Perform a Fake Shuffle (With a Deck of Cards)

This article will review how to do a simple fake shuffle that will leave an audience stunned with just about anything the magician does with it.

Steps

Grab a deck of cards.
Get an audience.
Make sure that the card of choice is on the top of the deck.
Grab the deck with your dominant hand and drop a few cards off of the top of the deck into your other hand.
Throw another stack of cards on top of the ones you just threw down, making sure that this next pile of cards is off-center from the first pile toward you by just a bit.
Shuffle the remaining cards messily to cover up what you have just done, which is mark their card.
Take your thumb and push up on the second pile of cards to separate it from the first, creating a break (a space in the cards to mark the place of a card or cards) on the inside of your thumb.
Shuffle the remaining cards, and when you get to the pile of cards that is separated from the rest, simply throw those cards on top of the rest.

A slightly used Bicycle deck works best for this shuffle.
Make sure your cards aren't old, bent, flexible, and stuck together. Always perform a magic trick knowing what is going to happen.
Practice makes perfect. Do not perform this trick until you are fully comfortable performing it in front of others. Practice it with trustworthy friends to get used to doing it in front of others.

Learn to pick your audiences. Don't pick people who tend to naturally try to figure everything out. Pick people who are easily entertained.
Try not to make your movements too sluggish, as it will cause the audience to sense that you are performing some sort of sleight-of-hand, which will make them watch closer and be more suspicious.