How frequent is the use of plants in Landmark? In Lifespring-like courses?

Sometimes the plants have a different colored nametag from the new graduates and the first-time visitors- differentiated by a brown stripe or something.

Hey, maybe we should put up a "Guide to Landmark Badges,"
sort of like a Girl Scout badge legend.

-Val

In my recent Forum, many of the biggest, most dramatic breakthroughs were from people I later learned were "reviewers," people who had done much of the advanced coursework.

Which begs the question: why are they just now realizing that they have these problems?

I suspect that everyone who shared in my Forum were plants or reviewers. At the beginning of the Forum, some of the reviewers were asked to stand so they could be identified, which was also a way to sell the Forum. They claimed the Forum was so useful and powerful that they come back every 2-5 yrs to review.

However, on Tuesday night, when the mood was lighter and we were allowed to really talk with each other, some people told me they had done the Forum and were reviewing. These people hadn't been identified.

There were also some "stars", folks who shared and then continued to share and go through all kinds of emotional turmoil that we could see being "resolved". With the exception of one or two, most of them seemed to be overacting, or too emotional for the conflicts they were having.

My Forum did not have a good number of people sharing or signing up. What would happen if no one shared? So, plants are probably an integral part of the Forum.

I saw my wife's "graduation" from Impact Training in Utah(quest).
6 speakers spoke for the class of 84 individuals. Some of the speakers spoke very well. I thought their speaches were too slick and seemed to be scripted(tears and all). I talked to my wife about it and she thought they were acting during the training also. One young lady claimed to have gotten herself off Heroin and cocaine during the 4 day course. If I lived near the training, I'm in California, I would like to stop by and see if some of the same people speak at other graduations.

Wow! OK- if I ever go back to a Forum Tues. night revival meeting, I'll take a good look around and look for the white engraved nametags.

Question- when people 'review' a course, do they have to pay again, or is it a 'free for life' deal?

-Val

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gc4062
Val,

The gold or yellow nametags with a brown stripe are volunteers (assistants, in landmark jargon)

Plain white nametags are course participants

Plain white nametags with a line across the bottom are "reviewers" (sometimes the line is there, sometimes not, when it isn't, they are harder to spot)

White engraved nametags are staff, forum leaders, course leaders, communication program leaders

Black engraved nametags are seminar leaders, SELP leaders, course supervisors, ILP weekend leaders (these are all volunteers as well).

So, the only ones who are paid are the ones with the white engraved nametags. Everyone else is either a volunteer or involved in a course.

A reviewer told me it's half price.

I am completely convinced there was a plant within my Harmony group(a lifespring offspring). Within 5 minutes of the class starting this girl is spilling her guts out on this horrible life that she has had, basically shocking the whole class, and making all of us empathize with her. Thing is, the class had just started, I remember asking myself, why is she saying these things. What I found odd about it, as many of us did, is how innapropriate to where we as a class were and the discussion we were having. But what I realized later is how perfectly it moved us as a class to the point the trainer wanted us to go to. It emotionally involved us all, which is right where they wanted us.

She never mentioned she was taking the class over again, so there was no way to know if she was "reviewing" the class.

Erg! What a consolation prize for giving up a year of your life to Landmark!

-val

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gc4062
Val,

Depends on the region, as tuitions vary by region/country. In the centers I visited, typically reviewers paid either half price, or just the deposit amount. Former employees, if they spent at least one year on staff can participate for free for the balance of their lives.

at the Tuesday night "special intro" I noticed a majority of people who had already done the courses.

they seemed to make up the majority, family, friends as a minority and I do not know of anybody there just out of curiosity.

the people who returned did so, I thought, to make the place seem packed and LEC seem popular.

a few people, I noticed, had professionally printed badges with their first and last names and a job title.