When I look at the essential process of magic I find that it can be really helpful to consider it from different perspectives, especially in relationship to achieving results. I’ve recently discovered an interesting formula that frames results in terms of outcomes. The formula is Event + Response = Outcome and I learned about it from a class I am taking. The formula works like so. An event occurs and you determine the response that will provide you the best possible outcome. It’s a pretty simple formula on paper, but when considered in real life it calls for strategic awareness.
In results based magic, the process is defined by the result. The first question I ask is, “What is the result I want to achieve?” When I can define the result I want achieve then I can start to develop the process of magic and mundane actions I’ll take that helps me get the result. The formula I mentioned above takes a somewhat similar approach, with a nuanced difference.
The nuanced difference is that events happen and you determine your response to the event and take action to get the outcome you want to manifest. In contrast with magic, the idea is that you are happening to the event or rather using magic to create the event that produces the result. However there is a lot of magic that is done as a reaction. An event happens and a person does magic in order to make a result occur that resolves the event in their favor. This latter example of doing magic fits into the formula mentioned above.
What I’ve been considering about that formula is how it focuses the attention on response. An event happens and a response is warranted. The question I ask myself is, “What is the outcome I want to generate?” This question asks me to carefully consider the outcome I want to create as well as the steps that will need to be taken to achieve that outcome.
I recently applied this formula to a situation where I needed to consider the outcome I wanted and specifically how that outcome would address an experience I was having. I looked at all the choices I had available to me, from the improbable to the most probable and I asked myself how the choices would actually get me the outcome I desired. I considered whether I would need to employ magic or mundane means as well as subjective variables I was aware of and could anticipate. Then I took action based on the outcome I desired with the best possible actions I could take.
Anytime I come across a methodology that breaks down how results or outcomes can be achieved I like to apply it to my process oriented approaches for magic to see how the methodology can be applied to magical work, and to life in general. It inevitably improves my understanding of process work, magic, and all the other facets of life that these methods can be applied to. In the case of this formula, it’s helping me consider the overall outcome I want to achieve and what the best path will be for getting to that outcome.
