Wow... the past few posts have been very very interesting. Talking of people wanting something for nothing... when I was involved with the landmark education group, one of the first things they asked me was 'why do you work so hard?'. I was taken aback by this question as 1) I have never considered that I work 'so hard' - I just do what I need to do to get where I need to g
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I was one of those people who landmark eventually deemed 'uncoachable' and was subject to intensive attempts to coach me, which descended into outright and blatant manipulation, emotional blackmail and severe bullying and psychological torture. The first experience I had with 'coaching' was in the so-called self expression and leadership program where I was assigned a group
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Fascinating...This 'strategic rejection' is exactly what happened to me in landmark. I had an older woman there who declared herself my 'mentor' (a label which I did not accept). She even declared herself to be a new type of 'mother' to me - which I also did not accept since I already have a mother who is alive and well and who I'm close to, and I have no nee
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Landmark is full of predators. A 'leader' came up to me once, took my hand, stared into my eyes and asked "do you have a boyfriend?". I said "no". He said "Good, there is nothing to get in our way". It was extremely creepy. Landmark attracts predatory manipulative men (and women, honestly) who find themselves in an environment where they are now give
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@epyx - I'm not sure if you know this but staring into another person's eyes for a long period of time is a technique for inducing a trance-like/hypnotic state. You have to ask why such an organization would want to put people into a hypnotic state without their permission and what they stand to gain from having people in such a position. You say they don't strike you as nefario
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

DL - Werner Erhard said that the purpose of EST (and by extension landmark since it's virtually the same) is to "blow the mind". He literally meant that. There is nothing coincidental about any of these symptoms - the courses are designed to induce them. People in euphoric/manic states spend more money and are easier to control.
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

MO - You're welcome. This is what this site is here for. What you've seen is consistent with participation in one of these programs - the euphoria, invincibility, the lows, the confusion etc. It's bi-polar in nature. Your partner may indeed drop out. It may help that he has you - his external social ties may make it harder for him to give himself over completely to them.
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@mermaidOZ - very sorry to hear about what you've been going through. Unfortunately it's common. Don't blame yourself. It's not you. Your boyfriend has just been through a very intense course of what is effectively brainwashing, whereby he has come to accept ideas and tenets that are not his own, that are not even real, but are presented as if they are fact and as truth. In
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@dopaminelink - yes, it is very useful information and I wish I had known this before so I'd known that the 'high' I was feeling was a manipulated one (e.g. at landmark you hear much doom and gloom, depressing information before they then turn it around at the end so that you become elated). If I'd known that back then I would not have associated the high with the actual doctr
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I personally experienced: 1) A short term euphoria - I actually felt that I was on some kind of drugs. You could describe it as being 'blissed out' and feeling like I was in love with the world, that everything was perfect, that everyone was amazing etc 2) Inflated self-esteem - I have always been a confident person so this was confidence of a new kind, where I felt like I could t
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@corboy - Yes I'm well aware of what it does since I existed in a severe and worsening sense of confusion and disorientation for about 2 years while involved in landmark. It got worse when doing the "leadership" program which they call the Introduction Leaders Program (ILP). There is a distinct link between language and thought - scrambling language in the way that landmark does ca
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@corboy - Yes, "already always listening" is a core landmark concept. They assert that everyone listens through a filter from the past (what they call 'your already always listening' - what in layman's terms could be one's internal dialogue - and which landmark seeks to destroy/destabilize) and assert that people dont' really hear what is said, but what they the
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@Dontknowwhattothink - Your husband has indeed been through a very powerful emotional weekend. That is how landmark hooks people. They basically take you on an emotional trip, through huge highs and lows, in which you bond with both the person 'leading' and the other participants in a strange way because people are encouraged to discuss extremely personal and intimate details of their l
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@dopaminelink and @iib - what I have worked out with regards to LGATS is that their thinking/ideology/programming is in itself bipolar. They go from one extreme to the other: on one hand you're the absolute worst most terrible human that ever lived, and on the other hand you're perfect and can create whatever you want and are basically God. This is part of their programming, which I bel
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@billy77 - That is basically what it is. They are psychologically disturbed people trying to get other people to believe that their disturbed way of thinking/seeing the world is actually real. And what's scarier is that they truly believe that they are right and everyone else is living in 'unreality' as they call it. @corboy - indeed. very good quote that is.
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I'd be very suspicious of any course/group/event/seminar that seeks to change anything within anyone. Internal shifts are psychological, emotional and mental in nature. Nobody should be tampering with your mind, emotions or pysche without knowing exactly what they are doing and without having a positive intention which is geared towards genuinely enhancing life. This would be the field o
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Here are some more notes for you - these are taken directly from the forum, advanced course and seminar series. Click here to see them You will see various alarming things in here such as where they tell you that you are nothing and nobody. Or where they say that you don't know who you are, you never have, you never will, but they know you better than you know yourself and you will never
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Just found a form that's used to sign people up for the forum. It's the first time I have sat down and really looked at their health warning. And I am further 100% convinced that these people know what damage they are inflicting on people and simply do not give a damn. Note they even ask you what you intend to accomplish and then tell you that there is no suggestion or guarantee
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Here's more.... These 7 rules are given at the end of the Forum. Again, look how normal words have been given their own Landmark definition. "The Landmark Forum's 'seven commandments' for being an extraordinary person: · Be Racket-Free: give up being right - even when you know you were. · Be Powerful: be straight in your communication and take what you get. · B
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

As each day passes, the Landmark programming continues to wear off. I remember more and more each day of what was said in the various 'programs' that I took part in. Just came across some notes from the Landmark Forum too which I found helpful. It may help you too. These are actually verbatim what they say in Landmark. It may help you understand why landmark people are so zealous - t
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@gnstewart - There is so much that can be dismantled in your post that I don't know what to say. First of all, you say "It is a program geared to teaching people how to live their best life. Help individuals deal with their issues to solve their own problems." - I'd be interested in knowing how the people who run Choices seminars know how to teach people to live 'their
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Unsurprisingly landmark has taken down the above information that I linked to. I guess they realized it wasn't in their interests to have it in the public domain. If you click on the link I provided it now returns an error message.
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

When I did the Introduction Leaders Program - which believe me was more about how to be a sheep for landmark than a leader - I nearly lost my mind. If you think the forum is bad, imagine being indoctrinated for 6 or 7 months, on a daily basis, with 4 long weekends of more forum-like sessions? It was an horrendous experience. This is what led to me waking up and seeing the light about this organiz
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Here's another good online posting. I think these will be helpful for those trying to understand what may have been most damaging in their landmark experience. Definitely helped me and reminded me of some things. Read the original post here My Landmark experience - the long term effects. Don't fall into the trap. topic posted Sun, June 14, 2009 - 1:01 PM by Elle I attende
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I came across this excellent article written online by someone who had, after much pressure from his boss, taken the landmark forum. It's worth reading for anyone considering doing the forum. It's also worth reading for those seeking to remember what happened to them in that weekend. It may be triggering for some though I hope not. Read original article here Breakthroughs and Blar
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

It is so disgusting to see people on here, like the so-called 'free thinker' poster, defending LGATS. It cannot be overstated the deep damage and havoc and destruction that such groups wreak on people's lives. There is absolutely NO defence of such a thing. There is no need for LGATS to be in operation. None whatsoever. There is no need for people to purposefully attempt to
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@ellenaaa - thank you for letting me know that. The problem was that my past was already firmly in the past, to use landmark language. I have never been someone to dwell on things and one of my mottos in life is 'no use crying over spilled milk'. So to have all of this stuff - some of it traumatic and sad stuff that I'd dealt with by just moving on and not thinking about - rake
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@gloriaG - Yes, there is no doubt that they watch and groom people. I was picked out for similar reasons. They want successful, articulate, poised people who have credibility in their regular lives as these people will find it easier to recruit others because of the "listening" (as landmark calls it) that others have for them. But they also want to smash your individuality out of you so
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

@GloriaG - yes you get 'trained' in a number of strange techniques. I'm glad to say that when I did that leadership programme I didn't do any of the homework. The homework includes 'mirror work' which is standing in front of the mirror and practicing being 'ten times more excited' for up to two minutes - faking excitement in other words. There is another wh
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I can tell you for a fact that werner erhard's ideas are landmark education. It's not that they influence landmark, or have some bearing on it: Landmark IS EST, just in a new more slickly marketed package. Most of the people who 'lead' the landmark forum were senior EST people who were trained and worked for werner erhard under EST. They were his inner circle and core group
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"