The spirit world is a somewhat nebulous concept for most people, with most of us being unable to make contact at all. That doesn’t mean that we aren’t desperate for a message from someone we have lost, though.
Fraudulent mediums will use this desire to turn a quick profit – you leave with a message from a loved one, and they leave with money in their pockets. How do you know if the medium you are dealing with is the real thing or not?
Fakes are usually extremely good at cold reading people. This means that your reactions, and a little internet research, might be all they need to give a highly convincing reading. Here’s what you should be looking out for.
General Statements
These are so generic that there is bound to be something that hits close to home for you. They seem credible but are not specific. A good example could be something like, “Someone you love has recently crossed over.”
It’s a pretty safe bet that someone who is visiting a medium wants to contact someone who has died recently.
Barnum Statements
These are statements that seem like they are personally related to you, but that could apply to many people. At heart, people want to believe that what they are told is true. As a result, we see parallels in the information with our own lives.
We might not have been given all the details, but those are easily filled in. As we react and give feedback, we are typically giving the medium more information that they need.
Recycling of Information
The characteristic of a good con artist is that they listen carefully. They are good at drawing information out of you without you even noticing. They keep track of this information for use at a later date, when you have forgotten having told them about it.
Tricking You Into Revealing More Information
You might find, for example, that the first message coming through is rather vague. They’ll use leading statements that prompt you to fill in the blanks. So, it could be something like, “I see the letter J. It could be to do with your father, or his father, etc.”
You’ll fill in the information that they need to allow them to clarify their “reading” further.
Using Vague Statements
Vagueness is the tool of the con artist in this case. The medium can make sweeping statements and then backtrack if they make a mistake. They will often use the excuse that the message is not coming through strongly and use this to get the information that they need.
They’re Observant
One thing that con artists have in common is that they are very observant. They’ll watch you closely to see what your reactions are. This will tell them if they are close to the mark or not. They’ll be able to read the visual cues as easily as your verbal cues.
These visual cues could be as simple as you leaning in when they are saying something that you want to believe.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, con artists in this area will use a combination of the cold reading techniques that we have discussed above and some good research to provide a credible message. If the fake is any good, you’ll provide them with all the information that they need.
So, at your next reading, ask yourself how much information was actually provided by the psychic and how much you had to confirm for yourself. If you’re providing all the real info, you’re not dealing with a true psychic.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.