CRV Training - A Student's Perspective:
By Coleen Marenich

After years of digging through information on remote viewing in magazines, books and websites, I discovered that there are credible and reputable remote viewers and trainers and then there are other people who say they are. Some say they can train you to be a remote viewer and if you haven't done your homework and checked these people out, you'll soon discover you've paid for something that has nothing to do with remote viewing.

I also discovered that there are different ways to learn remote viewing and that you have a choice of which method you want to learn, depending on what suits you best. I liked that! I chose Controlled Remote Viewing because it has lots of structure and is taught using a simple step by step method that you continue to use during all your session work. CRV also offers immediate, verifiable feedback for all your sessions. I now know that as soon as my CRV session work is complete, that my feedback will indicate whether I nailed the target or totally bombed on it. I need that feedback to know where I have to improve and to indicate where I'm having problems.

Another method to learn remote viewing is through the very well respected Monroe Institute and their hemi-synch technique. They can train you to do remote viewing sessions from a meditative state, if that suits you better. One of the most highly respected remote viewers in the industry today is Joe McMoneagle. He is well known by many in the field, including my instructor, Lyn Buchanan. The best way for Joe to get his session work done is by using the hemi-synch technique developed by the Monroe Institute.

And of course, there are others who have jumped into the fray claiming to be the latest and greatest remote viewing trainer. Please be careful and do your homework when approached by these people. As with anything else, ask them lots of questions, ask about their reputation in the industry, ask about their background, ask them specifically what you will be able to do as a remote viewer after you've been trained by them, and in particular, ask those who are recognized, credible remote viewers what they know about others now claiming to be remote viewing trainers. You may get some spirited replies! It will be good for you to hear what they have to say! You may be disappointed to learn that many people claiming they can teach you remote viewing are actually going to teach you how to meditate, or how to perform self hypnosis or teach you to have out of body experiences. This is NOT remote viewing!

There are many credible remote viewing websites on the Internet now. It took me a long time to sort out who was credible and who just said they were. And I'm sure there are others I haven't discovered yet.

One question I'm asked frequently is: "Do you know of anyone offering training in Canada at a reasonable price?"

I know there are trainers who will fly anywhere in the world to train you, even Western Canada! "Reasonable price" has to be qualified. Reasonable price is in the eye of the beholder. I won't agree or argue with anyone about the price. The price is what it is. My experience has been that paying more doesn't necessarily mean you are getting good remote viewing training. And that paying less usually means you aren't being trained to remote view at all!

I can tell you from all my research over the years that unfortunately you may not get what you think you've paid for. I, for one, would be pretty upset if I had paid $350.00 for a two day lecture or workshop to learn remote viewing, when in the end I realize I've actually been sitting through a demonstration of various methods of meditation and self hypnosis techniques! Or in other instances, after paying hundreds of dollars for an "at home study course" you realize several weeks into your 'training' that the tapes you've been listening to do not teach you remote viewing. They are relaxation and meditation tapes! Please be aware that these deceptive offers to teach 'remote viewing' are rampant on the internet!

The training I chose is with Lyn Buchanan at P>S>I> for my Basic, Intermediate and Advanced level training as well as the Project Management course. In each case the class size was very small and that's the way Lyn likes it. He trains with you in a one-on-one situation as much as possible during class time. The cost is definitely a hit in the pocket book for Canadians. BUT... I can justify the cost for myself. Can you?

For me, a training regimen with structure which also provides me with verifiable feedback for every session I do has proven to be very important in developing my new ability. I want to know whether I nailed my targets or whether I have completely missed them. And I need to know that information right after each of my sessions is done. With Lyn's training I get that and a lot more:

  • Training Manual; (and a ton of notes from class);
  • Customized computer programs to assist you with your homework; (practice, practice, practice...it's the only way to improve);
  • Homework after each level of training; (lots of it and it's not easy);
  • Subscription to an exclusive CRV newsgroup for you and your classmates (a fantastic way to learn from other students at various levels of training);
  • Access to an exclusive CRV online database maintained by P>S>I>. You enter all your session scores (both you and Lyn can analyze your CRV ability as it develops and improves);
  • CRV session critiques prepared by Lyn (ask for these.... you need to know if your practice sessions are on track); and
  • One-on-one with Lyn anytime I need it or want it.

Oh....and Lyn also hosts an annual CRV Conference. If you are hesitant to begin training, your attendance at this annual conference will be money well spent. Being in the same room as people who have already been trained in CRV and having the opportunity to get answers to all the questions I had was exactly what I needed to help me decide to begin training with P>S>I>. And the speakers and the workshops at the conference were a great source of information I would have never been able to get otherwise. And please... I am not a Lyn worshipper. I am telling for you what I got for my money. Training is expensive. I needed to feel confident I was going to get my money's worth.

So if you're serious about getting CRV training, ask yourself these important questions:

  • What the heck am I going to do with this once I learn it? (I put off training for 3 years until I figured out my answer to this one)
  • When will I be able to market my new found ability to the general public or corporate Canada without getting laughed at?
  • Is this something I can talk about freely with my friends and family?
  • Will this be something I learn because for me it's just as a passing fancy? Will I toss it all in the trash at some point later in time when the going gets tough or when my "homework" gets too hard? Will I even get homework from the trainer I choose?
  • Will I get one-on-one instruction from my trainer when class is over at no extra cost?
  • Can I see a way to use this new ability to enhance my effectiveness / efficiency / competitiveness in the work I do presently or in my every day life?

Be honest. This is and will prove to be pretty serious stuff.

There are those out there who offer remote viewing courses so you can be in better touch with your inner self. And that's it! Of course, you'll have to pay them a couple hundred bucks! Then there are trainers out there who claim to be able to train you to remote view targets like the other side of the moon or other distant planets - all for the price of a couple thousand dollars. But gee - just how do you know you have remote viewed something that's on the other side of the moon anyway?

You gotta ask yourself and your trainer just exactly what it is you are supposed to be able to do with your new found remote viewing ability once you leave their class. Get straight answers. Get names of previous students. Find out what type of things they are doing with their remote viewing ability after they return home from class. Compare, compare, compare. Search the internet for opinions on trainers' reputations and their techniques and more importantly, their track record. And lastly, if you're ready for training, be sure to seek the training that best suits you.

Another question I'm often asked: "Can anyone learn this technique or do you have to have an above average intuitive sensitivity or psychic ability?"

Yes, anyone can learn Controlled Remote Viewing, which is the method of remote viewing I learned. I hope I don't have to qualify "anyone", because I know what you're getting at is whether or not the intuitives and the sensitives or psychics are the only ones who will "get it". No, you don't have to have above average intuitive sensitivity or be psychic already in order to learn remote viewing. But you will find, in speaking to a group of remote viewers, that there are those who now realize that they were quite intuitive and sensitive before they began training.

Before my training, I considered myself as psychic as a doorknob. I felt I was just like everybody else who gets a strange feeling every now and then, or gets a brief flash of an image of something just before it actually happens. Of course, I dismissed these incidents as being nothing more than my over active imagination. And now.... well ..let's just say since I began my training, I've been paying a whole lot more attention to these feelings and these images because they are actually giving me information that is real. I'm not a doorknob anymore!

Another question is: "Where are you obtaining your training from and when will you complete it?"

I am taking my training from P>S>I> with Lyn Buchanan who is one of the founders of IRVA. He offers training and provides a variety of other remote viewing services through P>S>I> and has a training technique and teaching style that I have responded very well to. He is well respected in this field and has many years experience as a Controlled Remote Viewer and as a highly qualified trainer.

My first class was a Basic CRV class, held in August 2001 in Toronto of all places. Lyn contacted me to tell me they were offering their first ever Canadian class and asked if I would like to attend. I had just returned from his annual CRV Conference in El Paso in May of 2001 and had expressed a strong desire to see classes held in Canada. (Ask and you shall receive!?) I have since completed Intermediate training and hope to have my Advance class under my belt by sometime in 2003.

Article Update - February 2009

Since this article was first written I completed my Advanced CRV training in Calgary with Lyn in August 2003 and have also taken my CRV Project Management course. Calgary has been established as the CRV training centre of Canada through the continued support from enthusiastic prospective students. We are now to the point where we are at full capacity for our summer training courses every year. Please re-visit the site often as there will be updates regarding courses and other useful information for student and trained CRVers.

To top of page.