Frivolous New Age Renderings of Metaphysics - A Trap to Avoid at All Costs

Avoid this trap at all costs: Denying the fact that innate challenges and harsh realities of life exist in various and unique forms for everyone, many of which are unalterable, and instead exclusively embracing frivolous renderings of astrology, number mysticism, palmistry or other ancient disciplines that include warped philosophies which promise you the moon.

This course of action is ultimately detrimental to your best interest because it can lead to grave disappointment, and wasted time and money. Aside from temporarily inspiring you, similar to a sugar high while binging on sweets, getting caught in this trap can interfere with your goals, delay their attainment, and cause you to forfeit some of your authentic, higher-self aspirations while you chase rainbows.

Forcing a metaphysical practice such as astrology, which in its most authentic form is about character assessment and the outlining of personal fate (e.g. prediction), into a motivational, superficial format, where practitioners make it almost purely about inspiration (in the pursuit of their financial gain), would cause the celebrated ancients, if alive today, to demand that they be put on trial for fraud.

If You’ve Fallen Into This Trap, You’re Not Alone

Many have made this mistake for one main reason: They think to themselves, for example, “Well, if she’s on the radio and featured in major press, she should be able to solve my problems, right?” Unfortunately, wrong. Countless consumers have confused clever marketing, the ability to get good press (i.e., paying for it in one way or another, in the majority of cases), and a talent for motivational speaking with the ability to provide solutions to their problems.

Here’s a quote from a New Age marketer, one who sells inspirational seminars: “You can overcome anything--any obstacle--to achieve anything you want. It all comes down to your choices. Only the choices you make determine your success, and I will empower you to be on the right path to success. And only you can predict your future. I would never do you such a disservice like putting a prediction in your head about your future that would preoccupy and distract you. That isn’t empowering at all.”

Imagine if you took your car in to be serviced and the auto mechanic said to you, “I’m not going to put an idea in your head of something that’s wrong with your car, so that you’ll obsess over it. Instead, you’ll pay me $5000.00 for a 2-day seminar where we’ll sing the praises of your car and make it the best year of your car’s life!”

That isn’t “empowering.”

When a disciple fails, unfortunately, the inspirational coach tells them, “Well, you had the right attitude, but you just made some wrong choices.”

Realize that choice and attitude aren’t the only quotients. There are many equally talented, wise, proactive, and prudent private equity pros, for example, but the most financially successful ones, in our view, have worked lifetimes to get to where they are now.

Look, we’re all for inspiration (if grounded in reality), dreams, and excitement about making your life the best it can be, but if there’s something you need to face squarely, wouldn’t you rather deal with it so you can move on instead of planting your head in the sand?

How to Escape the Trap

It’s not easy to back out of the primrose path of illusion once you’ve been wandering down it for a while. It can be distressing to face the truth, but you can do it.

First, refuse to buy into wild promises. Everything has a price; financially or otherwise. A long list of glowing testimonials might very well indicate that the person selling something she says you desperately need is merely creatively entrepreneurial in collecting and implementing them (such as through select "master-mind” groups, where members strategize and post rave reviews on each other’s websites); the hype and insincerity bleeds through once you peel away the veneer.

The self-congratulatory inspirational marketers proclaim things such as “See, look what I’ve achieved--if you follow my advice you can achieve anything!” But if their primary source of revenue is from conducting seminars and doing paid inspirational speeches, yet they haven’t seemed to have made big money doing what they teach, assume something is amiss (and wonder if they even have a conscience).

By all means, if you find an inspirational coach or marketer who has a great track record regarding helping people become more successful, go for it. Just keep it in perspective; nobody can help you side-step reality and cheat your personal fate no matter how much you pay them.

We recommend you focus heavily on seeking self-knowledge, which is gained through disciplines such as astrology, number mysticism, meditation, past life regression, and others. In becoming aware of your personal fate, life lessons, and your true self you’ll stop going after unrealistic, unachievable goals, and will be able to fully capitalize on your strengths and favorable timing.

Wouldn’t you rather have the peace of mind that self-knowledge fosters, and even be able to prepare more thoroughly for life’s challenges, than ignorantly assume that you lack any limits whatsoever and that reaching all your dreams is only an expensive seminar away?

Strive to become more aware of yourself and your highest path so you can spend time and energy creating that which is in line with your destiny and you'll never get caught in this common trap again.

Copyright © 2009 Scott Petullo, Stephen Petullo