As a seeker of truth, I have also sought the advice and guidance of many different spiritual readers and healers.
I can define three categories of readers from my encounters and second-hand experiences:
The first group I've experienced are those so-called 'fake' readers who are doing this work for all the wrong reasons. These often appear at the most vulnerable times when one's spiritual energy is lower as a reflection of the saying 'your vibe attracts your tribe'. But this isn't always the case. Still, these do prey and take advantage like vultures. They may 'channel' lower density astral spirits and entities. You leave a session feeling more lost and hopeless (out of alignment).
Then there are readers who are truly seeing visions and receiving guidance but, and this is huge, they are not working for your higher interest. They want to keep you small and their ego comes into the picture. The result is that you may know glimmers of the story but still very confused about your path.These often come in times that are very emotionally turbulent where your self-esteem has been shot in some way. They are driven by material inclinations more than spiritual ones that may be helped along by astral spirits. You leave a session feeling less in your power.
The last category is for a very select group of readers who work in high integrity. They want to see you reach your goals but also make sure you remember your real potential. They truly want to see you shine and any visions they receive are punctuated with the hope and possibility of them being realised. They appear in times of crisis and turning points, when your soul is crying out for attention and your heart requires reassurance in the midst of change. These are connected to higher beings and flow with guidance. You feel lighter after connecting with them and spiritually supported.
Of course, the last group are the readers we would hope to attract all the time into our lives. To connect with them, we must first open the line to our own soul and grow in awareness and strength with our energy and our self. As we harness the power of our energetic 'feelers', we are able to tune into truth. This translates to many other instances in our lives.
For ultimately, a reader or spiritual advisor serves as a guide, a reflection and reminder of the truth within.