From the beginning of time, Kings, Judges and other high position authorities have sought the wisdom and guidance of prophets, seers, oracles, fortune tellers and soothsayers.
Astrology was the earliest known psychic system; individuals believed that celestial bodies, and their position gave insight to a person’s life and can possibly predict their future. 
Ancient times and the people that lived during this time strongly believed in the existence of unexplained phenomena with the ability of a psychic being a large part of this process.
When a leader of these ancient times considered going to war and even when to reap and sow crops, they consulted the individuals that they believed to know the future, speak to spirits and accurately interpret dreams. Today there are still organization (CIA, FBI and local police) and political leaders that consult with psychics.
“Psychic” is a word of Greek decent meaning “mental” or “of the mind”. It refers to an individual who claim (or others claim them to be) to be able to receive information that is not able to be seen or heard by the human eyes or ears. This is often referred to as “ESP” or Extra-Sensory Perception.
Joseph Banks Rhine is known to be the Father of Modern Parapsychology. He conducted extensive research on ESP.
There will always be skeptics, but the supporters of psychics are heavy hitters and they include Daryl Bem, a Professor of Psychology from Cornell University.
Other definitionS of a psychic include: sensitivity to nonphysical forces, outside of natural knowledge, focus on the human soul (not the physical evidence), and supernatural.
Psychics are ultra-sensitive to non-tangible forces; they are said to be mentally connected to the “spirit world”. Not every psychic bears the same “gift”. Some psychics have the ability to “see” events in their minds eye, before they actually happen. This gift is called “precognition”.
Clairvoyance (a French word that means “clear sight”) is a gift bestowed to a psychic and they have the ability to communicate with individuals that have passed from this world to another.
Psychometry is the gift to “read” feelings and interpret information from holding an object. It is the belief that an energy from the original owner transfers knowledge regarding the history of the particular object. These are the types of psychics that police will seek to help them in solving a crime.
To some extent, we all have some psychic ability (a sixth sense) but it is rarely exercised and encouraged. A true psychic not only has a natural ability to accurately read a non-verbal clue (such as facial expressions and body language), but they are very sensitive to environmental and spiritual energies that an individual emanated (this is called an “aura”). An individual that is in tune with their psychic ability is able to access and interrupt information from a person’s aura.
It is important to note that not all individuals with psychic ability are mediums (those who speak to the dead), but all mediums are considered to be psychic. Some tools of the trade that a psychic may use are runes, crystals (or a crystal ball) or tarot cards. Remember that these tools do not hold any “powers”, but they are powerful in the fact that they help a psychic focus and stay connected to the spirit world.