How to Speak to the Dead

So you want to be John Edwards? Shame on you. John Edwards and his Elk graze on the grief of poor hard working folks, and not for free. They charge a pretty penny. But if you want to fool your friends and neighbors, I don't know how I can stop you. At least this way you'll be armed with the right knowledge to see through the deceptions of psychic swindlers.

By paying very close attention to the emotional reactions of your subject, you can convince them that you have supernatural abilities. You must be aware of their body language, physical appearance, level of education, manner of speech, gender, sexual orientation and so on. Basically you've got to keep your eye on as much of the superficial information that they're leaking into the environment as you can. The more aware you are of the subject, the more accurate your reading will be.

Once you have a subject in front of you it's important to acquire their full cooperation. You're basically going to be making educated guesses about them, so some of your guesses are gonna be wrong. Therefore you should get that out of the way in the beginning by saying something like, "I'm going to be getting a lot information that may mean more to you than it does to me, but if you help me we can uncover their true meaning." This is to make the subject participate as much as possible.

Word of caution cold reading will not work on hardened skeptics. You've got to find a willing collaborator, someone who really wants to believe you. Hopefully you'll recognize them by their sincerity.

After you know you've got their cooperation you'll start by asking questions that sound like answers. "I hear a name, Juan...no..Carlos...Juan Carlos.." Keep your eyes on the prize, if you're getting negative reactions move on as quickly as possible. Spend the majority of the reading concentrating on the hits, and make them forget about the misses by firing again. When you get a hit, drill in on it. Try to get more information out of the person. "Juan was your uncle...your cousin...no your gardener..." Eventually you'll hit, just like playing battleship. In fact, the whole act of a cold reading is based on the game of battleship by milton bradley.

When you make a hit, reform and restate the information so that it appears you've discovered it or had it revealed to you in some way. Although some of your guesses will be right, because you'll be paying close attention to your subject, most of the information comes from the subject themselves.

There are a number of techniques you can use in a cold reading.

P.T. Barnum Statements: These are statements that appear personal but apply to many people. If you've ever taken an online personality test and were amazed at how accurate the results were, you've felt the effect of P.T. Barnum statements. You must phrase yourself in a way that seems specific, but which gives the subject the most room for interpretation. The main purpose of the Barnum statement in a cold reading is to elicit identifying responses from the subject which can then be explored further and made more specific. Remember, everyone is self critical, everyone has unrealistic dreams, and everyone needs affection. Play on those emotions that everyone shares in common. Use the power of Selectivity of Attention. Whenever any description or trait is inaccurate or negative, remember that the subject will be less likely to remember that fact later. Simply move on.

Shotgunning: Offer a large amount of general information and eventually one piece of information will have relevance. This works best with a group of people.
Keep on shooting it out, go for broke. Observe the reaction of the audience. Restate the same information in different ways if you get a positive reaction and narrow in on those folks who seem to be responding to you. If you find a theme that resonates with the audience stay with it until you have a solid lead. Pay attention to body language, subtle cues in posture and demeanor will let you know if you're getting hot or cold.

The Russian Doll: The Russian Doll is a single statement that can mean many different things. You offer the initial statement and then explore the other layers of meaning until you get a hit. Sometimes it can take a few tries to get a positive response, but just move smoothly from question to question.

Example-

"I get the feeling of steel,
a cage. Yes it's a cage.
Could it be your pet?

"I hate animals"

"It must be a cage that's confining you. You feel like a prisoner?"

"No, but my husband is in prison. He killed a man in a bar in Reno..all those years ago..."
*Tears Ensue*

So there are more techniques you can learn. But the most important thing is to be observant. Notice little things about people like Sherlock Holmes, be OCD about fine details. Even the slightest twitch of the face is an indication of emotional response. Play off the subjects emotions and tell them what they want to hear. They'll think you're a miracle worker, they'll believe they've touched the magical.