If there is a fine line between motivational speakers and
life coaches on the one hand, and New Age bullshitters on the other, many fail
to observe it – perhaps because the motivational-speak guiding principle of
promoting nothing whatsoever in the
guise of positive thinking and using the techniques of televangelism, really is
the same principle guiding the New Age crowd, with the difference being
primarily a matter of the degree to which the promoter in question is aware of
that guiding principle. MaryAnn D’Ambrosio (“Ph.D.”), who appears to fancy
herself among the fomer, surely belongs to the latter. For the neat sum of
$29.95, d’Ambrosio will sell you a deck of her Boundless Energy Cards, which will “assist you with clarity, focus and next steps that are always in
complete alignment with your soul and hearts desire.” They are essentially
flash cards with positive messages (actually, they “feature[] a photograph from MaryAnn’s personal travels around the world
paired with a specific word to help you discover daily inspiration”), and
according to D’Ambrosio “they easily help
you remember (on a very deep energetic level) who you truly are and your heart’s desire. Here’s what makes them unique
and so special . . . during the design and creation process, each card is
imbued with a distinctive energy.” Oh, energy!
And on a “very deep energetic level” at that!
Apparently, she specializes in teaching “heart-based entrepreneurs and professionals
how to line up their energy to create their heart’s desire. A sought after
motivational speaker and facilitator, MaryAnn has created numerous energy and
spiritual workshops”. Her “Ph.D.” by the way is in “holistic life coaching” (finding an accredited institution offering that one is left as
an exercise). She also holds an MBA and an Advanced Graduate Certificate from
the Institute of Healing Arts & Sciences, which seems to be a website (with
a physical address in a shopping mall in Bloomfield, CT), which is run by one
Dorothy Martin-Neville and which offers a “2-Year Energy Medicine Certificate Program and a 4-Year Energy Medicine Practitioner (EMP) Diploma
Program”.
Diagnosis: No, really. Apparently it probably does not fall
under a legal definition of “fraud”. Imagine that.
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ReplyDeleteI live about an hour from Bloomfield, CT, and have been to the mall in question. On one side of the "institute" is a movie theater; on the other side is a greasy spoon. So yeah, we're talking about a highly accredited venue of higher learning!
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