Tarot Tips: Reading for First Time Querents
Published: Sun, 11/01/15
One of the major differences between a conventional Tarot Reading and... You're receiving this email
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![]() Newsletter of The Tarot School
http://TarotSchool.com ISSN: 1529-0565 Vol. 7 #10 / November 1, 2015
In this Issue: - Welcome
- Tarot Tip: Reading for First Time Querents
- Tarot School Aphorism
- What's Gnu?
- PsychWise: How To Turn a Relationship Reading into a Tarot Counseling Session - Best Practices: 5 Signs You Are Ready to Read Professionally
- Upcoming Events Welcome to a new issue of Tarot Tips!
And a special welcome to our new subscribers.
![]() We do our best to live with gratitude consciousness all year long, but if there's such a thing as an "official" time to express that gratitude publicly, it's November (at least here in the U.S.). Although we're not big "jump-on-the-bandwagon" folks, there's never a bad time for gratitude so we'd like to take this opportunity to let you know that we truly appreciate your presence in our lives and support of our work. Knowing that we can make a positive difference in people's lives, no matter how small, is the big WHY behind everything we do. So thank you for welcoming us into your inbox, and perhaps even into your heart! That said, here's a bit about this issue… Do you remember the first time you had a tarot reading? What was it like for you? As the interest and popularity of tarot increases, more and more people are curious about readings, which is good news for practitioners! This issue discusses recommendations on dealing with first time querents. Dr. G's column enlightens us on the differences between a conventional reading and a tarot counseling session, and the Best Practices Column looks at signs that you are ready to read professionally. And one more thing...
We had a great turnout for our Advanced Elemental Array Intensive, which is being held over the phone and online! Although 3 of the 8 classes have already been held, we're recording everything. Listening to the mp3s is a popular way to get the material on your own time table -- so you can still register if you'd like to find out why we think this is some of our very best work! Yours truly on the tarot journey,
Ruth Ann, Wald, Gina & Elinor
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READING FOR FIRST TIME QUERENTS
At some point in time everyone is new to something. First-timer expectations for tarot readings are often typical if not stereotypical, making it challenging to figure out how to direct a reading for new querents. New querents come to us in a variety of ways, from hearing about a reading from an acquaintance to searching for a good reader online. There is a lot of information available on how to do readings, but we will focus on “care” in starting and ending a tarot reading session for those who have never had one before. Here are some suggestions for a seamless and positive experience for a “virgin” querent. 1) Explain your reading style. 2) Give a brief background of your area of expertise. 3) Ask what they know or have heard about tarot readings. 4) Prepare a sheet with spread options for their selection. 5) Allow them to explain in their own words what they would like the session to accomplish. 6) Assist with formulating a proper question. 7) Address any anxiety through breathing exercises or a small ritual such as prayer or appealing to whatever makes them at ease spiritually. 8) Invite them to actively participate by shuffling the deck or reviewing the cards visually and choosing a card that appeals to them at the time. 9) Offer paper for note taking or a recording of the session for later review. 10) Ask for instant feedback to ensure the concerns at hand have been addressed. Many of the items above can be taken care of prior to the session time. It may also be useful to arrange a follow-up appointment or other way of staying in touch. Remember you have a chance with every new reading for a positive interaction that sets the querent's expectation for other readers in the future. Make it your business to create a good impression -- the next reader will thank you for it! Tarot School Aphorism
![]() ![]() ONLINE ACCESS TO CLASSES AND CALLS!
Phone calls are becoming a thing of the past.
While we still enjoy talking to folks on the phone, it's no longer the best way to hold our group conversations. We've tried the online interface with our current Advanced Elemental Array Intensive and it's working great! So now it's time to try it with our monthly free Readers Studio Teleconferences, too. The next one will be on November 22nd, and you'll get the access instructions when you sign up at: http://tarotschool.com/RSTC.html Of course, you can still call in on your phone. You'll get the dial-in number for that as well! PsychWise – Tarot & Psychology Q & A
with Elinor Greenberg, PhD, CGP, CPTR HOW TO TURN A RELATIONSHIP READING INTO A TAROT COUNSELING SESSION ![]() QUESTION: I am an experienced Tarot reader and have heard that you do “Tarot Counseling,” but I am not sure how it differs from regular Tarot reading. Could you give me some tips and a concrete example? ANSWER: One of the major differences between a conventional Tarot reading
and a Tarot Counseling session is that in Tarot Counseling (as I do it) a good deal of time is spent getting to know the querent before the spread is chosen and the reading is done. In the following sections I give some examples of questions that I might ask before doing a relationship reading in a Tarot Counseling session. I. GATHER INFORMATION Get pertinent background information In order to put the querent’s question in context, it is important to get some basic background information about the querent and their situation. For example, when someone comes to me for a reading about a relationship problem, I have found it useful to ask some questions about the relationship before beginning to lay out the spread. If a querent is reluctant to answer personal questions, it will be difficult to do a truly informed Tarot Counseling reading. If that were the case, I would then stick to my regular style of reading and simply add whatever elements of Tarot Counseling seem to fit the particular situation and were acceptable to my querent. Some useful relationship questions: 1. How long have you been married or in this relationship? 2. How old are you and how old is your mate? 3. Do you have any children? 4. How old are they? 5. Do they live with you? 6. Does anyone else live with you? 7. Were you or your mate ever married or in a long-term live-in relationship before? 8. How has your relationship changed over the time you have been together? Ask questions that shed light on the relationship issue Therapists know that asking the right questions can help clients think more clearly about their issues. It will also help you choose the correct spread for your querent’s concerns and better understand how to interpret the cards that appear. Below are some questions that I have found useful for relationship readings. Of course, you can make up others that are more pertinent to your querent’s issues, if these don’t fit the situation. There is no "one size fits all" way to do this. The best rule is to be guided by what your client finds acceptable and useful. 1. What is going on in your relationship that concerns you? 2. Why did you choose to have a reading about it now? 3. Have you spoken to your mate about your feelings? 4. Has your mate brought up this issue with you? 5. How have you tried to resolve it? 6. Have you ever had this issue with anyone else in the past? Often people will live with a problem for a long time before coming for a reading. Question 2,“Why now?” encourages the querent to think about what, if anything, has changed recently for the worse. Questions 3 and 4 help me assess the couple’s level of communication. Question 5 gives me an idea of how resourceful the person has been and what has not worked. Question 6 is aimed at putting the issue in a larger context than the present relationship. If the querent has had this issue before, it is likely to have less to do with the querent’s mate and more to do with the querent’s approach to relationships. II. IDENTIFY THE UNDERLYING EMOTIONAL ISSUES Every serious question relates to emotional issues as well as practical ones. As you ask the above questions, pay particular attention to whatever your querent seems to feel most strongly about. People tend to signal when something is of emotional concern by looking and sounding anxious, angry or sad. Ideally you want to know what they are feeling about their situation that led them to ask their question. This will help you identify and understand the deeper emotional issues from which their question springs. You can use this information to make sure that your guidance from the reading specifically relates to the issues that are emotionally meaningful to your querent. Tarot Counseling works best when the reader is creative and avoids using generic spread positions and interpretations that might fit anyone. III. HELP QUERENTS REPHRASE THEIR QUESTION One of my Tarot Counseling Mottos is: A good question helps you shape your future. It does not abandon you to your fate. What I mean by this is that the Tarot Counselor needs to help the querent change their question when necessary so that it focuses on what the querent needs to learn from the situation and not solely on what will or will not happen. Avoid all questions that can be answered by “yes” or ‘no.” An Example: Ms. A Imagine that Ms. A comes for a reading. She is forty-two years old, she and her husband have been married for five years, and they have no children. She says that nothing is seriously wrong with her marriage, but that as time goes on she and her husband seem to have less and less to say to one another. They don’t fight, but they don’t have sex very often either. Ms. A wants to know: “Did I make a mistake marrying him?” I suggest that there are other more helpful questions that she could ask, such as: “What do I need to learn right now to energize my marriage?” or “What do I need to learn now to make my relationship with my husband more exciting for both of us?” Ms. A decided on the first one. When I asked Ms. A if she had talked about her concerns with her husband, it soon became apparent that both she and her husband avoided talking about anything that could give rise to negative feelings. Ms. A appeared somewhat emotionally detached as she spoke to me. This tendency to try and avoid directly expressing negative emotions was also confirmed by the fact that Ms. A preferred to come to a Tarot reader with her marital problems than to speak to her husband directly. In my opinion the underlying issues here are (1) fear of experiencing and expressing negative emotions, (2) difficulties with confrontation, and (3) communication problems. I knew from this that I needed to build into Ms. A’s spread some positions that dealt with these issues. IV. DESIGN AN APPROPRIATE SPREAD In Tarot Counseling the spread is designed or modified to meet querents’ specific needs. I like to build three levels of guidance into each spread. Level 1: The first level addresses what the querent needs to learn in order to improve the specific situation he or she came for a reading about. Level 2: The second level relates to what the querent needs to learn more generally about that life issue; including, perhaps, what the querent needs to learn from the past. Level 3: The third level relates to how this issue can be used to help the querent evolve, either psychologically or spiritually. In addition, I like to add card positions that specifically suggest positive changes that the querent can make in his or her attitude or behavior. Ms. A’s Spread: I asked Ms. A to repeat her question “What do I need to learn right now to energize my marriage?” to herself as she shuffled the cards. I used a 6-card spread for Ms. A. I had her cut the deck into three parts, put it back together, and draw five cards. I laid out Card 1 in the center with Card 2 crossing it horizontally (like the center of a Celtic Cross). I placed Card 3 above the first two cards. Then I placed Card 4 to their right and Card 5 to their left. Cards 1,2, and 3 represent the three levels and Cards 4 and 5 the helpful changes that Ms. A needs to make. After the first 5 cards were read, I turned over the deck and placed the bottom card (Card 6) underneath the crossed cards. It represents the foundation of the issue. 3 5 1 and 2 4 6 Ms. A’s cards and the meaning that I assigned to the various spread positions based on what I learned about her from my questions: Card 1: What do I need to learn about energizing my marriage right now? = Ace of Cups Card 2: What is the larger issue that this is a part of? = Key 16 The Tower Card 3: What is the spiritual or psychological issue I need to learn about in order to evolve? = Knight of Swords Card 4: What can I learn right now that can help me communicate negative feelings to my husband in a way that is helpful to my marriage? = Key 14 Temperance Card 5: What can I learn about confrontations right now that would be useful for energizing my marriage in a helpful way? = Key 7 The Chariot reversed Card 6: What is underneath these issues? = 9 of Cups I interpreted this as follows: Ace of Cups: Ms. A needs to learn to actively offer love to her husband right now. This will immediately energize her relationship with her husband (Card 1). Key 16 The Tower: The larger issue is the need to totally shake up their relationship (Card 2). They have become too complacent; the old structure is too confining, and this is why they have become bored. Knight of Swords: The spiritual and psychological issue related to Ms. A’s evolution has to do with being willing to take action and fight for causes she believes in (Card 3). Ms. A tends to see herself as the damsel in distress who needs rescuing and not as the knight who charges in and makes important things happen. Her answers to my previous questions about her past relationships confirmed this. Ms. A, had been married twice previously and each time when important issues arose, she left the marriages instead of fighting to change them. Key 14 Temperance: The Temperance card suggests that in order to communicate negative feelings in a way that is useful to her marriage (Card 4), Ms. A needs to balance anything negative that she says by being sure to say many positive things as well. Psychological studies have found that it takes five positive statements to balance one criticism! It is also important for her to understand that she can communicate something negative without going to extremes. This is particularly important for Ms. A to know because she said that as a child she had witnessed ugly fights between her parents in which each said nasty things to the other in order to hurt the other person as much as possible. Ms. A had vowed to herself that she would never do that when she was married. This led Ms. A to be reluctant to experience and express any negative emotions. Key 7 The Chariot reversed: The Chariot reversed in the confrontation position (Card 5) suggests that Ms. A needs to learn that just because she and her husband have a confrontation, it doesn’t mean that anyone has to leave. Ms. A said that she found this information particularly useful because she realized that she had always assumed confrontations led to divorce. After her parents divorced when she was twelve, she had unconsciously associated all confrontations with their divorce and tried to avoid them whenever possible. This was ironic because in Ms. A’s case, not confronting appropriately had led to her divorces. 9 of Cups: Underneath all of these issues (Card 6) are the facts that Ms. A is very emotionally comfortable in this relationship and has most of the things in life that she wants. She and her husband basically get along really well. As a result, she has been reluctant to jeopardize this by speaking up about the things she would like to change. V. ASK THE QUERENT FOR FEEDBACK It is important to check with the querent that your spread positions and your interpretations address the querent’s concerns. As you read the cards, stop and ask for feedback about what you are saying: “Does this fit your understanding?” “Is this helpful?” “What does this card suggest to you?” Give the querent time to think about and respond to what you are saying. The reading has more impact when the person is encouraged to participate and shape what goes on. The basic idea is to start a process of thought going that can lead to an increase in the querent’s level of awareness about their problem. Look at the querent Instead of mostly concentrating on the cards in front of you, look at the querent occasionally and make eye contact, just as you would during a conversation. Notice how the querent reacts to what you are saying. This may seem obvious, but I have seen many readers focus on the cards in front of them and all but ignore the querent during the reading. The basic idea here is to stay connected to the querent and to be aware of what his or her nonverbal behavior is communicating. Is the querent leaning forward and following what you are saying with interest or is he or she sitting there looking bored, doubtful or angry? I think of this as the 50-50 rule: give at least as much attention to the querent as you give to the cards. VI. ASSIGN HOMEWORK At the end of each session, I have the querent choose the card from the reading that most embodies what the querent needs to focus on in the week to come. I keep an extra pack of cards around so that I can actually give the card to the querent. Then I give the querent an exercise to do with the card that is designed to bring the energy of the card into the querent’s life. Ms. A chose two cards from her reading, the Ace of Cups and the Knight of Swords. She said that the two together would remind her to “lovingly communicate.” VII. TAKE YOUR TIME AND SCHEDULE ADDITIONAL APPOINTMENTS I believe that most Tarot Counseling sessions need to be longer than many traditional tarot readings (at least thirty minutes to an hour). The extra time is necessary in order to take a history, understand the issues behind the querent’s question, and to allow the querent enough time to be an active participant in the reading. I am also proposing a multi-session model for Tarot Counseling that is similar to the one used in Brief Psychotherapy. Although a single session can be helpful, most serious issues are rarely resolved so quickly. Additional sessions reinforce and expand what was learned in the first. New aspects of the issue often arise after the initial ones are dealt with. The basic idea is to allow for future sessions to be thematically related to previous ones, instead of having a series of unconnected readings. VIII. KEEP RECORDS If you switch from doing brief single session readings to the longer multi-session Tarot Counseling model, you will find it helpful to have records of each counseling session. I suggest that you make a file for each client which you update each session. It should include the following: 1. The date 2. The querent’s name and contact information (address, phone, e-mail) 3. The background information on the querent 4. The background information on the problem area behind the question 5. Emotional reactions by the querent 6. Any additional issues discussed by the two of you 7. The original question asked 8. The final form of the question 9. The spread used and the cards that came up 10. Your interpretation 11. The querent’s response to your interpretation 11. Homework given This way, if you see the querent again, you can read over his or her past sessions to remind yourself of important data and will not have to ask the same questions twice. You can also check on whether the querent did the homework and whether the Tarot Counseling session helped. IX. GET ADDITIONAL TRAINING IN AREAS RELEVANT TO YOUR READINGS If you are planning to shift from being a Tarot reader to becoming a Tarot Counselor, you will be more useful to your querents if you take the time and effort to learn more about the areas that you tend to get asked about. If you do a lot of business readings, take a course in finance. If love readings are your specialty, consider studying the psychology of attraction. Like everything else in life, if you put in the extra effort to become more informed, your readings will reflect it by becoming richer and more useful to your querents. An added bonus is that as you elevate your knowledge, you are likely to be taken more seriously as well. ![]() is an internationally renowned Gestalt therapy trainer who specializes in teaching the diagnosis and treatment of Borderline, Narcissistic, and Schizoid adaptations. She has been studying tarot since 1995 and is psychology consultant to The Tarot School, where she earned a Third Degree in Tarot. She is a member of B.O.T.A. (Builders of the Adytum) and has been certified as a professional tarot reader by the American Tarot Association. Best Practices for Professional Readers
5 SIGNS THAT YOU'RE READY TO READ PROFESSIONALLY
By Gina Thies
An interest in the art of divination is often what draws us
to tarot and other oracular tools. Many of us have similar stories of how we came to be professional readers. It often starts as an active hobby, and professional reading is a natural next step. Sometimes it may seem to just fall in our laps. Even when you don't have a full-time tarot business, it is nice to be compensated for whatever change and help you bring to the lives of others. If you think you want to read professionally, but are not certain that you are ready, here are some signs that it may be time for you to venture out as a profession and start charging for your readings: 1. You have mastered the basics of tarot, no longer relying on book meanings, and understand of how to turn card interpretations into relevant information for a querent. 2. You have a unique reading style. More and more, divination is becoming an art form as well as a gift. If you have a unique, effect way to empower and inspire through your readings, this may prove valuable to others. 3. You have entrepreneurial instincts. Are you naturally a salesperson? Do you have a knack for doing business? This may make it easy and natural for you to combine your talent for business with your talent as a reader. 4. You are comfortable in the public eye and talking about what you do as a tarot reader. One of the big struggles for many readers is feeling free to openly reveal who they are and what they do. If you have no hesitation about being known as a reader, you are certainly ready to read professionally. 5. You already charge for readings and are making as much money or more for readings than at your full-time job. This is a no-brainer. However, do consider all of your financial obligations and needs before quitting your day job to become a full-time professional reader. Tarot Salon
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