I don’t understand why there isn’t a major studio production about Harry Houdini.  We all know who he is, we all know what he did.  So why isn’t there a film that dives into his life and work?

Since we don’t have such a film, let me tell you this: Harry Houdini was a badass.

I’ll spare you the biography, and start here.  Harry Houdini was one of the hardest workers who ever lived.  He worked meticulously on his body and his trade.  He kept this work ethic a secret, it was beneficial for him to exude a supernatural aura.  As if he could perform these feats because he was touched by the gods, as one famous author believed.

In short- Houdini was a badass because he PREPARED like a badass.

Houdini’s work ethic is best represented in this story from Robert Green’s 48 Laws of Power–

“ The effortlessness of Houdini’s escapes led some to believe he used occult forces, his superior psychic abilities giving him special control over his body.  But a German escape artist named Kleppini claimed to know Houdini’s secret; He simply used elaborate gadgets.  Kleppini also claimed to have defeated Houdini in a handcuff challenge in Holland.

Houdini did not mind all sort of speculation floating around about his methods, but he would not tolerate an outright lie, and in 1902 he challenged Kleppini to a handcuff duel.  Kleppini accepted.  Through a spy, he found out the secret word to unlock a pair of French combination-lock cuffs that Houdini liked to use.  His plan was to choose these cuffs to escape from onstage.  This would definitively debunk Houdini- his “genius” simply lay in his use of mechanical gadgets.

On the night of the challenge, just as Kleppini had planned, Houdini offered him a choice of cuffs and he selected the ones with the combination lock.  He was even able to disappear with them behind a screen to make a quick test, and reemerged seconds later, confident of a victory.

Acting as if he sensed fraud, Houdini refused to lock Kleppini in the cuffs.  The two men argued and began to fight, even wrestling with each other onstage.  After a few minutes of this, an apparently angry, frustrated Houdini gave up and locked Kleppini in the cuffs.  For the next few minutes Kleppini strained to get free.  Something was wrong- minutes earlier he had opened the cuffs behind the screen; now the same code no longer worked.  He sweated, racking his brains.  Hours went by, the audience left, and finally an exhausted and humiliated Kleppini gave up and asked to be released.

The cuffs that Kleppini himself had opened behind the screen with the word “C-L-E-F-S”            (French for “keys”) now clicked open only with the word “F-R-A-U-D” (english for “asshole”)*  Kleppini never figured out how Houdini had accomplished this uncanny feat.”

 *Can you guess which part I added?

Like I said- Houdini was a badass.

Houdini kept his cool despite a man widely circulating lies about him.  Instead of attacking the man right back, Houdini asked him to prove his allegations.

Houdini knew this man was a liar and a cheat- a man who coasts through life weaving false stories to further his career.  This was to Houdini’s advantage.  He simply had to prepare.  Houdini knew he could rely on his work ethic to outsmart Kleppini.

He worked hard behind the scenes and never uttered a word about it.  This an almost extinct characteristic.  We have InstaGram, Vine, and FaceBook to constantly update our peers on our hard work (and our rockin’ six pack).  It’s tough, we all fall into the trap.  There is something very admirable about a man who works hard for his goal, and makes every effort to conceal the preparation.

Houdini was not magic.  He was just a man, albeit a very smart man, who outworked his competition.  Whenever we think of a stage magician Houdini’s name is always the first one that springs to mind.  He forever worked his way into the American unconscious.

In the end preparation always beats talent.  Preparation builds confidence.  Preparation also requires patience, it reaps no rewards initially, but if done correctly will pay off in the long run.

What could you accomplish if you prepared the right way?