How to Prepare for Your Off-Site Feng Shui Consultation with Stephanie Roberts www.fastfengshui.com
Consultation Overview: How it Works Step 1: Preparation (you do) For a long-distance consultation, I rely on the information you provide to analyze the space/ property and develop recommendations for improvements and corrections. This includes: A COMPLETED QUESTIONNAIRE (pages 2-6; questions will also be emailed to you) A MAP OF YOUR PROPERTY (see page 6) A DETAILED FLOOR PLAN of your home (page 7) INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR PHOTOGRAPHS of your home (see checklist on page 9) Instructions for how to send me this information are provided on page 10. When I receive your information, I will contact you to schedule our consultation. I can usually schedule a consultation within one week of receiving your package. It is your responsibility to call me on the scheduled day and time. Step 2. Analysis (I do) Before our consultation I will review your documentation looking both for areas of strength and for weaknesses and potential problem areas to be addressed or corrected and prepare my recommendations. Step 3. Discussion (we do together) During our phone consultation I will discuss my findings and recommendations with you, ask for additional information as needed, and answer any questions you may have. Please allow at least an hour to an hour and a half for our consultation, have a copy of your floor plan available, and be prepared to take notes. Step 4. Follow-through (you do) After our consultation, I will send you (by email) a summary of the key action steps that we have agreed deserve your priority attention. You should try to accomplish at least one of these items within 72 hours of the consultation if at all possible. Step 5. Follow-up (I do) Your consultation fee includes a follow-up call from me approximately two weeks after the consultation (or at whatever interval best suits you) to see how things are going. 2
QUESTIONNAIRE For your convenience, a text version of these questions will be emailed to you, so you can copy them into a new document on your computer and type in your answers. Name: Address: Home phone: Email: Who lives here? List all residents, including relationship (spouse, daughter, roommate, etc.) and date of birth: name relationship date of birth Along with your photographs and floorplan, your answers to the following questions will help me provide customized feng shui advice. There are no right or wrong answers, and short answers are fine so long as your key issues and concerns are noted. Skip any questions that are not relevant to your situation. If this consultation includes a spouse/partner, answer individually wherever appropriate (for example, you may have different career issues). 1. Do you rent or own? 2. What (if anything) do you know about the prior occupants and why they sold/moved? 3. What year was your home built (if you know)? 4. If your home includes a later addition, when was it constructed? Be sure to mark the addition clearly on your floor plan. 5. Have you made or do you plan any structural renovations/additions? (please specify) 6. Are there any structural or systems problems in your home (foundation, plumbing, electric, roof, etc.)? (please specify) 7. What do you like or not like about your neighborhood? 8. What do you like best about your home? 9. What room(s) do you and your family spend most of your time in? 3
10. Are there any rooms in the house that you don t use? Why? 11. Is there anything about your home that you are not happy with? 12. What three words best describe your home as you experience living in it now? (i.e., happy, chaotic, cluttered, serene, comfortable, uninspiring, cozy, etc.) 13. How would you like to experience living in this home? 14. Do you have any prior experience with feng shui (i.e., read some books, took a class, previous consultation, etc.)? If so, which methods/schools are you familiar with? 15. If you ve had a previous feng shui consultation, what did you like or not like about that experience? 16. What are your expectations/hopes for this consultation? Health (comment as appropriate) 17. Does anyone in the family have a chronic health problem or serious illness? 18. Does anyone in the family frequently experience stress, poor sleep, or depression? 19. Is weight, fitness or poor nutrition an issue for anyone? 20. Are you planning to or trying to get pregnant? 21. Do you have any other health concerns? Money 22. Who are the main wage earners of the household, and what kind of work do they do? 23. How would you describe your financial situation since moving into this house (i.e., excellent, comfortable, getting by, tight, scary)? 24. Does this represent a significant change from the financial situation you had while living in your previous home? If so, was the change an improvement or a decline in your finances? 25. If your money situation is not as good as you d like, what is the core of the problem? (i.e., lack of income, unexpected or uncontrolled expenses, inability to save, etc.) Career 26. Are you (and/or your spouse/partner) happy with your career? If not, please briefly describe any problems, aspirations, or planned changes (i.e., starting a part-time home-based business, looking for a new job, etc.): 27. Do you get appropriate recognition, support, and opportunities at work, or do you feel overlooked in any of these areas? 4
28. If you didn t need to work for money, and could do whatever work you wanted, what would that be? 29. Do you have a home office? If so, what is it used for (i.e., primary place of business, part-time business, work you bring home, household bill-paying, etc.)? 30. Do you meet with clients in your home office? 31. Are you satisfied with how your home office is working for you? (i.e., are you comfortable, focused, and productive there?) Learning & Self-Cultivation 32. If there are students in your household, are they doing well in school? 33. Is anyone in the family involved in or planning further education of any kind? If so, is this a career-based decision, or personal interest? 34. Do you feel you need more direction or clarity in any area of your life? (specify) 35. Do you spend some time alone every day for meditation, prayer, or quiet peacefulness and contemplation? Romance 36. What is your romantic/partnership status? (i.e., married, divorced, happily single, single and dating, etc.) 37. Has this status changed in the past year or so (or since moving into this home)? 38. If you are married/partnered, what aspect of your relationship is strongest, and what most needs strengthening? 39. Do you feel sufficiently appreciated in your relationship? 40. What, if any, improvement or change would you like to see in your love life? Other (please comment as appropriate) 41. Are you satisfied with your community involvement? 42. Are you satisfied with your creative expression (artistic or other)? 43. Is lack of inspiration or motivation a problem in any way? 44. Are you satisfied with the amount of travel that you do (business and/or leisure)? 45. Do you have time to play, or is your time consumed by work and responsibilities? 46. If you could participate in one new hobby or activity, what would it be? 47. What (if anything) do family members argue about, and are there any specific areas of the house where these conflicts tend to happen? 5
48. Are you experiencing any problems with your neighbors? (specify) 49. Have you had any legal problems recently? (specify) 50. Overall, what area or aspect of your life gives you the greatest sense of fulfillment? 51. What areas or aspects of your life do you most want to improve? 52. If you could experience just one change as a result of feng shui, what would you like that to be? For an apartment: PROPERTY MAP Provide a building diagram showing the location of your unit within the overall structure. For a townhouse: Provide a diagram of the development (if available) or of your street/block, showing the location of your unit. For a house: Provide a diagram of your property, including: Shape and boundaries of your lot Location and positioning of the house on the lot Location of street and driveway Slope of the land, if not flat (also indicate if slope is gentle or steep) For ALL locations: Compass orientation of the building (if known): either a compass reading taken at the front door, looking out, OR accurate indication of North (show with arrow) Any water features (pond, swimming pool, stream) on or neighboring your property Any other major landscaping or structural features on or near the property, such as a radio tower, much taller/larger building next door, heavy-traffic roads, etc. If there is a church, hospital, or other large, non-residential structure visible from your home, note approx. distance ( church ½ block away ) with an arrow indicating direction. 6
FLOOR PLAN An accurate floor plan of your entire home is essential to your consultation. If you have a professional floor plan or layout diagram available, you will need to add the location of major pieces of furniture (see example on the next page). If you do not have a professional plan available and need to create one of your own, this is best done on ¼ graph paper. Work in pencil so you can correct any mistakes, then go over the final version with a black medium-point pen. Computer-generated diagrams are acceptable only if they have been created with home-design software. Don t worry about being accurate to the inch, but do be sure that all architectural features are placed accurately, that the scale is consistent throughout, and that the following features are included: All exterior and interior walls All doors, including hinged side and which way they open All windows Stairs Fireplace(s) if any All large pieces of furniture and built-ins Kitchen and bathroom fixtures Major appliances (stove, refrigerator, TV, A/C unit, etc.) Location of fusebox and electric meter Who sleeps in which bedrooms Also note on your floor plan any windows or doors that don t open easily, and any other structural or maintenance problems. DO NOT SEND ME YOUR ONLY COPY OF THIS ANNOTATED FLOOR PLAN Keep a copy for yourself, and have it available at the time of our consultation. 7
Your floor plan should look something like this... 8
PHOTOGRAPHS Provide photographs of your property and home, using this checklist as a guide. Please DO NOT CLEAN UP excessively before taking photographs I want to see your home as it is on a typical day for you... not the way it looks when you tidy up for company. Very important: a picture of YOU and (if applicable) YOUR FAMILY Property Front, back, and side yards Garden, if you ve got one View of the property/house from the street View of your street in either direction Anything else of interest: major landscaping features, neighboring structures, etc. Home Exterior Front, back, and sides of the house View looking out from the front door View looking out from the back door Porches and/or patios...for an apartment: The front of your building from across the street View looking out from the building entrance What you see outside your living room, kitchen, and bedroom windows Home Interior View looking in from the front door Any features/furnishings of the entry not shown in the photo looking in from the door. View facing in from any other entry you use often (such as door from garage) All hallways, plus stairs if you ve got em All rooms (including bathrooms): the view looking in from the door and at least one other perspective to ensure that I see all areas of the room For bedrooms, include the view of what you see from the bed Main closets and storage areas: bedroom, pantry, foyer, etc. Any major pieces of artwork in the living room, office, bedroom (if not clearly visible in other shots of those rooms) Kitchen: be sure to include counters/stove/eating area It s better to send me too many pictures than too few. BE SURE TO LABEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHS so I will know what I am looking at 9
Are digital photos okay? Although I prefer to work from prints, I can accept digital photos as jpegs on a CD (PC format, not Mac). Please create a separate folder for each main room/area (i.e., master bedroom kitchen upstairs hall and guest bath ). May I send you a videotape instead of photographs? Sorry, no. I ve tried to work from video in the past, and it is not adequate for this purpose. I d like to have my consultation as soon as possible. Can I send you my information by email, including digital photos? Sending all this all by email will be difficult, and will not guarantee a faster consultation. If you send your information to me by Priority Mail, and let me know by email that your package is on the way, I can plan ahead and have time available for review and preparation when your package arrives. Have fun with this process. I know it s a lot of questions and prep work on your end, but in addition to providing me with the information that I need, it also helps to focus your intention and energy. Our consultation really begins when you begin to think about your objectives and document your home. Be alert for coincidences or synchronicities that may occur as you prepare this information... sometimes your own intention to initiate change through feng shui can trigger a shift in energy If you have any questions about how to prepare your information, just ask. My email address is: Stephanie@FastFengShui.com I look forward to working with you 10
May I send you a videotape instead of photographs? Sorry, no. I ve tried to work from video in the past, and it is not adequate for this purpose. Are digital photos okay? Yes. Digital photos are fine. Just upload your photos to an online album service, such as ofoto.com or shutterfly.com, and send me an email with a link to your album. DELIVERY INSTRUCTIONS You may either send me your info in hard copy by Priority Mail, or deliver it in digital format via email, whichever is convenient for you. By mail: Let me know that you plan to mail me a package, and I will provide my mailing address by email. Digital submission: If you wish to submit your info digitally, you will need to: 1) Upload your photos to the online album service of your choice 2) Provide a link to your album page by email 3) Email your answers to the questionnaire (MS Word or text format) 4) Fax your floor plan to me at: (808) 891-0065 Depending on the size of your home, you may need to split your floor plan onto more than one page for faxing. I would rather piece several pages together than try to work from a floor plan reduced beyond legibility so it fits on one page. Have fun with this process. I know it s a lot of questions and prep work on your end, but in addition to providing me with the information that I need, it also helps to focus your intention and energy. Our consultation really begins when you begin to think about your objectives and document your home. Be alert for coincidences or synchronicities that may occur as you prepare this information... sometimes your own intention to initiate change through feng shui can trigger a shift in energy If you have any questions about how to prepare your information, just ask. My email address is: Stephanie@FastFengShui.com I look forward to working with you 10