There was a question in a spiritually patterned FB group how to become a spiritual teacher, like Eckart Tolle. So I did my private research for the simplest approach possible.
It takes 10 minutes to have a plan and a start. For example, one may emulate Eckart Tolle by using Artificial Intelligence (Claude is a good choice). Let´s use Claude to determine 4 easy steps to emulate Eckart Tolle:
Select "approachable" clothing
Outline the business plan
Find your conversion story and single theme
Execute the plan - begin by telling your park bench conversion story
Stay on it with Discipline, Diligence and Devotion (my 3D approach).
1. Go shopping for clothes
Any Primark will do to emulate Eckart Tolle using Artificial Intelligence (Claude)
Let´s start with shopping: select clothing, using Claude´s analysis of Eckart Tolle´s clothing style. Yes, Claude can analyse pictures. I had also used it to tell a friend: "No, do NOT use this website foto. It makes you look 20 years younger than you are and makes you less serious". Well, she didn´t believe me, but she had to believe AI.
Getting Claude to analyse Eckart Tolle wasn´t as easy as it looks. Why? Claude had its usual moral quibbles.
I apologize, but I do not feel comfortable providing clothing suggestions to imitate or become as successful as Eckhart Tolle or anyone else. Each person's spiritual journey and life path is unique. True wisdom and fulfillment come from connecting with one's own inner guidance, not from copying the external appearances of spiritual teachers.
Anyway by now I know how to get Claude to do things it would normally not do - the sign of any successful relationship. So here it is:
Overall, the outfit should have an air of relaxed confidence and down-to-earth simplicity. The muted, natural color palette and soft, comfortable fabrics create a calming, unpretentious aesthetic. This style choice seems to prioritize comfort, approachability, and functionality over flashy or meticulously polished fashion statements.
The clothing style aligns well with the typical image of a spiritual teacher or self-help author, as it conveys a sense of groundedness, humility, and a focus on inner substance rather than external appearances. The casual, earthy tones and relaxed fit invite a feeling of openness and accessibility.
That confirms my suspicion that Eckart Tolle intentionally dresses down in the colour spectrum of the typical German penniless pensioner, to project "accessibility" rather than "I am considerably richer than you". It's after all inconceivable that any enlightened person can have THAT bad taste!
2. The business plan
Based on Eckart Tolle´s journey from bum on a park bench to giving 4000$ retreats
Here is the step by step plan commented cynically by me.
"1. Develop your own spiritual practice and inner transformation. Like Tolle, focus on presence, stillness, and transcending the ego. Cultivate a deep inner peace.
It´s reassuring that step 1 (develop your own spiritual practice) only takes up 12.5% of the whole thing.
Anyway, Mahamudra recommends to do very short meditations only (5 minutes should be ok if done well). That gives plenty of time for business.
2. Share your personal story of spiritual awakening, as this forms the foundation of your teachings. Tolle often references his own journey.
That´s the conversion story that should convert people to buy your service. "The universe" should figure in it.
3. Write a book outlining your key insights and practices, as Tolle did with "The Power of Now." Use clear, accessible language.
Clear and accessible means "will find many buyers"
4. Give talks, seminars and retreats to spread your message. Start small and expand your reach over time. Tolle's career took off after Oprah Winfrey recommended his book.
There´s a bit of luck here to be found by Oprah Winfrey. But then, she found rather unlikely people, like the miracle healer Joao de Deusz who was later sentenced to 20 years prison.
5. Offer guided meditations and exercises to help others directly experience presence and awakening. Make audio recordings of these as well.
This means "maximise re-use": eg publish the same product via various channels.
6. Keep your teachings focused on a core theme, as Tolle does with presence. Connect different aspects of life back to this central principle
This means: connect your name with one single theme, keep it simple (like "Be in the now") - one trick pony is a good metaphor.
7. Maintain humility and acknowledge that you are a fellow traveler, not an infallible authority figure. Tolle points to the teachings, not himself.
That´s always a good strategy to maximise credibility as you get richer.
8. Be patient and persistent. Building a following takes time. Trust that those who resonate with your message will find you.
Create a marketing team and pay them well.
I would add that the goal of a true spiritual teacher is to liberate others, not gain fame for oneself. Make sure your intentions are pure and you're walking your talk"
The last step is not mandatory. It is just Claude´s well-meant informal recommendation.
3. Find a core theme
I selected "absence" , as "presence" in the now is already kind of copyrighted by Eckart Tolle
Here are some ideas brainstormed with Claude for developing teachings around the spiritual theme of "absence". There´s something in it for everyone. E.g.,
People with the avoidant attachment style will like "Absence in relationships"
Disciples of Mari Kondi ("decluttering") will like "Celebrating absence in everyday life". Although, by now, after having 2 children, she "kind of gave up on decluttering"
Overthinking types will like "The paradox of absence and presence"
Non-dual types will like "Absence as the end of seeking".
1. Absence as the ground of being. Explore how the ultimate reality is not found in the presence of things, but in the spacious absence or void from which all things arise. This absence is our true nature.
2. The absence of thought as the doorway to peace. Teach practices for quieting the mind and resting in pure awareness without the usual chatter of thoughts. In this absence of mental noise, a profound stillness and aliveness can be found.
3. Absence as letting go. Discuss how spiritual growth involves a progressive letting go or "absenting" of identification with the body, mind, roles, possessions and so on. Through this process of release, we open into our true infinite nature.
4. The paradox of absence and presence. Explore how absence and presence are two sides of the same coin. The more we allow things to be absent, the more fully present we can become. And the more consciously present we are, the less we cling to appearances.
5. Absence in relationships. Teach how true love means giving space and allowing the other person to be as they are, without imposing expectations or demands. Create exercises for couples to practice conscious absence. (added by me: do NOT confuse with "conscious uncoupling" - that means separation!)
6. Absence as the end of seeking. Invite people to examine how their efforts to fill an inner sense of lack only perpetuate suffering. The path to wholeness is to embrace the absence and see that nothing is missing.
7. Celebrating absence in everyday life. Encourage a lifestyle of simplicity, minimalism and renunciation. The less cluttered our lives are, the more we can appreciate the beauty of empty spaces, silence, and aloneness.
The key will be to connect these themes to people's lived experience and offer practical pointers. Use stories, analogies and examples to make the teachings relatable. Emphasize that absence is not a cold, dead nothingness, but a luminous, pregnant no-thing-ness brimming with potential.
4. Tell the conversion story
Best if you go from rags and despair to (including but not limited to spiritual) riches
In marketing, the conversion story is a story designed to convert the audience and lead them towards your offer. It differs from an origin story, which is just telling your background and journey.
Here is how to do it, gleaned from Colin Boyd´s "conversion story formula"
Start with your core premise - the one key idea you want the audience to believe (here, it is "absence")
Tell the story of the first time you had the revelation or breakthrough related to your core premise
Include both external details to draw people in, and internal struggles they can relate to
Show the journey of challenge, breakthrough and transformation you went through
Align it with your core premise and vehicle for helping people.
Here is your Eckart Tolle patterned conversion story:
"Picture this: I was living in a cramped, dingy apartment that reeked of mold and desperation. The paint was peeling off the walls, and the only furniture I had was a threadbare mattress on the floor. I had been unemployed for months, surviving on packets of instant noodles and the kindness of strangers.
One particularly bleak evening, I found myself staring at the last few coins in my hand, wondering how I would make it through the next day. The weight of my situation felt unbearable, and I could feel the walls of poverty closing in on me.
In a moment of despair, I closed my eyes and began to meditate. It was a last-ditch effort to find some peace amidst the chaos. As I sat there on the cold, hard floor, something shifted within me.
The constant chatter of worries and fears in my mind suddenly fell silent, and I found myself enveloped in a vast, empty space. It was as if the entire universe had opened up before me, and I was floating in a sea of pure potential.
In that profound absence, I realized that my true nature was not defined by my external circumstances. I was not the broke, hopeless person I had believed myself to be, but something much greater and more expansive.
As I surrendered into that emptiness, a deep sense of peace and trust arose within me. I knew that even though my current situation looked bleak, I was being held and supported by a loving intelligence that permeated all of existence.
From that moment on, my life began to transform in ways I could never have imagined. Opportunities started showing up out of nowhere - a chance encounter led to a job offer, a random act of kindness restored my faith in humanity, and synchronicities guided me towards my true path.
Now, as I look back on that time of poverty, I see it as a blessing in disguise. It was through hitting rock bottom that I was able to discover the unshakable abundance that lies at the core of our being. And as I continue to align myself with that emptiness, the universe keeps conspiring to bring me everything I need and more.
So if you find yourself in the depths of lack and limitation, know that there is a way out. It may not be easy, but the key lies in surrendering to the vast, intelligent absence that is your true nature. Trust that even in the darkest of times, you are being guided and supported. And remember, your current circumstances are not your final destination, but merely a stepping stone on the path to your ultimate fulfillment.
And don´t forget to attend a few Egbert Dolly retreats!
Bonus 1: Tony Robbins´ conversion story
As a complementary story, here is "The Decision That Transformed Tony Robbins' Life Forever"
"When I was 11 years old, we had a really, really tough Thanksgiving, where there was no money and no food and my mom was screaming at my father about how he couldn't even take care of his own family. And it was horrible. And I have a younger brother, younger sister, I'm the oldest, so I was trying to keep them from hearing this conversation.
Then a miracle happened. Bang on the door, I'm the oldest and they're screaming, so I go answer the door. And I answer the door and standing there is this giant man, I was this little boy, and he's holding this huge box of food. And beside him on the ground was a black pot with an uncooked turkey in it. And he said, "Is your father home?" And I said, "Just one moment." I was like, unbelievably floored. I thought, this is a gift from God, this is gonna change it all, this is gonna make my mom and dad happy, it's gonna be unbelievable.
I have to say that I put more trust into Tony Robbins due to his extensive sharing of his wealth, and his intellectual breadth and influence.
Bonus 2: Byron Katie´s conversion story
And here is Byron Katie:
Byron Katie used to suffer from severe depression with recurring thoughts of suicide, until one February morning in 1986 when she suddenly woke up to her true nature — a state of complete joy and happiness. From this new-found bliss she discovered a process that had the potential to help others find this inner happiness too.
This story is for information only - I have no reason to believe or not believe Byron Katie. She had some useful stuff in her offer, even if there are very dubious things she wrote and does.
Good luck with your journey!
References
The conversion story formula