Well thank heavens I have found somewhere like this to tell my story, otherwise I think my cranium will crack open. I’m sure this account will not come as a shock to other forum members but I hope by “sharing” (spot the irony) this bizarre episode in my life I’ll at least be able to move on, hopefully with my sanity intact.

About 8 months ago a friend of mine introduced me to another of her friends and we went on a blind date. We hit it off from the word go and I was totally captivated with her bright and cheerful manner and ability to engage me skilfully in lots of playful banter – something I love. She told me she was a Landmark “volunteer” and went on to describe what that meant and what her work with Landmark had brought to her life. Never one not to give something a try I duly signed up to do “The Forum”. I actually got a lot from attending including some resolutions of long term conflicts with my family. However I had deep misgivings about the methods used particularly the hours, the subtle controls, don’t drink alcohol or take drugs (piss off!) etc.

Coming out the other side I shared my experience with her, both good and bad. What followed was a barrage of what seemed to be pre scripted statements “They do that to get a reaction” etc. Something’s just not right here, I started to think. Then I started to notice other things, we arranged dates after her evening sessions only to result in me hanging around up to an hour for her to show up. She would arrive home sometimes at 3am in the morning with work the next day, almost every weekend seemed to involve some form of Landmark “commitment”, endless calls from her “participants” that would be taken regardless of what we were doing together. There was constant lateness for our dates with no explanation or apology. She seemed to have no time at all for friends, and very little for family.

So one night I decided to get things straight and explain all this “didn’t work for me”. To me this was very important especially as she was already talking about marriage and kids after knowing her for 3 months! I explained to her in what I thought to be a very reasoned manner that I was not spending enough time with her, that I was worried about her Landmark commitments and the effect it was having on her health. What I got back was deeply shocking, a barrage of vitriol “You don’t know what we do”, “You are selfish”, “How dare you criticise something I love”, “I am sourced by this work” etc. I asked for a compromise, could she consider reducing what she did with them “No. Only when we are married and have kids”

Well to cut a long story short I then withdrew from any form of openness and everything went downhill. Eventually (after many months of decay in the relationship) she came clean that she could in fact consider reducing her Landmark commitments (in 6 months time) in exchange for “a more rewarding relationship”. We then went round in circles for a while but ultimately resulting in breaking up.

After this I started to do some research and found this and other sites and it all started to become clear what I had been through. To think I had had endless sleepness nights of guilt and worry that I was being selfish! I hate this organisation and what it does to people under an umbrella of “transforming peoples lives”. Deep down I know this woman is a wonderful human being who has been totally corrupted, unable to have a life outside of Landmark or able to see it for what it is. Once she told me that she was scared to ask for time at the weekend for attending her Sisters wedding for godsake! First they brainwash, then they corrupt, then they stick the fangs in and then give them the psycho babble dialogue to defend the monstrous way they behave to friends, family and lovers. I realise now that every conversation of substance with her was false – I was negotiating with Landmark Education about my future and feelings and not her.

I feel like a complete idiot and powerless to rescue her from this hellish way of life – she’s too far gone.

Anyone else experienced anything similar? I won’t be surprised if there are.

...almost exactly like what I went through.

Oh yeah, except my dad was (still is) in with the Rajneesh lot.

Swap the names of the 'organizations' but the methods they use are the same and the effect on people, friends and family is the same.

Welcome. Hope you can start to find some answers here.

Welcome, Blue Pill.

I am so sorry what you have gone through in your relationship because of this individual indoctrinated by Landmark Education.

If you have not already done so, the book OUTRAGEOUS BETRAYAL by Steven Pressman, and the television documentary VOYAGE TO THE LAND OF THE NEW GURUS, which Landmark Education tried to remove from the internet through frivolous litigation, are both excellent resources for background on the controversial organization.

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starry
Oh yeah, except my dad was (still is) in with the Rajneesh lot.

Swap the names of the 'organizations' but the methods they use are the same and the effect on people, friends and family is the same.

Welcome. Hope you can start to find some answers here.

Well thank god (whoever that is) i am not alone. I must say in some way this lot are VERY impressive in the way they disguise their evil machinations with what appears to be a totally benign and trustworthy setup. Its been a wonder to behold how perfectly its all setup to disguise the real purpose – truly mesmerising in every sense of the word.

Once she was asked to run an Introduction workshop with a 250 mile roundtrip at her expense. She did it no questions asked. WTF? This goes beyond helping others in need. This is pure, sadistic manipulation of a good hearted individual by a greedy, money driven scam monster of an organisation that should be expelled from existence. It makes me sick to the bone.

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Blue Pill

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starry
Oh yeah, except my dad was (still is) in with the Rajneesh lot.

Swap the names of the 'organizations' but the methods they use are the same and the effect on people, friends and family is the same.

Welcome. Hope you can start to find some answers here.

Well thank god (whoever that is) i am not alone. I must say in some way this lot are VERY impressive in the way they disguise their evil machinations with what appears to be a totally benign and trustworthy setup. Its been a wonder to behold how perfectly its all setup to disguise the real purpose – truly mesmerising in every sense of the word.

Once she was asked to run an Introduction workshop with a 250 mile roundtrip at her expense. She did it no questions asked. WTF? This goes beyond helping others in need. This is pure, sadistic manipulation of a good hearted individual by a greedy, money driven scam monster of an organisation that should be expelled from existence. It makes me sick to the bone.

I drove EIGHT HOURS, ONE-WAY to AUSTIN for an SELP "WORK DAY." And she'd only been in the country for 4 days. It was like someone seeking a crack fix.

It's me :D

Yes, I agree with you wholeheartedly.

Very strange thing is that on a long train journey (5 hours) I met and got chatting to a really friendly girl, and could see that she was being taken in big style, by one of those yoga/meditation type organizations. I can't remember the name, I'll have to look it up...but as soon as she started talking about them and the way they'd befriended her, how she was getting reeled in, it made me feel sick.

You're lucky, you managed to extricate yourself. I really don't know what to do, or what you could have done, for the other people. I'm really at a loss on this one.

It's too late for my dad, he's been living that life for 30 years now. There's no going back for him, it would take too much courage and too much humility to break away and admit that he was wrong and that he made some mistakes. It's really warped his way of thinking (it was probably never that sound anyway, but throw in 45? years of hard core drug abuse and where do you go with that one? He can't even string a sentence together.

Since the whole experience with my dad I'm such a firm believer in giving it straight. I can't stand any kind of manipulation (he was a genius at it).

Anyway, sorry, I don't want to hijack your thread. I'm glad you've found this place, there are some really helpful folks here. It's helping me get my ideas together.

Hi Blue Pill. Sorry to hear about your suffering. I had a relationship ruined by Landmark but I myself never went farther than being dragged into the "graduation evening" (recruiting session).
I hope it's not too early to ask a question. Many of us on this message board wonder how something so insidious as Landmark can continue untouched, even when people realize they been hoodwinked.
One of their refined tricks: even someone who realizes that Landmark is a pack of lying manipulators will still credit The Forum with important breakthroughs in their life such as resolving long term conflicts with the family. So Landmark can always cite even their worst critics and say "We provide a needed service".
If Landmark is right, if they really do have a one-weekend quick-fix "technology" that can resolve life-long issues, then this is an irresistable selling point. Was it possible that you could have gotten this value without Landmark? Did you really achieve lasting results without need for follow-up?

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joe6
Hi Blue Pill. Sorry to hear about your suffering. I had a relationship ruined by Landmark but I myself never went farther than being dragged into the "graduation evening" (recruiting session).
I hope it's not too early to ask a question. Many of us on this message board wonder how something so insidious as Landmark can continue untouched, even when people realize they been hoodwinked.
One of their refined tricks: even someone who realizes that Landmark is a pack of lying manipulators will still credit The Forum with important breakthroughs in their life such as resolving long term conflicts with the family. So Landmark can always cite even their worst critics and say "We provide a needed service".
If Landmark is right, if they really do have a one-weekend quick-fix "technology" that can resolve life-long issues, then this is an irresistable selling point. Was it possible that you could have gotten this value without Landmark? Did you really achieve lasting results without need for follow-up?

And therein lies their power. Offering “technology” to resolve family breakdowns is part of the indoctrination process. Could I have recognised the need to do this earlier? Of course! Its really a no-brainer and friends had been urging me to do it for years. So they start with something like this that almost EVERYBODY will identify with. The calls are made, the tears flow and suddenly Landmark gain credibility in a matter of a few hours of preaching. Its extremely clever and only hits you after you have a chance of reviewing what happened. I’m actually willing to admit that SOME of what gets discussed in the forum is of value, but that’s not the point.

There are 2 sides to Landmark, the public side and the inner sanctum – the Dark side. The public side appears OK, if up for a bit of criticism on their methods but maybe the ends justify the means – its up to the individual to decide that one. However, Landmark are about making money, they are a for profit organisation. Instead of opting for a moral structure of fairly paid staff OR a non profit making structure, they adopt this extremely sinister and totally IN-AUTHENTIC model based on brainwashing 1000’s of graduates to work for free and recruit more drones for the mothership. They have no issues with demanding more and more time from these people even when its obvious that their personal relationships, work or whatever are suffering as a result. And they are supposed to be about having a life that works and they are passionate about? Well maybe they don’t know that’s happening? Of course they know! – because the poor sod in question is going to get coaching on the fact that other people in their lives are upset because they hardly ever see them! And their answer? “Come and spend more time here with people who understand you, can source you and make you fulfilled in your life”

AAAARRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!
:evil:

You just can’t win against this corrupt but very clever mind-game. Thank goodness I managed to cut loose when I did.

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joe6
Did you really achieve lasting results without need for follow-up?

It's ambiguous, but if it's a change in lifestyle and behavior, to last...it takes a LOT more than 3 days or even 3 months (although 3 months intensive for a crisis may work).

Also, results are never defined. A lot of grads use an equation. I'll give a few very common examples:

THE BIG ONE-
Me + Forum = more face-to-face time with my relatives/loved ones (but they never take into consideration that the longer time is 80% likely to be pressuring someone to enroll).

ANOTHER
Me + Forum = more money at work. It's stated as a cause-effect thing. It may be that you had to ask for more money so you could afford more courses.

YET ANOTHER
Me + Forum = more possibilities (but the word 'possibility' is loaded).

LASTLY
Me + Forum = the same as years of counseling (OK, if someone NEVER saw a counselor, they have no basis for a comparison. Same for if they went once, or for years without following their counselor's recommendations for treatment).

Me - LE + Knowledge of LGATS = A more qualified therapist to make more money because I specialise. At this point, LE hates my ass. I plan on eventually turnng the future specialty into a longitudinal research design to obtain a doctorate. From this standpoint, EVERYONE wins.