Your spirit guides use certain tools to propel you through the lessons. When you have completed certain lessons and need to be propelled to the next lesson, they start by sending you subtle messages. For example, if your relationship is over, they would send you thoughts and emotions urging you to move on.
Or the would send you random emails or web pages, or a book would open at a random page and say: 'move on'! Yet, if you remain deaf to subtle messages, they would send you random people with a message. If that doesn't help, they may send you a temporary sickness. If that doesn't help, they may send you an accident or a trauma, so finally you would wake up and move on.
There is much manipulation coming from the spirit side. I imagine the spirit side to be similar to the stock exchange market where people would make deals and exchange opportunities and favors. Different spirit guides and angels help each other to move their subjects in needed directions. It is a complicated network of mutual help.