# Spiritual mentoring (Warning potentially objectionable content)



## Shemp (Jul 16, 2017)

I'm creating web site content for someone who will be offering services as a spiritual guide.   The target demographic: folks who self describe as "spiritual, but not religious".    He's particularly interested in helping people in distress, i.e. patients diagnosed with terminal illness, or anyone suffering with thanatophobia (fear of death) issues.   Any feedback on how to improve the copy is appreciated.

HOME page

The goal is enlightenment. The best benefit of reaching a state of enlightenment? Neutralizing fear of death. Other benefits include not being troubled by feelings of anger, guilt, jealousy. 

When I decided to offer my services to the public, a businessman whom I respect and trust advised me to list the benefits of my guidance. I was puzzled. What more should one want from a spiritual mentor, than to OVERCOME FEAR OF DEATH? To be sure, there are ancillary benefits to growing, spiritually. But, the SINGLE BEST BENEFIT of investing time on this subject, is to BE AS COMFORTABLE AS POSSIBLE, AT THE END OF LIFE, whenever that may be. Just as we have the mental capacity to be aware of our own mortality, and to dread the end of life, so, too, we have the ability to find a proper way of thinking about this subject, that allows us to neutralize this fear. My life's work has been to carve out a new, logical path, to gain access to the traditional wisdoms that are at the core of some religions. When you travel to the end of the path, you'll become psychologically BULLETPROOF. That was my experience, anyway. There ARE other benefits to spiritual growth. I'll address those, later.

ABOUT ME page

I was born and raised in the Chicago area. I attended parochial school as a child and stayed with the Catholic faith until my mid twenties. It was then, that I began searching for more satisfying answers to the Big Questions in life. Most of all, I wanted to overcome my fear of death. The thought of not  existing, forever and ever, used to make me crazy. Crazy with anxiety, that is. I  tried not to think of such things, but when I let my guard down, my mind often wandered back to this most difficult subject. So, I sought relief by sampling   other  religions. I read self-help books. I also talked with a variety of holy men and  spiritual people. Nothing really helped.I became more frantic in my search for Big Answers when my mother was  diagnosed with terminal cancer. I was racing for a way to find information, to  help comfort her, in her last months of life. I lost that race.

Years later, I finally discovered a logical path to spiritual enlightenment. It was  the most satisfying experience of my life. It's too late to help my mom, but   I have the knowledge I need, to experience a SOFT LANDING when my time is ending.

I'm currently enjoying a peaceful life in the Pacific NW, caring for the cats.

FAQ page

_Do I have to be at the end of life to experience enlightenment from your services?_
My instinctive response to this is, "I sure hope not...!" Seriously, spiritual growth can help any adult enjoy a better quality of life.That said, the mentoring I offer would more likely be better received and appreciated by people over thirty years of age. Above this age, we have a better grip on the questions and meanings we grapple with and are uniquely prepared to embrace the answers we seek. Because death is something we all face, freeing ourselves from the fear associated with it can be beneficially achieved at any age.

_Can enlightenment help me in other areas of my life?_
Absolutely! With enlightenment comes a greater measure of inner peace and comfort in daily life, improved relationships in business and personal life, and lowered stress and better physical health (lower blood pressure, for example). Like a ripple in a pond, enlightenment is a state of being that affects everything around it. I'm still overweight, though, so in my experience it doesn't help with weight loss.

_I find it difficult to think and talk about death. What type of environment do you offer to alleviate this discomfort?_
If nothing else, I'm easy to talk to. I'm genuinely friendly and non-judgmental. I'm willing to freely share intimate details about myself and my own personal journey if that helps you to relax and communicate more openly.I work with every client to first establish comfort and confidence. Once I learn what your concerns are, I give you the information you need to neutralize those concerns and put effective strategies into practice in your own life. I don’t make use of pop quizzes or spotlights, so you can rest assured that our time together will be conversational and well-intentioned. And, if it helps, here’s a little macabre humor to lighten the mood: In a hundred years, no one's gonna care if you said this or I said that.
_
 Will I be able to share what I learn to help my loved ones cope with death and experience enlightenment?_
Yes. I’ve mentioned that enlightenment is like a ripple in a pond that affects not only ourselves, but those around us. People might notice a change in you when you begin your spiritual advancement, and they will want to know the secret. While the same path may not work the same for everyone, the principles I share with you will help you change your perspective and remove troubling feelings. Applying these to your relationships will help to reveal an alternate path to the people around you.This is a good time to mention that because I am currently in my start-up phase, I’m requiring first-time clients to sign a non-disclosure agreement to temporarily shelter my methods and teachings. Even the enlightened have to follow prudent business policies.

_I don't just want a quick fix but to rid myself of fear and anxiety altogether. Can you help?_
Altogether is a bit much, but I can show you how to diminish these issues to a point where they are easily manageable. In this way, they will no longer hold the power to cause pain and affect your life as they currently do.We might think it would be a good idea to live entirely without fear and anxiety, but that would be discounting their positive roles in our lives. After all, these instinctual responses to dangers are what allowed us to survive the stone age.

_I am busy and successful and I don't want to change my lifestyle or commit to a time-consuming process. Will I have to do that?_
Do you spend time exercising? Just as you may invest relatively small amounts of time into working out, eating healthy, or improving your well-being by playing a round of golf, you'll also need to invest a little time each week in quiet contemplation for better mental and spiritual health. The good news is you don't even have to go to a gym (or get out of your pajamas) for a rewarding mental workout.

_To what extent is religion a component of your teachings?_
There are some elements of various religions involved in my program, with a few twists. My mission is to provide concentrated doses of the best information and concepts found in religion, and to reveal the open secrets that the "mystery schools" don't share with their subscribers. My message should resonate with logical minds. I think it was Hemingway who said, "The truth has a certain ring to it.” When you hear the truth, regardless of the teacher, you will know it.More specifically, my mentoring goes above and beyond religion and includes the whole of spiritual understanding. My teachings can both supplement and complement religion, and offer an alternative path for those who seek spiritual advancement without religion.

_Disclaimer_:I am not a medical professional,  but rather a highly sensitive individual with decades of experience researching traditional wisdom.  I have effectively neutralized my fear of death, and want to help others do the same.


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## Sebald (Jul 16, 2017)

Sorry, Shem. Sounds like he's going to be helping himself. To vulnerable people's money. 

I strongly disapprove.


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## sas (Jul 16, 2017)

More people are afraid of living than death. And, the older you get, the less you fear it. That is a researched fact. Find something else to scare people out of their money, pal.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jul 16, 2017)

Hey, guys, this is in a creative area. Let's see if we can comment on the work and not the subject, okay?


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## Sebald (Jul 16, 2017)

OK mr m. Just wanted Shem to know why I'm passing on this one.


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## sas (Jul 16, 2017)

You are right, Mr. M, but I blame Sebald for leading me astray. Smiles & apologies. Sas


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## Sebald (Jul 16, 2017)

Ha ha it was her, mr mustard. Look at our photos. Only one of us is wearing a skull.


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## Plasticweld (Jul 16, 2017)

As someone who spent time in the ministry and dealt with the fear of death and those involved with it.  I don't think you spent enough time dealing with the method of eliminating fear that you are planning on addressing. 

From past experience 

Fear is real and debilitating. I had the advantage of the bible and many examples to draw on and found that it took many different variations of any subject to establish some continuity in the point or message I was trying to get across.  I also found that it took a combination of both scripture, first hand accounts from others and a chance for all of this to sink in....Plus prayer. 

I can only share what worked for me and others but also how much effort it took to get those point across, I had years of tradition and social acceptability on my side..."Plus God"  and it is a draining and time consuming effort.  


I think the way you presented your answer to this problem does not address your process well enough so that someone will feel you have the answers.  I think you need more details and more of your methods to achieve this.


I have always gone with the idea that if you ask, I will tell.  If you have no desire to even ask then I don't feel obligated to share either.  


Good luck with what you are trying to do, I have found there is no perfect answer to every question for every person, only the perfect answer for me.


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## Shemp (Jul 18, 2017)

Thanks for the feedback, Plasticweld.   I appreciate your informed opinion.




Plasticweld said:


> I think the way you presented your answer to this problem does not address your process well enough so that someone will feel you have the answers.  I think you need more details and more of your methods to achieve this.
> 
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You're probably right.    And yet, I feel a strong pull to make this piece shorter, not longer.   It's already 1283 words long.   I recently wrote a persuasive piece for another member of the spiritual group I belong to.    She said that "it changed (her) life".   (Very cool!)   I was glad that I could help her, and I used less than 300 words.

OK I will see if I can add more information, and maybe eliminate some of the unnecessary copy, too.Thanks again for your input.


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## H.Brown (Jul 19, 2017)

Shemp said:


> Thanks for the feedback, Plasticweld.   I appreciate your informed opinion.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



If you would like it to be shorter then look at the words that you use in the piece and see if you can use one word instead of two or three anywhere.


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## Shemp (Jul 21, 2017)

H.Brown said:


> If you would like it to be shorter then look at the words that you use in the piece and see if you can use one word instead of two or three anywhere.




Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't see how to do that.    I will look into adding more detail, as suggested earlier, and/or just start over, from scratch, and eliminate some of the copy. 

    I know some people here have published their work.   That's gotta feel good.   While I've never been paid for my writing, I have had some minor successes over the years.   I've written some ad copy, sales letters, resumes and cover letters just to help some folks.   I just wrote a piece for a woman, that inspired her to launch a business that she had been considering.   The common denominator for all of the above?   They were short, and to the point.     So, maybe I will do a rewrite for this web site, with a 600- 800 word limit.

I appreciate the feedback.


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