Exposing Not-So-Spiritual Professionals 

By Shay Parker

Think of a professional “spiritual” practitioner.  Consider the images, thoughts, and feelings this term brings to mind.  Butterflies?  Angels?  Light, fluffy clouds with a lovely sky of purple and blue as the sunrays flow through?  A warm, gentle embrace?  Inspiration?  Have you ever encountered the opposite of any of these examples with a so-called “spiritual” person who is out there giving guidance to others?  This article will discuss those “negative nellies” in the spiritual world, and shine some light upon their less-than-ethical behaviors and practices.

Many who seek the aid and guidance of a spiritual professional, such as a favorite psychic, medium, healer, etc. are rewarded with a positive experience.  Most consult a spiritual professional in order to advance in their own spiritual journey, to move to the next level, so to speak.  Human nature dictates that we seek out mentors, teachers, those that seem to have a knowledge or wisdom, which is greater than our own.

So where does one go to find a spiritual practitioner?  This is not a “regulated” field in any way.  No formal training is required by anyone, and with thousands out there claiming to be healers, psychics, etc., it can be overwhelming for a client.

Naturally, one of the first places we turn to is the Internet.  With websites, social networks, e-mail marketing, digital newsletters, Meet-Up groups, courses, and so many more online choices, it just makes sense for spiritual seekers to utilize this incredible resource.  The logical course of action is to search your keyword and then try to sort through the litany of responses that immediately appear on screen.  But where do you go from there?

Folks, nowadays nearly anyone can slap together a relatively professional looking site.  With the free template services available, if you can type and read basic directions, you can complete your own average website.  Now, take it a step further… anyone can pay a budding web designer a few hundred dollars and can have a considerably more professional site, complete with all the bells and whistles.

So as a consumer, how do you determine whom the truly ethical and gifted practitioners are?  A fancy website is nice, but it does not necessarily mean that the spiritual professional lives up to his or her self-professed abilities.  Now this is where some research on your part comes in.  It is homework time!

Here’s a nifty little trick that will expose a so-called “professional” very quickly – friend them and then Like their fan page on Facebook, if possible.  This is a beautiful, simple tool that you can use to weed out the ones who walk with grace and poise versus those that could easily fit in with the cast of the Jersey Housewives.  Of course, this is not 100% foolproof, but it is a pretty good gauging system.

OM Times Magazine » syndicated