Really?

[B]

Yeah. So he's like, go in another room and draw a picture. And so I drew a picture of a ladybug because at the time, my older daughter was super into ladybug. So I had ladybugs on the brain. So I drew a little ladybug. And as he's drawing, he's like, what the hell is this? And he drew the ladybug.

[C]

So he's drawing it. He doesn't even know what he's drawing.

[B]

Why? I don't even know. And he didn't.

[C]

Yeah, I get called everything.

[B]

Mentalists hang out together.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Do you, like, vibe each other kind of. Or do you share tricks?

[C]

We share tricks, kind of. But I'll tell you what, Kennedy, in a weird way, at a certain level, it's not about the tricks. I mean, that's not what inspires me anymore. What inspires me is our performers who really know how to connect with people. Like when you get on stage, and they're just overwhelmingly charismatic and relatable, and they know how to tell a story and they know how to move you in a way that sort of goes beyond. Like, my favorite comedians are the ones who are, like. While they're making you laugh, they're making you reflect on life and, like, sort of adopt new perspectives that you haven't seen before. You know, one of my Friends. He used to be a hero of mine. I'm lucky enough to call him a friend and a colleague. John Doran, boss. He's the best in the world at this, in my opinion. He gets on stage, and sure, he's razzling and dazzling with magic tricks, but, my goodness, an hour later, you feel, like, moved. Moved. Like, in a very human way. Like, he reaches out and he. He grabs your heart and. His story is not mine to tell, but that's what inspires me to. Is, like, performers who really know how to sort of go one step, maybe beyond the. The Flash.

[B]

Well, I'm sold. I'll take it. I'll buy whatever you're selling.

[C]

Cool. Well, let's talk after.

[B]

Is it conditioner?

[C]

I don't know what I'm selling.

[B]

Serum.

[C]

I feel like this is an opportunity to jump on.

[B]

I buy a lot of serum now. Like, Instagram knows it. They throw up serums. I'm like, I'll take it. Doctors will come up with their own recommendations for serums. I'll go on Amazon. I'll buy that serum.

[C]

I. At first, I thought you were making a joke about, like, snake oil salesmen. Like, you used to, like, magicians, would pretend that the serum I just bought.

[B]

Potion, gold bond face and body lotion with serum inside the gold bond.

[A]

Oh, that's awesome.

[B]

I bought a serum stick the other day.

[C]

Yeah, I'd buy that. Yeah, sure.

[B]

It's like, no one really knows, like, what a serum is.

[C]

Sure.

[B]

If you go serums, people go, ooh.

[C]

So what do they do?

[B]

Who knows? Maybe they do nothing.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Maybe it's the same thing. Is rubbing Vaseline on your face.

[C]

So you do. You do apply it to yourself. That's what you're supposed to do with it. Okay. All right, sure.

[B]

I mean, you could. You could look at it and, like, try and get the aura.

[C]

Sure.

[B]

Into your own.

[C]

Sure.

[B]

Nudity core.

[C]

But yeah, who's to say where value comes from? Like, maybe it does something to your skin. Maybe you just like how the bottle looks.

[B]

The value of something is whatever someone will pay for.

[C]

Sure. And I think people can get values in different ways. For example, if you have some. We're calling it serum.

[B]

Right.

[C]

If you have serum on your. Your mantle and the bottle's really beautiful. Hey, maybe that's value enough. You got a beautiful bottle. It's part of your decor. Sure.

[B]

That is absolutely right. Christophe Fox, you are serum in a meat sack, and I appreciate you very much.

[C]

I'm gonna try to take that the best way I can possibly that's the.

[B]

Highest compliment I can pay you.

[C]

Well, thank you very much, Kennedy. It's wonderful to be here.

[B]

Millions of fans and your Tobey Maguire lookalike contest wins. You have won my adoration.

[C]

Aw, come on.

[B]

So thank you for everything you do.

[C]

My pleasure.

[B]

And for having you inspiring me and all the Kennedalia acts out there in the world.

[C]

It's been an honor. It's been a pleasure. Thanks for having me.

[B]

The world has been saved.

[C]

There we go.

[B]

This has been Kennedy saves the world along with Christophe Fox. I'm Kennedy. Listen ad free with the Fox News podcast plus subscription on Apple podcasts and Amazon Prime. Members can listen to this show and ad free on the Amazon music app. Oh, go ahead and leave me a review while you're there. I'd love to hear what you have to say. You've been listening to Kennedy Saves the World on the Fox News podcast network.