Although some psychics can receive information instantly, others use tools to help them go into a trance. Just as a hypnotist may use a strobe light or a spiraling disk to encourage the subject's eyes to go out of focus, a psychic may use objects like a crystal ball, tea leaves, swirling water, smoke, or a burning candle to help induce a hypnotic trance.

As a psychic begins her work, she may go through a ritual, which allows her to relax gradually and deepen her trance. She has given herself the suggestion that she will receive the necessary information from the universal mind, although she may use different terminology.

Other psychics may use sounds, such as running water, nature sounds, music, bells, gongs, or wind chimes, to help induce a trance. Others use smells like burning incense, candles, or perfume, which transport them into a psychic trance. A kinesthetic reader will use the touch of an object or a person to produce the same effect. Massage therapists, who are often very intuitive, receive readings on their clients as they give them a massage. People learning massage or a hands-on healing technique such as Reiki often have spontaneous and unexpected psychic experiences, which may catch the beginning practitioner totally off guard.

Some psychics read tarot or other kinds of cards. There may be a set of guidelines for the use of specific cards, but many psychics get their own impressions, often touching the client and reading his vibrations. A dowser receives his information from the movement of the stick, the pendulum, the rods, or the sensations in his fingers. When the information he is imaging is correct, a psychic may feel a sensation in his head, stomach, feet, or third eye (in the center of the forehead). A psychic may write, sketch, or doodle to help maintain his trance.