Teller closes with a great point about where to draw inspiration from. Look beyond your own field. If you can distill something about the greatness you admire in a different art and adapt it to yours, then you will have accomplished something original. Study the masters, but especially the masters of other arts.

I wonder if the same could be said for software engineering. Maybe it's pretentious but I like to think of it as a practical art. Certainly much of what Teller teaches about "how to surprise" could apply to Steve Jobs' keynotes. Withhold information. Tease. Throw in a false ending. LAND the real ending.

Sounds like Jobs had a lot in common with magicians.