Twitter

Those of you on Twitter know in 140 characters its easy to Piss someone off.  And for the those people I say grow up.  People Piss me off all the time not only on Twitter but in the real world.

Its like I always say, You can't argue with a 2 year old because common sense and facts don't apply. Same goes for Commies and Socialist and Twitter junkies.

Just take everything with a grain of salt and know this fact.  People can't convey a complete thought on twitter in 140 characters unless your telling people you HATE THE PACKERS.  That's pretty much to the point and for all of you that do...Go BEARS!!!!!

I have this philosophy for Twitter.  Inform me, make me laugh, make me think, make me cry, Even piss me off, but never EEEEEEEEEEEEEVER post your crappy poetry you will be blocked!.

Para Civility

PS I did say tongue in cheek.

Group vs Team

Hello all, I mentioned about there being a difference in a previous blog Run it like a business, and I said I would talk about that later and now is that time.

Some teams call themselves groups and some groups call themselves teams, now what I define as groups or teams is this.

Paranormal Groups - a bunch of enthusiasts, investigate mostly public places or pay to play investigation experience. It doesn't mater what kind of equipment they use (The latest and best or the crappiest); these groups may not have the skill set for a private home or Business investigation.

Paranormal Teams - A bunch of enthusiasts that investigate the paranormal in homes or places of business or properties that are privately owned and requested an investigation.

Each of these Groups or Teams may do a little of each.  Hey its fun I like pay to play and public haunts as much as the next para enthusiasts.  

What you need to do to look for a good fit for you, either as an investigator or a client is look at their previous experience.

With some websites you can look on their pages and read about what they do and where they do it.

And some you have to contact and ask a lot of questions.

I get asked a lot of question from clients to make sure we won't do anything to talk about the investigation to anyone or to make sure we do piss the spirits off then go home for the night to have the client be abused by the angry entity. And I'm a glad client does that.  It’s also a good way to see what the client expects.  Sometimes they expect to do the investigation with us.  We normally don't do tagalongs but every investigation is different so we approach it in ways that best suits our team and the clients needs.

What to look for?

If you are on a website looking at the teams evidence page or activities page and all you see is a bunch of graveyards or pay to play investigations then you may be looking at a group. This may be what your looking for, no pressure just fun.

If you see a website that has businesses or homes and that’s what you looking for?  If this is what you want? Then good, same amount of fun just a little more pressure to get to the truth.

If there is no info on their website that’s fine. Just contact them and then start asking questions.

For the Clients.

1. Have you done private home/business and how many have you done?

2. When was your last investigation? (In saturated areas like Chicago, New Orleans, New York, St Augustine. they may have months in-between cases. this should not be a problem its feast or famine sometimes)

3. How many years of experience? (This means nothing and everything. A crapshoot. I've met teams that were under a year and had their act together and I've met teams that were in their 12th year and were very disorganized and didn't know how to investigate without contamination of their data.)

4. What do you Charge. Most teams or groups don't charge and if they do. I wouldn't trust them.  Some investigators charge for gas that is ok if you can afford their cost.

5. Do you do any angry provoking? (It's up to you on what you think about this but I look at it this way You poke me while I'm sleeping and I get very angry. Remember they go home for the night you still have to live or work there.

6. Does your team have background checks for its members (I require this from my team and they pay the fee for the check around $20 for a decent one.)?

These are just a few questions to start with.

For People wanting to join a team.

1. How will you start me out?

2. Are there any dues? (If a team or group asks you for dues make sure its not outrageous of a price I've hear of some teams charging their members $20 a month. that’s nuts.  5 to 10 dollars is decent. Some teams only have dues maintain a website or to replace or repair or upgrade their equipment these dues are temporary sometimes)

3. I know this is controversial but find out their religious beliefs if they have any to see if you can live with that. I know if I was on a team full of satanic worshipers I couldn't.

4. Tell your potential teammates any allergies phobias or medical conditions.  I know it’s not a question but you would be surprised how many teams don't ask about that. It may just save your life.

5. Team meetings, how many, when, and are they mandatory?

These are a few to get you started.

I hope this helps, Happy Hunting.

Para Civility Tip

When networking with other teams: If you receive an email from another team first try to email them back within a few days.  They may have a case for you or a case that they may need help with. Remember this is about helping each other out as well as being civil.

When networking look for teams with same or stricter standards than your team for evidence review.
This can increase your knowledge and save you some time in evidence review.  

After making friends with other teams in your area offer your help to those teams when they are short handed. Follow their direction like you are a newbie when setting up and tearing down.  

Write down any questions you have that can wait till after the investigation, certain questions maybe necessary during the investigation. 

After tear down talk to the team leaders ask them questions about the investigation methods and style and set ups that you may have, and if you have advice ask permission before giving it.

I myself ask for help from teams often.  Rick from KPI is one person I've consulted more than a few times.  Cindi Muntz is another.  I looked for help from Melissa at TNT Paranormal and P.A.C.T. as well.

I'm very happy to make friends and get invited down to St. Augustine Florida a couple of years back and learned some investigation techniques from Ian of FPR and about 8 other teams that were there.

To know more about the teams that I have mentioned. Check out my website at www.windycityparanormal.com go to the links page and chose friends of WCP.

Thanks for your time and Happy Hunting.
Vinny Morgan

Para Civility tip "Run it Like a Business."

For all of you new groups or teams or people wanting to start a group or team (yes there is a difference).  The tip today is about running it like a business.

Unlike a real business you can ask for help from your competition a.k.a fellow Paranormal investigation teams and not just the ones in your area I'm talking about all over the country!  Yes you can clap here!

The first thing I did when I was helping a team off the ground is check the internet for help.  Some teams have downloadable information for anyone to have, i.e. logbooks, team bylaws, standard questionare forms ect....

Or you can just ask teams by contacting them direct. Since some teams don't like to play well with others.  I call them groups (more on that in another blog). You may have to contact multiple teams. I would suggest that you contact at least 10 teams, the more information you amass the better you can get in a shorter amount of time.

For bylaws and questionares pick and choose what you like from all the teams you contact. Also add to them as needed.  You may find in a few months or a year or so that you need more questions or a need to eliminate others. I say go for it.

I'm constantly trying to upgrade my questionare.  I even have one for kids (still a work in progress).


Electronic paperwork is key.  I admit to some fault of my own and to a computer upgrade I lost some files and didn't keep an accurate log of some cases. Shame on me! :(

but due to my hard notes(paper) and my memory of most of the cases I'm in the process of updating the data.

This tip comes from Theresa the Historical Research Manager of Huntington Paranormal Investigations and Research. http://huntingtonparanormal.com/ Theresa has been invaluable to my old group and me when we first started out and kept giving me great advice all along the way as I ventured out to start Windy City Paranormal.  Here is her "How to get started advice."

*We also have cool uniform shirts.

*Newbies are mentored and educated and treated with the same respect as oldies. New ideas are welcomed and the whole group gets to have input.

*My boss-guy has helped out other groups when they get in over their heads, like with demonic, so it's always a good idea to keep up a professional relationship with other groups. You might need their help. So don't talk trash, even if trash talk is deserved and they started it.

*No homeowner is going to hire a group that acts like middle school kids. You are not as anonymous on the web as you think...

*Don't charge for investigations.

*Most groups lose members when they realize that it's a lot of boring. Most groups dissolve because of this, too.

*Keep in mind that even the exciting cases on Ghost Hunters have more hours of boring non-action than they do of personal experiences and creepy feelings and disembodied voices. Even when you get evidence, you don't often know about it until you review it. Which can be many hours of boring as well with an occasional flicker on the camera or whisper on audio that makes you feel like you won the Whatever Bowl.. There's lots of sitting around and trying to communicate and the feeling that you are wasting your time, but you owe the client your full attention and time and a professional investigation.

*You will have more cases with no evidence than you will with evidence. You will have to review the hours of no evidence and still keep in touch with the client and present to them your (lack of) findings and do it with respect and sensitivity.

*When you get evidence, you have to know what to do with it. You can't just say, "Oh cool." and leave it at that. Which is where the education and mentoring part comes in.

*Do your homework. Link up with those in your area who are approved by the American Ghost Society, or TAPS. Go out on investigations with a credible group to learn from the veterans. And be respectful of the groups, and the clients as well.

*Getting people to commit the time to make a group work is tough. People don't understand how much back office work it takes for a group to be effective.

Happy hunting from Para Civility!!!!

In the beginning.

In the beginning of Paranormal Unity it was about bullying. Stopping the almost teenage girl style internet fighting.  But now it has turned into a hippy love fest where no-one is wrong and everyone is great. and all methods are perfect for everyone. With no professional standards. Lets face it some people suck at our field. Some people are hopeless but all of us just need some help from time to time so be Civil to each other and friendships may occur.

This is why I started Para Civility.  We need to respect the field and be civil to each other and helpful to others in the field while still maintaining some level of healthy competition and professionalism.  Without competition how can the field or anything else in life advance.

I will be posting tips and suggestions and taking your suggestion to advance the field in research techniques and investigation techniques

Some of my thoughts are tongue and cheek. So get over it. Most will be productive thoughts and praises.

So Follow me on twitter at @paracivility .