Why I’m blogging about James Ray. My agenda and angle.

I personally don’t care about James Arthur Ray or his business. He just happens a Seminar Schmuck who killed people. It’s the seminar industry and coaching business I want reformed.

It’s the day before Thanksgiving in the US and we’re all about gratitude, giving thanks and family. And all of this the day before the biggest shopping day of the year! America is all about making money, spending money and peak experiences. But four families this year will have empty seats at their Thanksgiving Tables. There are countless thousands of others with physical and financial losses caused by the $11,000,000 (billion) seminar industry that aren’t in the headlines.

For the past 2 decades, the seminar industry has exploded. Promising a world of results from making money, love, happiness, business success and getting laid. From 2001 until 2007, I was part of the industry. I signed people up, delivered seminars and sold the next program.

Before 2001, I was a Real Estate Broker in Orange County, CA a very speculative time. The  Real Estate Investment Guru’s were having a field day and any a**hole who owned real property in the OC at the time made money. I got 3 types of calls every week for about 2 years.

1. I want to refi out my equity to buy real estate
2. I want to buy your clients house “creatively”
3. You’re a RE Broker and a deal killer.

I watched people go to a high priced seminar, paid for on credit. Buy a higher priced seminar, on credit, to learn how to make money in real estate. As a RE Broker, I was the bad guy when I shed light on the insanity of over leverage. Of course as a RE Broker, I was the only one that could be sued for giving advice that didn’t work out. The seminar companies were disclaimed “for educational purposes only” with “do not try this at home” disclosures, no licensing and no registration process.

I will be sharing more about what goes on back stage in the seminar industry as we move forward. But here’s what I want to see happen and my specific agenda for picking on poor ole James Arthur Ray and his “Mission”:

• I want to see seminar companies licensed & regulated.
• I want to see “coaches” licensed.
• I want to see accurate results reflected in seminar advertising.
• I want to see “fair business practices” defined for the seminar industry.
• I want full disclosure of credentials, certificates, licenses and methods used during seminar programs.

That’s a start. I’m grateful that this is America and I am free to share my opinions about whatever I choose. My final thoughts are this. I have compassion for James Ray as a fellow human being. In my opinion, he’s a man who made a mistake that killed 4 people this year and caused physical harm to many others over the years. He pushed people as hard as he pushes himself, but in doing so people were killed and hurt.

James Ray stepping foot into the sweat tent in Sedona to lead the sweat lodge ceremony, was exactly the same as a person with 2 or 3 drinks getting behind the wheel of a car and driving. Let me explain… Ray and his staff had full knowledge that over the past four years, on a consistent basis, people got sick and needed medical attention as a result of being in their sweat lodge at Spiritual Warrior. Ray and his staff, even though he knew about the danger of his sweat lodge chose to NOT have medical personnel and resources (ie. nurses, EMT’s, ambulances equipped to handle medical emergencies) on the scene. (He had 1 nurse for the 60 attendees.  A much better ratio of medical personnel to attendee would have been 1 to 20, 1 nurse or EMT for every 20 attendees and that is probably too few.)

Bottom line is that Ray and his staff  knew there was a prior history of injuries at the event and specifically at the sweat lodge, knew there would be injuries at the event and especially at the sweat lodge and Ray and his staff chose not to adequately staff or equip medical personal for the event and especially the sweat lodge, where all of the injuries had occurred in prior years. How is that different than when a person, who has been drinking and knows that they are ‘tipsy’ and over the legal blood alcohol limit, gets into their car and drives? They deliberately,  knowingly and willfully get into a car and drive even though society and the LAW says that driving while you’re intoxicated is not tolerated.  Even though it is commonly known that driving while you’re intoxicated kills people. Oh that’s right, the difference is that there are no LAWS governing the seminar industry or James Ray and his staff.    I say James Ray and his staff willfully, deliberately and directly caused the deaths and injuries in Sedona on October 8, 2009. The only difference is Ray was impaired by his ego and arrogance instead of alcohol.