You’re a manager, a security personnel-head or a property-owner going about your usual business, when one fateful day you receive an e-mail or a phone call from someone representing a paranormal research group.

The person on the other end of the line tells you they have learned that you own (or are responsible for) a piece of property that is rumoured to boast some sort of mysterious, perhaps even ghostly activity. They ask if you would be willing to grant their team free access to investigate the property-in-question in an attempt to verify the tales that are associated with that area.

BEFORE YOU SAY ‘NO’

Your first instinct is to brush this person off. You’ve seen or heard about “those ghost shows” on TV and in the media and they’re hard to believe. You have better things to worry about than letting some thrill seekers into your building to prove to themselves and to the Internet how brave they are by tramping around your place in the dark. Half of them startle at the sound of a floorboard creaking and turn-tail anyway, right? What do you stand to gain if you let these people in?

Your demeanour suddenly stiffens. Your voice drops an octave and adopts a stern, take-no-guff tone. Your forefinger hovers over the ‘Delete’ key.

But wait.

Please.

Before you delete that e-mail; before you tell this person “No,” outright, please take a moment to consider this: What can you stand to gain if you let these people in?

It depends entirely on the kind of people we’re talking about, here.

The team that has just reached out to you may very well be a respectful, responsible and reputable one. Incredibly, some groups won’t think twice but to trespass and break-and-enter to see their nocturnal thrills realized. (And if the location is furnished or is awaiting renovations, how will these same people treat those components?) The group getting in touch with you is making a good start by asking permission, alone! Continue Reading