The way I started was with a double-edged bali.. so the concept of a ricochet was rather odd to me when I discovered it, (although there is a way to ricochet without the edge actually touching you.. it can't be used everywhere.. like in a twirl). I've found I now have a bunch of moves I've never seen anybody else do. Mostly twistings and turnings and things those of you who learned ricocheting earlier might've never picked up since there were more flashy things you could do with less effort.
The few simple moves I've told people to start on are as follows:
Move A)
1. Hold the non-latch handle, forward.
2. Let the other one start to sway away from you.
3. Give the handle you're holding onto a 1/2 twist, (like using a screwdriver).
It's not fast or flashy, but if you dip your hand up and down it does look very smooth.
Move B) - (I believe this is a backhand windmill)
1. Hold backhand (thumb points to the latch end), safe handle.
2. Let the other handle fall away.
3. Let it swing all the way around, and then catch it when it gets back to the top.
Move C) - (I think this is a horizontal basic)
1. Forward, safe handle.
2. Let the other handle swing away.
3. Give the handle a 1/2 twist, but don't try to catch it.
4. It should ricochet off the blade.
5. Bring it back and catch it.
Those three basically give them enough comfort for the different kinds of moves to get started.
The only exercise I tell people to do is to take a pen or pencil, and roll it between their fingers all the way down, and keeping the momentum, all the way back up the other side. A pen isn't heavy enough to strain your fingers from doing that non-stop for a couple hours.. but it builds your finger muscles and improves your fine-motor abilities.
The over-the-bed trick is also a favorite.. because unless you have an expensive blanket, you just can't go wrong. Feet don't get cut, knife doesn't break, and you don't have to lean over as far to pick it back up.
Other than that.. when you're having trouble doing a move smoothly, remember that there are two ways of accomplishing everything. 1) Move the knife around the hand. 2) Move the hand around the knife. Though 2) is limited.. a little goes a long way. Sometimes I find the hardest tricks are made a lot easier by experimenting with moving my hand. Right to left, towards/away from my body, up to down.. whatever. All at different times during the move. A lot of it is taking shortcuts by letting your hand use gravity to accomplish something. Even the position the knife starts in.. upper-left, lower-right.. some things are just easier done in certain places.
In hindsight.. it's often a lot easier to tell.. because by the time you become smooth, you're already moving the hand & the knife together. Try to rest your entire arm along a table or counter-top with only the wrist and hand off the edge and try to perform a trick with your arm static.. a lot harder. So if you're watching videos.. don't just look at what the knife does, look at what the hand and arm does (.. Look at the elbow.. which usually moves a whole lot compared to the hand/wrist to get minor changes to occur..).
Practice makes perfect. If you can't get something done.. try doing something easier until you're better at it.
), about half a dozen people on and off, and I'm finding that because I don't think about what I'm doing most of the time, I really have a hard time explaining any of it. So I'd love to hear what helped some of you guys get started. What beginning moves helped you the most? And this question goes out to all the pros too for learning the more complicated tricks. I could use some help myself, 'cause no matter how hard I try, I can't get those damned roll-overs to work right. 
