What is the difference between mentors vs. licensed professionals?

Licensed professionals (such as those in mental healthcare & therapy) listen well & provide psychotherapy, but can be expensive if not covered by insurance. Furthermore in therapy, conversations are 1-sided with the patient mostly speaking, to get treatment. Licensed professionals typically do not divulge their own experiences or give "advice" and are supposed to remain professionally detached due to "countertransference" risks (getting emotionally involved and transferring their emotions onto a patient); doing so would go against their professional training. In a therapy session with a licensed professional, usually he/she would ask questions about & listen to your childhood history to help you come to an understanding regarding why you are having your reactions & thinking patterns, and then apply further psychotherapy methodologies to treat you & teach you how to cope (ultimately, you would change your behavior). Sometimes, we don't need a licensed mental health care professional or psychotherapy, but simply a listening ear, a compassionate real human being that talks back and admits to having the same life event issues, and finally one that is able to give you advice on what to do-- because the one that needs changing is not always ourselves but those around us. Sages are mentors who provide 2-way communication through direct advice to you & the opportunity for you to learn from their mistakes or successes through their recounts. Licensed Professionals are meant for psychotherapy and analysis and are more 1-way discussions; they typically do not share their own experiences. However, some people may go this route for mental health related reasons. Unlicensed Sage mentors are not legally allowed to provide medical treatment or psychotherapy. If that is what you think you need, please do not book a mentor on Sagejoy but, instead a Licensed Professional for therapy.

What types of life events is this platform for?

A) Getting Married B) Birth of a new baby C) Relationship issues (excluding domestic abuse, and Prohibited Topics, see Terms of Use) D) Workplace stress (i.e. Co-worker issues & other interpersonal issues) E) Taking care of aging parents F) Passing/illness of a loved one

Is this platform for medical use or only non-medical use?

Sagejoy is for non-medical use and mentorship. Sagejoy is an online marketplace that connects mentors with mentees to facilitate non-medical discussions & brainstorming about life events and its accompanying difficult people. There is no medical therapy or legal advice given by mentors and the usage of the term "therapy" is not allowed for mentors as this is only legally allowed by licensed mental healthcare professionals. However, if needed, licensed professionals in mental counseling & therapy are listed here as well.

Is health insurance accepted?

Unfortunately, at this time health insurance is not accepted by mentors or Licensed Professionals who give therapy. In the future we will look to see if this is possible, but at the current moment it is not. Health insurance programs and reimbursements is complicated, and not everyone has it. Even so, those who have health insurance may not be covered 100% or at all for therapy. With copays, high deductibles to be met, and seeing if the provider is in-network or not, Sagejoy eliminates all of these complications and simplifies the booking and payment process- what you see is what you pay. With Sagejoy, the peer-to-peer platform allows market forces of finding & booking a mentor or Licensed Professional to naturally happen in a financially transparent manner with no surprise bills, that may end up being cheaper for those without insurance or high deductibles.

What happens after the first mentoring session?

Feel free to book more sessions with the same mentor, or speak to other mentors for more opinions. After the session, rate your mentor(s) for greater transparency to help the next mentee. Most people may prefer to schedule one session a week. We recommend meeting with your mentor at minimum once a month. Please discuss with your mentor to see if they are able to accommodate a schedule for you, if needed.

What if I didn't like or agree with what my mentor advised? What if my mentor did not give me advice? Can I get a refund?

Unfortunately, there are no refunds if you do not like, agree with or are not satisfied with the advice your mentor has given. The time a mentor spends with you has passed and payment is owed for the mentor’s time. If the mentor recommends more meetings before they feel comfortable to give you complete advice, please recognize that this may be in your interest as a mentee in order to receive the best possible advice. Mentees are always free, of course, to book an appointment with another Sage Mentor or Licensed Professional going forward if you are unhappy or not satisfied for that or any reason.

Why is the mentorship paid?

Mentors on Sagejoy are financially rewarded for their mentorship time because they incur an opportunity cost ('there is no such thing as a free lunch, someone ultimately pays'), they deserve to be rewarded, and finally to attract quality mentors and mentees that will take the mentorship seriously and with purpose. Besides the fact that everyone is busy these days and 'you get what you pay for', paid mentorship ensures quality and efficient sessions. Furthermore, time is our most precious resource, that once lost, cannot ever be recovered. From the Founder's experience, if left unchecked, venting can go on for longer than expected for everyone, leaving well-intentioned but life event-inexperienced friends & family members emotionally exhausted and possibly vexed. Sagejoy was created with the belief that friends & family members, and all life event mentors should be rewarded for their help upfront because they are giving up their most valuable nonrenewable resource. With free venting or mentorship, perhaps a listener will listen for an hour or two, but after too many hours they may not want to help further, along with a potentially damaged friendship/relationship. With paid mentorship through Sagejoy, a mentee can get objective unabiased advice, control and decide how many hours they need, and take the mentorship more seriously by making a concerted effort to prepare for the meeting and efficiently brainstorm a solution with the mentor, rather than simply venting with no solution in sight. Through Sagejoy, mentees can track better how much time, energy and money they are spending. Paid mentorship also guarantees that gratitude is not forgotten for the help received. Often the person with a life event issue forgets to show appreciation for the time given to them or may never get the chance to repay the favor to the one that helped them. Click here to read why Sagejoy got started.

Are discussions confidential?

Yes, both mentors and mentees must abide by a confidentiality & non-disclosure agreement that is part of the Terms of Use.

What is your cancellation, refund and dispute policy? What if I missed my appointment? What if I cancelled a same-day appointments? What if I end my appointment before the time is up?

We encourage our Mentees, Users, Mentors and Licensed Professionals to try and settle conflicts amongst themselves. If for any reason this fails or if you encounter non-permitted usage on Sagejoy, users must first the "Dispute" button before contacting Sagejoy for assistance here. IMPORTANT: The "Dispute" button is the same button to "Cancel". If the "Dispute" button is not clicked within 2 days of the transaction date, then the booking transaction will be automatically marked as Completed and the funds will be in process of transferring to the Mentor or Licensed Professional's bank. It will be too late for a refund. Similiarly, if the booking transaction is (accidentally) marked as Completed, then then funds have already begun the process of transferring to the Mentor or Licensed Professional's bank. In both cases, the Mentees or Users will no longer be able to obtain a refund. This supersedes the Cancellation & Refund Policy below. Mentees or Users Cancellation & Refund Policy >24 Hours Cancellation

A cancellation is allowed any time up to 24 hours before a confirmed appointment, without penalty, except for our platform commission and Stripe processing fees. A confirmed appointment is when the Mentor or Licensed Professional accepts an appointment request by the Mentee or User (a “Confirmed Appointment”).

<24 Hours Cancellation or a fully missed appointment

If a Mentee or User cancels less than 24 hours before a Confirmed Appointment or completely fully misses an appointment, the first hour is non-refundable. The Mentee or User will be refunded the remainder of the appointment time if more than 1 hour was booked (less Sagejoy Fees and Stripe processing fees).

Exception: Cancelling a same-day Confirmed Appointment

If a Mentee or User cancels a same-day Confirmed Appointment (meaning it was booked, accepted and then cancelled within 24 hours of the appointment), the cancellation fee is a flat fee of $15 or the rate for the first hour booked, whichever is less. For example, if you booked 3 hours at $20/hr, your cancellation fee for a same-day appointment would be $15. On the other hand, if you booked 3 hours at $10/hr, your cancellation fee for a same-day appointment would be $10 instead of $15.

When will I be charged?

You will be charged only if the mentor or Licensed Professional accepts the transaction. The mentor or Licensed Professional needs to accept the transaction within 3 days. If the Mentor or Licensed Professional declines or does not respond, no charge is made. After a meeting or session has been completed, you will have the opportunity to rate your mentor or Licensed Professional and either: a.) Mark the order as completed (which begins the fund transfer to the Mentor or Licensed Professional's bank account) or b) Dispute the transaction (which allows you to ask a refund if permitted under the Terms of Service). Note, only Sagejoy admins can refund a Stripe transaction. If you forget to Mark the order as completed or Dispute the transaction, transactions are automatically marked as completed 2 days after the end of the meeting. After that time, it will be too late for a refund back to the credit card as the process of transmitting funds to the Mentor or Licensed Professional's bank account is underway. Stripe will finish transfer of funds to the Mentor or Licensed Professional's bank account approximately 7-10 days after transactions are marked as completed, depending on bank processing times.

Can I try to book my mentor outside of Sagejoy? Why shouldn't I ?

Users may ask each other questions before a paid booking, however, it is prohibited to share contact information until after a booking has been paid. It is also prohibited to post your contact information (phone numbers, emails, chat IDs, addresses, etc.) publicly on a listing page and your listing will not be approved. Users may not offer or accept payments using any method other than placing an order through Sagejoy.com with the integrated Stripe payment processor. Users who engage or communicate off of Sagejoy for the booking or payment process will have violated and not be under our Terms of Use.​ Users found doing so will be removed from the Sagejoy platform. Off-platform transactions & sharing of contact information prior to payment is not allowed in order to create a safe community and to ensure that you're under our Terms of Use, cancellation & refund policies. Under the Sagejoy cancellation & refund policy, if the mentee misses an appointment without advance appointment cancellation of >24 hours, mentors will still receive payment for the first hour and mentees will be refunded the remaining hours, less the first hour and the 15% Sagejoy commission fee. Furthermore, off-platform transactions & communication means that you won't be able to review your mentor or mentee after your session. Ratings are important for the Sagejoy community in order to create a safe & transparent platform for all. Keeping the booking process and communication within the Sagejoy platform makes it easy to find and reference important booking details like the date of your session, the number of hours paid, and other useful information. We can’t provide these benefits if your reservation isn’t booked and paid for directly through Sagejoy. Paying or communicating outside of Sagejoy also puts you at greater risk of fraud and other security issues. Through Sagejoy, money is released to the mentor after the appointment.

How much is an hourly session? Can I name my own price?

Yes. You may book an existing listing or create a listing requesting a mentor and name your own rate. You may or may not get a mentor reaching out to you to match your rate. If a mentor does reach out, in order to book the mentor, the mentor will need to (a) either adjust their existing listing's price to reflect your offered rate or (b) create a new custom listing for you.

What if I can't afford a mentor or coach listed?

Sagejoy welcomes all races, genders, identities and incomes here at Sagejoy. If you would like a mentor or coach, you may request one under the "Request a Mentor" posting feature and state an hourly rate of your choice and a mentor or coach may reach out to you. Alternatively, you may book directly with a mentor or coach and/or contact them for further questions with the contact button, such as asking if they would accept you on a sliding scale if needed.

Can anyone be a mentee?

Sagejoy welcomes all races, genders, identities and incomes here at Sagejoy. The most important factor is a geunine interest in the services of the mentor or coach. If you would like a mentor or coach, you may request one under the "Request a Mentor" posting feature and state an hourly rate of your choice and a mentor or coach may reach out to you. Alternatively, you may book directly with a mentor or coach and/or contact them for further questions with the contact button.

How much should mentors charge and when do we get paid?

A mentor decides how much they want to charge. During the creation of a listing describing what life events they are experienced in, mentors are able to decide their own hourly rate to compensate themselves for their time & experience. Like other marketplaces, if there is a willing 'buyer', in this case, a mentee, then the mentee would book the mentor for a session. Mentors are able to indicate their availability times and if they accept mentees on a sliding scale in their listings. We use Stripe as the payment processor which takes care of encrypting and storing financial information and sending the funds to your bank account. Sagejoy is not able to view your financial bank information; all financial handling is done through Stripe payment processor. Sagejoy retains 15% of each booking as a transaction fee ("commision fee"), with a minimum transaction fee of $3 per booking (subject to being waived during promotional periods). This fee helps us run the platform and provide you with the best experience and support possible. This amount is deducted from the booking total amount when you accept a booking request. Please make sure that you also included all local taxes (if applicable) and account for any other expenses in your hourly price offered, since Sagejoy does not and is not liable to pay for these. You are also responsible for reporting all income generated from bookings per government. Sagejoy is not responsible for providing a tax return or to account for your personal taxes, if applicable. We may withhold a payment from being transferred to the mentor's bank in the event of a dispute or other event per the Terms of Use. After an appointment is finished, the mentors and mentees have a chance to review each other. The transaction is automatically 'Completed' after 2 days post appointment if the mentee does not mark the transaction as 'Completed'. After the transaction is 'Completed', the earnings appear in a mentor's bank account in approximately 7-10 days, depending on your bank. If there is a dispute or cancellation, processing times will be longer to resolve the issue and/or refund (if approved by Sagejoy). Free Trials- Minimum Transaction Size $0.50 For listings where mentors want to provide free trials, the listings will show as $0.50 cost to the mentee due to there being a minimum transaction size that must be at least equal to Stripe's minimum fee of $0.50 per booking. Sagejoy does not earn anything on these type of listings but it is a great way for mentees to meet new mentors and see if there is a fit, along with helping mentors to collect reviews.

What should I do with a difficult mentee or what if I no longer feel comfortable mentoring?

If at any point in time as a user of this website you feel unsafe, please stop usage immediately. If you feel as a mentor that the mentee is in need of professional help, please terminate services and let them know to see a Licensed Professional or a mental help hotline. Neither the mentor nor Sagejoy is responsible for taking any of these referral actions.

Are there any guidelines for mentoring?

A general guideline for mentors is that mentors be genuinely passionate in helping others, patient and good listeners. This means, letting the mentor fully vent away and discuss their issues. The conversation flow should be organic and does not need a structure, like speaking to a trusted friend. Sagejoy does not dictate or control exactly how each meeting goes, since Sagejoy is simply a service platform that helps connects mentors with mentees, but perhaps your meeting may appear in the following format: (1) Greet the mentee and ask the mentee what is on their mind. (2) Allow the mentee to discuss their issues/experiences. (3) After a mentee finishes letting you know what is their general issue, you will probably have questions - at this point ask your questions so that you better understand their situation. (4) As the conversation flows, you will share your own experiences and what happened to you and what you did and what was the result of your decision(s). (5) The mentee will ask you questions of what they should do, probably posing this question throughout the session. If you feel you do not understand their situation, keep asking questions first. After you have a full grasp, at the end of the session let them know what you honestly think. Remember, honest advice is hard to come by and that is why the mentees are here speaking with you. If you cannot give advice after the first meeting and need more time to discuss in another meeting or think a Licensed Professional that can provide psychotherapy may be better suited for the mentee, let the mentee know honestly as every case is unique. Sagejoy will not penalize a mentor for failing to provide good advice as your precious time has already passed and the mentee benefited from releasing their emotions and frustrations.

Can I communicate with a mentee prior to a paid booking? Can I accept payment or book a mentee outside of the Sagejoy online marketplace platform?

Users may ask each other questions before a paid booking, however, it is prohibited to share contact information until after a booking has been paid. It is also prohibited to post your contact information (phone numbers, emails, chat IDs, addresses, etc.) publicly on a listing page and your listing will not be approved. Users may not offer or accept payments using any method other than placing an order through Sagejoy.com with the integrated Stripe payment processor. Users who engage or communicate off of Sagejoy for the booking or payment process will have violated and not be under our Terms of Use.​ Users found doing so will be removed from the Sagejoy platform. Off-platform transactions & sharing of contact information prior to payment is not allowed in order to create a safe community and to ensure that you're under our Terms of Use, cancellation & refund policies. Under the Sagejoy cancellation & refund policy, if the mentee misses an appointment without advance appointment cancellation of >24 hours, mentors will still receive $15 or the payment for the first hour, whichever is less, and mentees will be refunded the remaining hours, less the first hour and the 15% Sagejoy commission fee. Furthermore, off-platform transactions & communication means that you won't be able to review your mentor or mentee after your session. Ratings are important for the Sagejoy community in order to create a safe & transparent platform for all. Keeping the booking process and communication within the Sagejoy platform makes it easy to find and reference important booking details like the date of your session, the number of hours paid, and other useful information. We can’t provide these benefits if your reservation isn’t booked and paid for directly through Sagejoy. Paying or communicating outside of Sagejoy also puts you at greater risk of fraud and other security issues. Through Sagejoy, money is released to the mentor after a completed booking. See our Terms of Use for full details.

How long do mentors or Licensed Professionals have to approve a booking request?

Mentors have 3 days to approve the meeting request before it auto-expires. If you reject the request or don't accept it within this timeframe, the transaction will be automatically canceled, the mentee will not be charged and you will not get paid.

Why is the Sagejoy commission fee 15%? What is the Stripe fee? Who pays for it?

Usage of the Sagejoy website and booking platform incurs a 15% commission fee (minimum $3 transaction fee per booking, which may be waived under promotional periods) which is automatically processed through Stripe. This fee helps us run the platform and provide you with the best experience and support possible. This fee is calculated from the booking subtotal (hourly rate x # of hours, but excluding payment processor fees and applicable sales taxes). Sagejoy's transaction fee is 15% of the booking subtotal to help cover costs of the platform, operating costs, and to pay for the payment processing fees of Stripe. Therefore, a mentor's or Licensed Professional's take home pay using Stripe as the payment processor would be calculated as their hourly rate minus the 15% Sagejoy transaction fee, less any applicable sales tax in their jurisdiction. Mentors and mentees do not need to worry about calculating the payment processing fees of Stripe (2.9% + 30 cents in the USA) since Sagejoy pays for those, paying from the 15% commission fee. Free Trials- Minimum Transaction Size $0.50 For listings where mentors want to provide free trials, the listings will show as $0.50 cost to the mentee due to there being a minimum transaction size that must be at least equal to Stripe's minimum fee of $0.50 per booking. Sagejoy does not earn anything on these type of listings but it is a great way for mentees to meet new mentors and see if there is a fit, along with helping mentors to collect reviews. More details on fees below, applicable to Mentors or Licensed Professionals: Commission and Payment processing fee Payments in Sagejoy are processed by the payment gateway listed below. Sagejoy will charge a commission depending on the payment gateway. The payment gateway may also charge a fee for each payment, as described below. Stripe For Stripe payments, Sagejoy charges a commission of 15%. The minimum commission per transaction is $3. Stripe's fees are included in this commission.

What if I go over the time of the appointment?

In the event that a booking exceeds the timeframe of the original booking agreement, this is considered a gift and the mentor or Licensed Professional cannot expect to recover payment for excess time. Sagejoy is not liable for collecting payment for excess time outside of the original booking time, under any circumstance. Only the original booking and timeframe is protected by the Terms of Use; as a result, off-transactions or over-exceeding the booking appointment is not recommended. Please be firm and manage your time accordingly. For situations where more time is needed, please ask the menteee to book again so that you can be fairly compensated and protected through the Sagejoy platform.

What if I miss or cancel my appointment with my mentee?

Mentors & Licensed Professionals must try their best to fulfill their meetings after they have confirmed the appointment & time, and may not cancel bookings on a regular basis or without cause. A confirmed appointment is when the mentor or Licensed Professional accepts the appointment request. In order to cancel a confirmed appointment, please contact Sagejoy in order for the Site admin to manually cancel the appointment and refund the mentee. If you miss an appointment or know in advance that you will miss an appointment with your mentee, then please kindly let the mentee know as soon as you are aware to remind them to click "Dispute" in order to start the refund process. A missed appointment will result in you not being paid and a refund back to the mentee. Cancelling or missing excessive bookings will affect Mentors’ and Licensed Professionals' reputation, status and/or ability to continue using the Site. Please refer to the Terms of Use for full details.

How do I offer promotional pricing?

Promotional pricing is great to attract new mentees or to offer a first-time discount for someone interested to speak with you. To offer promotional pricing, simply enter into your listing and adjust the listing price. Afterwards, the listing will be sent to the Sagejoy admin for reapproval. If you would like to end promotional pricing, simply go back into your listing and adjust the listing price back to the original price or to your liking.

What type of people does Sagejoy accept to be listed on the website?

Sagejoy welcomes all races, genders, identities and incomes here at Sagejoy. The most important factor in being listed on Sagejoy is the genuine interest in helping others.