Not Without A Fight....

I've literally had 3 clients within the last week inform me that my prices are insanely low compared to other readers, right before they asked me with trepidation if I was planning on raising my prices anytime soon, lol...The economy being what it is, I figured that those 3 people probably represent many, many more wondering the same thing, so I figured I'd address the issue here, along with some thoughts on the economy...

Follow up:

First, the 3 who spoke up each told me hesitantly that my prices are insanely low, apparently believing that this was something I was unaware of...While I do genuinely appreciate the fact that I have such wonderful, selfless clients who would be willing to help ME by letting me know that my prices are far below industry standard, even if it meant that they might have to pay higher prices, in this case I assure you the concern is unwarranted...Those clients are right: the industry pricing standard is significantly higher than the prices that I charge, which was an intentional decision on my part, for several reasons...First, I want to be sure that I am always accessible to EVERYONE who may need help, guidance, or a way to connect with their loved ones on the other side, NOT just people who can afford $300 an hour. Second, if I WERE to raise my prices, it certainly wouldn't make sense to do it now, when people are losing their jobs, many barely able to afford even my relatively low prices. There will come a time when I will raise my prices, but it won't be before the beginning of 2010 and it won't be anything too drastic...I assure you my current pricing will remain in place until our economy has passed its "red zone."

Which brings me to my next topic: the economy. I imagine many of you have noticed a distinct absence of any economy-related blog entries here...Like my pricing, this has been an intentional decision on my part. While I've spoken with several of my clients for the last year and a half about where the economy was headed, I've been very careful not to share my insights with the general public...First of all, as I always tell my students in my classes, nothing is set in stone - like a boat floating on the ocean, the course of choices (and therefor outcomes) can change like the tide and I am the queen of hope, lol...Some may argue that I could have prepared some people for what was to come by being forthright with everyone here about what my guides have told me was coming, which is true...However, sometimes ignorance actually can help since collective thought can literally change the course of events. Long story short, if everyone knows we're heading for a depression, they're going to panic, creating an energetic ball of fear that's going to weigh the ship down ten times more, making it sink a heck of a lot faster. Remember that EVERYTHING is made of the same energy - EVERYTHING. And thought is a very powerful form of energy (which is why the brain waves can be measured by doctors on an EKG). So, even though it may not have been possible to avoid what's to come completely, having a little extra time has allowed those in power to at least attempt to find some ways for us to recover a little more quickly when we get to the other side of the downfall...

Please remember that what you believe, you live. I realize that many of you have lost your jobs and are panicking, understandably. I'm not asking you to live in a fantasy happy land...But what I'm saying is that you CAN change the course of things by changing the course of your little tiny piece of the collective puzzle. Whether it's volunteer work or freelance work, KEEP THE ENERGY IN YOUR LIFE MOVING. PERIOD. DO NOT STOP. DO NOT FALTER RIGHT NOW. Keep moving, keep walking your path, do NOT be discouraged by what seems like a monumental setback. Be thankful for all of your blessings, no matter how small - if you lose your job be thankful for your savings; if you lose your house and have to move in with relatives be thankful that they're there to help you; if you don't have enough savings to last long, start doing consulting or freelance work and be thankful for the skills you gained at the job you seemingly "lost."

GET CREATIVE!! Remember that right now, many companies have had to let go of half of their staff because they can't afford the salaries and benefits, but they're STILL IN NEED OF THE WORK DONE BY THE EMPLOYEES THEY HAD TO LAY OFF. This offers independent consultants and freelancers a PERFECT opportunity! If you were a manager of a sales team, put together an independent sales team and approach companies who had to let their sales team go. There are obvious benefits to not having to pay for the desk space, benefits, etc. If you were an administrative assistant, approach companies to offer your services on a freelance as-needed basis, charging either by the hour or by the project. Most freelancers/independent business people don't need an office - they can work from their home/garage/community center and, when needed, a conference room can be rented very cheaply for client meetings.

Right now is NOT the time to fold, NO MATTER HOW BLEAK THINGS MAY SEEM! YOU ARE NOT ALONE AND THINGS ARE NOT HOPELESS, EVEN NOW...Take this opportunity to pool your resources, including others you may know who have lost their jobs or whose hours were cut...Now is the time for us to band together in pairs and groups to help one another...I know it's a scary time, but by taking just a little bit of control, not only will you feel less scared, but you'll be able to make the ride a little less bumpy for yourself and those around you...

BE INSPIRED.
INSPIRE THOSE AROUND YOU.
STAY FOCUSED.
KEEP MOVING.

YOU ARE NOT ALONE AND YOU CAN DO THIS!

Highly Recommended!

Anyone looking for an amazingly ethereal musical experience should listen to Vas...hauntingly beautiful...

Hijacked Readings and Other Mishaps

This has been a hectic week! I've been jumping between spiritual work and marketing, which has been an interesting challenge, lol...It's worth it, though, to pursue the work I'm so passionate about. I'm also working on getting the podcast up and running (still!) AND I'm working with a producer to create some dvd's of my classes. And FINALLY, we're trying to find a way to broadcast my classes online so that people throughout the world can take part.

On a different note, I didn't have time to write about this last week, but something interesting happened that I wanted to share with you. It just serves to illustrate, once again, the amazing power of those on the other side...I came in one morning last week and had 2 medium readings back to back (both on the phone), which I thought nothing of since that's not a rarity...

When I got started on the first reading (with a woman I'll call Jenny), I immediately connected with a group of people who she THOUGHT she recognized, but many things made absolutely no sense to her...I knew I was connected very strongly, so we continued, receiving a ton of information, very little of which she could validate. Nevertheless, she took meticulous notes and at the end I suggested she speak to family members to see if they recognized anything...

Follow up:

After the difficulty validating the first reading, I was happy to find that the second reading (with a woman I'll call Karen) was full of detailed information that my client understood and enjoyed. I did note, though, that 2 of the people who had come through for Jenny were seemingly coming through for Karen! I told her about it, thinking that my previous client's loved ones just didn't want to leave, but Karen said that it made sense to her that that might happen, so I let them continue (I instructed her not to tell me why though, since I didn't want to be affected by any information she might give). At the end of the reading I hung up, happy at having released the frustration from the first reading.

Well, a few days later, I received a call from Jenny who informed me that both she and Karen had been referred to me by their mutual friend (I'll call her Lisa). Jenny and Karen didn't know each other, but since they were both getting their readings on the same day they had decided to have a conference call with Lisa for a few minutes beforehand and then they did the same thing when they both were done...As it turned out, almost every single piece of information that came through in Jenny's reading was meant for Karen...including a visit from an old friend who had passed unexpectedly...I suggested to Jenny that she have Karen take her out to lunch since her family & friends hijacked her reading! lol It just goes to show that not only can the other side see a little farther down the road, but they have a good sense of humor as well!

Everything and Nothing....

You would think that, being in the profession that I am that I would have a better sense of direction than most...Unfortunately that's not true for either my physical sense of direction OR for my spiritual one, I'm afraid. I know that I'm lucky to have escaped the place I was working...And I am so thankful...But now that I'm out and doing my best to navigate the waters out in the open sea, it's daunting...I'm more booked than ever, thankfully, but that's never been a worry for me...My guides told me from the moment I chose to leave the book store where I'd been doing readings for almost 7 years (including the period after the fire) that I would be taken care of. Now I'm just doing my best to find my spiritual voice again after such a long time of having to silence it for the sake of survival where I worked.

Follow up:

When I first left the book store I was working literally 12-16 hours a day, every day, trying to get my office together, including doing back to back readings, booking appointments, setting up phone and internet and electricity, putting together marketing materials, updating the web site and all of my internet marketing and oh yeah, doing more readings, lol...I was so exhausted that I'm sure that some of my readings during that time were disjointed...I appreciate every one of you who has been patient with me while I've been getting my new home together! It hasn't been easy but it's definitely been worth it! It's amazing to wake up in the morning and actually look forward to going to work in the morning! And the energy at the new place is amazing...So peaceful...Truth be told, I'm not sure that this place is going to be permanent for reasons that I can't divulge right now, but I am definitely thankful for it - it's a wonderful, peaceful intermediate home for my new practice!

I actually had a disheartening experience the other night...I'm sharing it here both because I think it's important that others interested in developing their abilities know that, no matter how long you work with your abilities, we all have "off" days - AND because I promised when I started writing this blog that I would share as much of myself with my readers as I could in an honest, up front way. So I had a "spirit circle/mediumship demonstration" scheduled at my office the other night. Half an hour before the event was to begin, I had to go pick my boyfriend up and, unfortunately he wasn't thinking and told me some horrible, painful news. I did my best to "shake it off," reminding myself that others had come a long way to talk with their loved ones...I did my best to let go of the words that kept reverberating in my head, but in the end my meditating and prayer weren't enough to raise my vibration enough for strong communication and I ended up receiving muddled messages from people who no one in the room recognized. It was frustrating and difficult and I ended up calling off the event for the night, explaining to my guests what had happened. I felt horrible, but integrity is so important to me that I feel that in many cases telling people that I'm not connecting is much better than trying to push through...This isn't always the case, since I can sometimes establish a great connection if I just push on for a bit...but not on this particular night...

Fortunately everyone was wonderful about it, but it's left me with a difficult decision...Should I continue to do spirit circles? I enjoy doing them and would like to continue, but they might just not be my "thing." After all, there are numerous other mediums who offer public displays of mediumship...Maybe I'm meant to just keep my practice small and private as opposed to "going public" as my guides have told me...Recently they haven't been saying much of anything in terms of "going public," so the truth is that I'm not sure...I just love it when they leave me out of the loop! lol Guides will often tell us only the part of the story that we need to know...and sometimes their information can seems conflicting...but it's not. For example, for a couple of years they've told me that I'm going to take my practice public...but now that I've actually been working toward that goal, I seem to be running into one obstacle after another - including being incapable of "performing" at that last spirit circle...but I know that there's a reason...I don't know the reason yet, but I know my guides well enough by now to know that there's a reason...Maybe because I'm not SUPPOSED to be actively searching out ways to go public...Maybe because I'm supposed to be honing my public speaking skills and working on re-integrating my true spirituality in my work (which, as I said, was all but stripped from me by my boss at the book store)...I don't know yet, but just like you facing the trials of your life, I'm just going to have to wait to see what they have in store for me! Chances are it won't be exactly what I had in mind, but it will be exactly what I need...