Cat Fishing – Impersonating A Psychic
Cat-fishing
Cat-fishing in the psychic industry is a prevailing trend in our society; and those who are susceptible are the ones desperately looking for answers or confirmations, which places them in a vulnerable position. Their need for answers will rationally lead them to those selling the most illustrious sales-pitch – as those are the most attractive and convincing attributes in marketing.
Every so often, I receive calls from disappointed people (women and men) who have found out that the “psychic” they have been talking to online is not the person that they thought they were. This “phenomena” is not really a phenomenon anymore because it happens with a regularity that is disturbing.
Emotional Impact
If this has happened to you, just be kind to yourself. This experience generates a host of emotions from sadness, anger, betrayal and guilt; and they all seem to hit at once. As you begin to recover from this huge emotional impact, here are a few things to keep in mind.
Instead of calling yourself stupid for being duped; simply flip it. You weren’t stupid, you were vulnerable. It’s ok to be vulnerable. To be open and welcoming to the world around. Don’t debase yourself, you are more than a word.
Remind yourself that you are not the first person that this person has taken advantage of. That person that you’ve trusted has spent considerable time and effort developing his or her script/technique, they are experts in deceit.
How You Get Hooked
They know just the right words to use. And they know exactly when and at what point to take the conversation just a little further. They spend a lot of time getting small commitments and agreements from you before they make their big pitch.
If they asked you for money, it may have been for very small amounts at first. They were probably very grateful that someone would be so kind to them, probably reminding you that no one else has ever done anything like that for them. And the story continues until you finally begin to acknowledge the feeling that something’s wrong.
Another clue
There are some other situations where no money is asked for or exchanges hands, just long hours of conversation that don’t seem to lead anywhere. If you find yourself in that kind of a situation, here are several things to watch for. If you agree to meet one another, and he or she comes up with an excuse to cancel the meeting, that’s your first clue. Another clue is when he or she can only meet you on a Sunday. You might ask yourself, “why are they always busy on Fridays and Saturdays”.
Red Flags
As you think back over the whole experience, you probably noticed several red flags, even very tiny ones, that you ignored. And this is the point where you really need to withhold judgment or self-criticism.
Something inside you allowed the situation to play out as it did. This is the time to ask yourself (without criticism or self-judgment) what you have learned from the entire experience itself.
You may want to go back and take a look at those little red flags that you ignored. Again, without criticism or self-judgment, acknowledge that there was something inside you that was trying to warn you. If you take the time to do this, these red flags will become more obvious to you in the future. And you will be far less likely to ignore them when they show up.
And even though you may not have acted on them, acknowledge to yourself that you did notice them. Taking the time to do this ensures that once red flags pop up again no matter what the situation, it will be a lot easier to recognize and act on them.
