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How do I schedule an initial session?
Send an email to bill@billherbst.com requesting a session.
Click here to send me an email to ask for a session.
Please be sure to include in your email:
1. your FIRST and LAST NAME (whatever you call yourself)
2. your BIRTH DATA (full date, accurate time, and place of birth)
3. your MAILING ADDRESS (so I know what time zone you're in)
4. the TELEPHONE NUMBER you want me to call
I'll email back dates and times when I'm free over the next couple of weeks. Scheduling may take a couple of email exchanges, but we'll find a day and time that works for us both.
What is the cost of a session?
Astrological sessions are currently a flat fee of $200.00.
How long are your sessions?
Sessions vary in length. We talk until we've addressed your concerns and shared as much as we can in one conversation. Sometimes an hour is sufficient. I try not to go longer than 90 minutes, to prevent further harm to my stroke-damaged body and nervous system.
How do I pay and when?
Simply mail me a check AFTER the session (NOT before). My mailing address is:
Bill Herbst
822 1st Street
Florence, Oregon (OR) 97439
If you prefer, you can pay online through PayPal, by credit card or checking account debit. NOTE: Please do NOT send a PayPal payment BEFORE your session.
To pay electronically online after having your session, enter your email address and phone number, then click the "PAYPAL CLICK HERE TO PAY" box below. PayPal will notify me by email of your $200.00 payment.
PayPal is free and totally secure. Your credit card or checking account information is completely private and isn't sent to me. I've never had a single problem with PayPal.
For more information on PayPal, go to the PayPal web site.
Should I send you specific questions before the session?
No, please don't. Any questions you have about specific issues or particular circumstances are correctly part of the session itself. By all means, you should think about what you want to know, and writing down your questions is a great way to prepare, so that you get as much out of your session as possible, but I don't want to have to think about or deal with any of that until the session is actually happening.
Do you work in-person or over the phone?
Right now, 95% of sessions with clients are by telephone. Only about 5% are local and in-person at my apartment in Florence, Oregon. In earlier decades most of my sessions were face-to-face. Now it's reversed. That's fine, though, because I'm very comfortable with phone sessions. Working by telephone is easy, efficient, and keeps the sessions focused, with no distractions.
Do I call you?
No, I call all my clients (and I pay for the call).
Do you record sessions for your clients?
Yes. I record all sessions for clients at no extra charge.
I make a digital recording of our conversation convert it to an mp3 after the session, then upload the mp3 file to a private page on my web site. I email you a link to that page, from which you then download the file. The mp3 files are big, roughly 25 megs, but downloading with a broadband connection takes just a couple of minutes. Each client's private page stays up on my web site for at least a month, during which time you can download your mp3 file again if you lose it (that happens).
After you download the mp3 recording, you can listen to it on your computer with iTunes or other free mp3 software players, or download it onto any portable mp3 player, such as an iPod.
If you're not computer-savvy and are unfamiliar with downloading procedures or mp3 technology, please find a friend who can help you (as opposed to asking me).
Why do you call what you do "sessions" rather than "readings?"
A "reading" is the popular term for an astrological interpretation. I shy away from that word because it implies a certain passivity on the part of the client. Much of the public mistakenly assumes that purchasing a "reading" is akin to buying any other consumer commodity, like a pair of Gucci shoes. You pay your money, you get your shoes. Done deal.
My work is not a pre-fab product or standard "textbook" chart interpretation. Yes, I offer my professional insights into your chart, but you contribute also. I bring the astrological tools, along with my long experience as an astrologer, and my best understanding of human nature. You bring the knowledge of your real life with all its history and circumstances, plus your best consciousness.
Your willingness to work in the session by interacting with me from your highest awareness about yourself and your life makes an incredible difference in the quality of the information we can access and share.
I don't do this work alone. We do it together. So it's not a "reading." It's a co-creation. We are defining, refining, and clarifying the story of who you are, to help you live with more awareness of your inner self and better attunement to the outer experiences of your life.
Is the first session mainly a "natal interpretation"?
No, not in the way common to most astrological textbooks. A "natal interpretation" offered by many astrologers is an in-depth character analysis. That may be of interest to astrological students learning the system, but it is less relevant to my clients, who almost always bring specific issues of concern.
What kind of information can I expect in a first session?
What we discuss in any session, whether the first time we talk or the fiftieth, depends on two things: what's happening in your life and what's happening in your chart. You bring the information from your real life, I bring the information from your astrological chart, and together we'll make sense of where you are on your life-path.
Sessions vary dramatically in content, from one client to another, and from one session to the next with a given client. Every encounter is unique.
Does the session cover everything in my chart?
No. Astrology is a symbolic system that contains literally endless information. No matter how many sessions we did, we could never address "everything" in your chart. In most sessions, I focus on what is most relevant and important now.
What birth information do you need from me?
I require full birth data to do a session. This includes:
- DATE of birth (month, day and year)
- TIME of birth (local clock time, from a birth certificate or hospital record)
- PLACE of birth (city, state and country, with any clarification necessary for me to determine the location)
How important is an accurate time of birth?
Time of birth is critical in real astrology. Birth times that are incorrect by as little as half an hour (or even less) can radically alter the entire meaning of a chart.
DO NOT guess your birth time. And DO NOT trust your parents' memories. Check your birth certificate or call the hospital where you were born and ask for the Records Department (hospitals in America are required by Federal Law to keep all birth times on record, and you have a legal right to your own birth time). While even birth certificates or hospital records are not guaranteed to be 100% accurate, such written records are the best sources we have.
If you cannot obtain an accurate birth time, then astrology is probably not the right system for you. Instead, consult with a practitioner who uses a different symbolic or intuitive method. (For a personal referral to two of my colleagues who are trustworthy, experienced, and reputable professionals using non-astrological techniques, please email me and I will send you their names and contact information.)
Is there a minimum age to have a session?
Yes. My work is designed for people who have amassed a certain level of life-experience. Except in extraordinary circumstances, I do sessions only with people who are at least 21 years old.
I sometimes work with children's or adolescents' charts, but mainly for existing clients who are parents and want to better understand their children's lives. Parenting is the hardest job any of us will ever face, and families are a big deal for almost everyone. Knowing the timing and pattern of a child's arrival into personhood (the four birth-moments) can be immensely helpful to a concerned parent.
Will you send me a copy of my natal chart?
After the session, I will email you a PDF file (Adobe Acrobat format) containing the custom graphics I prepare of your chart and major transits. You can view this file on your computer or print it out as hard copy for your records.
Do you sell written reports?
Absolutely NOT. "Written reports" are generally canned (pre-written) textbook interpretations that are then assembled piecemeal into a long document. These kinds of reports are the lowest level of astrological interpretation. They may claim to be comprehensive, offering 40-50 pages of written material, but in this case quantity serves only to hide an appalling lack of quality. In 35 years I have never seen a single computer-generated astrological report that was worth the paper on which it was printed. Trust me on this.
Do you recommend additional sessions?
If you decide after our initial session that you'd like to work with me further, that's great. Life changes, and each session is different. While initial sessions have a special impact all their own, there is no substitute for deepening knowledge and trust. I much prefer to work with people I know — the longer I know my clients, the better the work becomes. I have many clients I've worked with for more than 20 years, and those enduring relationships make this crazy profession worth doing.
When and how often we have further sessions is entirely up to you. I don't have any particular structure or schedule for work with my ongoing clientele. Instead, I'm more like a coach who is always on the sidelines and is available when you want or need insight or feedback into how the game is going or how you should approach it. Some of my clients consult me once a year, like an annual check-up. Other clients have sessions much more frequently. That is always up to you and the unique needs of your particular life.
Simply email me to request a session whenever you want or need one.
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