lesson 3
|| PRACTISE AND PATIENCE
One of the issues we all experience in our modern society is the attitude of wanting everything now, without work, without effort. In mediumship, among a few new students there is a similar attitude. Tell a student that they would need to practise something for five years before they get competent with it and they’ll likely dismiss it and give up or worse still cut corners on their learning.
Attending a weekend workshop on a subject is not enough to turn someone into an expert on the subject. Mediumship is a craft with many faculties to it. Even if you were born with a natural connection to the spirit world, it will take years of learning and understanding before you would become a competent medium.
In the previous two lessons we took a brief look at some of the stagecraft skills that work alongside our mediumship abilities. When used, these techniques and ideas transform the presentation of our mediumship, and even more more importantly, the client’s perception of our abilities.
Why would you therefore choose to not practise if doing so would improve your presentational skills?
Perhaps I’m appearing a little dictatorial in my opening statements and for that I offer no apologies. I’m stating as I do because I was once a person that had no experience of this work in a public arena, yet had to learn how to present what I was learning to do, in a manner that was more acceptable than the way I was doing it!
The key to making changes is . . . making changes!
Learning to do something better is the way forward – making changes to our own natural speech delivery brings results.
Previously, we’ve learnt how the phrasing and use of certain words can dramatically change the understanding and deliverance of a simple sentence. We’ve learnt how our posture and presentation appearance helps ‘sell’ the words that are coming through our lips. Now, all that is left for us to do is put these lessons into practise.
When I taught students in my sanctuary at home, I created prompt sheets for them with key words and phrases on them. I made each of them stand on my little platform and connect to their spirit team. I then expected them to only use the phrases suggested on the sheets they were holding.
I wasn’t interested in the detail of the message, whether they were connected or not. I was only interested in hearing them use the phrases I taught them to present that received information. The results were staggering.
One student showed the potential to be a wonderful medium, but he was nervous, insecure, disbelieving and lacked any confidence whatsoever, especially as two of the group were nice looking young ladies!
When he completed his reading with the prompt sheets at hand, not only was he fluent with his wording, but his message was accepted and the others in the class clapped him enthusiastically. He was beaming from ear to ear when he sat back down.
If you want to be good at anything it will require you to practise it tirelessly until it becomes second nature. These are tried and tested techniques to instil confidence in you and allow you to get on with your mediumship.
|| EXERCISE 1 PREPARING THE NEW YOU
Find yourself a journal, notebook or writing pad and dedicate it to your learning.
Watch other mediums work on television or on the internet and make notes of their phrases. Perhaps start by making a note of the ones used in this series.
Pay attention to the way they stand, where their hands are, their posture and their fluidity of delivery.
Make this exercise an important ongoing process in your own unfoldment and development.
Get excited when you find a one-line delivery that you love and have made a note of for you to learn from your own new bank.
Here’s a link to start you off – but first, get your notepad and pen at hand
That was amazing wasn’t it? Did you note where he kept his arms by default? Did you spot how he paused before each element of a message and waited for a reaction before delivering the next part? Did you hear the way he used questions positively?
There are so many more techniques and methods that you should be noting ready for you to have a go with in your presentations.
|| EXERCISE 2 EMBED NEW WAYS IN YOUR PRESENTATION
In your own company, practise standing correctly, ideally in front of a full length mirror. Try various positions out and try to eliminate things that bother you, such as a tie or blouse not buttoned correctly, your own fidgets, your facial expressions etc.
Test out your new lines, such as “Would you understand why I’m seeing a Ford Prefect?”, or “ Is there reason why this person is showing me newspaper clippings?”
Improve your delivery of each line by repeating over and over again until your confidence can be felt by you, and shows in your outward appearance.
Work on this for as long at it takes to memory train yourself to the new methods.
|| EXERCISE 3 PRACTICE GIVING A READING TO A PHOTO
There are several ways you can practice your new mediumship presentational skills and with no fears of whether the information is right or wrong – that part is irrelevant.
Place a photo of somebody on the wall or table in front of you and prepare yourself to do a reading.
Take your time and think about what it is you want to say before you say it.
Give a reading to that photo, taking up to 10 minutes each time. Assume for the practising, everything you say is correct.
The information can be based on what you know about that person, so you get to practice lines. For example, you know that ‘Ronny’ in the photo was born on 14th February, so state it as a medium, like this for example, “ Would you understand the significance of valentines day around this person?”
Repeat the exercise using a photo of a celebrity remembering that the information is not important, merely your technique in delivering it.
That really is all there is to improving your stagecraft and presentational skills.
To complete this series on Stagecraft in mediumship, here are ten bullet point statements to chew over.
An uncomfortable line or phrase will become more comfortable the more you use it.
No medium, no person is perfect and mistakes are natural and cannot always be avoided.
Improving your presentational skills will change others perception of your mediumship abilities.
You are on an exciting life path that only leads to greater things for you.
Stagecraft skills you learn are transferrable to other possible uses.
Confidence eases delivery of mediumship and comes from practising new skills.
Your confidence eliminates your worst enemy – nervousness.
Having good stagecraft skills allows you to focus more on the mediumship aspect of your work.
Practise every moment you can and make it part of the new you.
Impress yourself.
That’s it! There really is no magic and you don’t have to be born with an extravert personality. These are basic skills and techniques that will change the way you work and instil an incredible amount of confidence in your work.
How long this all takes is up to you and how long you practise.
Mediumship is a wonderful gift and so much more enjoyable when you’ve mastered some of the enhancing skills we’ve talked about.
Make today the start of a new you. Get your dedicated journal and start using it. Make notes of quotes you like in books you’re reading, of lines that other good mediums are using, phrases that sit comfortably with your knowledge, and anything that’s worth noting.
