Top 5 Skills a Tarot Reader Needs

What skills do you think are important for a tarot reader to have?

This week I share what I think are the top five most important skills you need to be a great tarot reader. 

Please note, Beyond the Shuffle will take a month long hiatus in August. Episodes will go out on July 22nd, and 29th, and then will return on September 2nd.

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Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:01

What are the skills that you think every good tarot reader needs? Hi there, and welcome to Beyond the Shuffle, a podcast where we explore this wild ride of the human experience through the lens of tarot. I'm Adrienne Amari, your host, guide, and tarot reader. So settle in, open your mind, and let's go beyond the shuffle. I often get asked what it takes to become a tarot reader. How long do you have to study? How many tarot readings do you have to do before you can start charging or call yourself a professional? And honestly, there isn't really a set number of days or hours or readings done to get you to that point. But I do think that to become a great tarot reader, there are five skills that you need. And I'm really talking about being a great tarot reader for other people. If you're reading tarot for yourself, the skill set can definitely change. And that's definitely something we can look into in a future episode. But today let's go with the assumption that we're talking about when you're reading for other people. And before I dive into what I consider the five essential skills, I want you to think for a moment, what would your list be? So I'm approaching these in no particular order. So this isn't me saying that one of these is way more important than the rest, but I do think that these are all important skills. And the first one is being able to connect the dots and tell the actual story. Let's be real, most tarot decks come with a guidebook where you can just look up the definitions, and that is all well and fun. If you're learning, it's great. If you're just doing it for fun, that's wonderful. But if you are paying someone to do a tarot reading for you, they should know the meanings and then also be able to weave them together in a cohesive reading or story. They should be able to find the connective tissue, so to speak, to see how the cards interact with one another, influence one another, and talk to one another. I've told the story over on Instagram, but the worst reading that I ever had was when I went to an Oracle party hosted by a friend. She had hired a reader who was lovely, but all this reader did was have us pull cards and then read the guidebook. I could have bought the deck and done the exact same thing for a fraction of the cost. And it's not only the money that matters, but when somebody is paying for a reading, so whether you're the reader or you're seeking one out, they want the insight, the guidance, the advice, the interpretation from the cards beyond just a guidebook meaning. And as great as guidebooks are, they don't tell you how to weave those together so much of the time. Part of being able to really understand how the cards interact also really helps you answer the question. And that's not saying every question has a very succinct, obvious, clear answer, but you should be able to decode the cards based on the topic at hand. And I've probably talked about this before, but this is the absolute best example I have for this. I was watching tarot card readings live on TikTok, and in the comments, the girl asked, What do I need to know about moving house? They were looking for a new home. And the tarot reader pulled the tower and the five of wands and something else I can't remember. And instead of answering the question, jumped to, well, somebody's out to get you. A good tarot reader would answer the freaking question. Somebody's out to get you has nothing to do with buying a house. And it wasn't like, oh, somebody's out to outbid you or be careful they're trying to pull the wool over your eyes or anything like that. It was completely unrelated as she prattled on. And let's be real, if we have the tower and the five of wands, we have foundation problems and bidding wars. And I do think a lot of the time not being able to answer the question goes back to the ability to actually see how the cards connect and interact. It goes back to understanding the story that they're trying to tell. And so much of this we work on in the tarot lab. But if you are trying to get better at telling the story with the cards, look for repeating numbers, suits, patterns. Look at where the characters are looking, how they're interacting. Are they looking at each other or away from each other? How do their energies influence one another? There's so much that we can find in the cards if we just take time to look at the story and connect the dots. So, in terms of actual tarot skills, I think that's the biggest one. It has nothing to do with having a ritual, being good at shuffling, knowing lots of spreads. None of that really matters. The next four skills I want to talk about are less about how you work with the cards and how we work with people. So to be a really good tarot reader, you have to be able to listen. You also need to be able to deliver a message with some emotional IQ intact. People come to readings for all sorts of different things. And sometimes they're hesitant to really tell you the heart of the matter or get into the heart of the question. Sometimes they're shy or embarrassed. Sometimes they don't know how to word exactly what they're asking for. And I don't think it matters what style of reading you do, like if you're doing more predictive readings or empowerment readings. At the end of the day, your job as a tarot reader is to try and understand your client so that you can deliver a message in a way that makes sense and that actually means something to them. I know some tarot readers just like to read the whole thing and then talk to their client. Others like to chat as they go. I personally am a very conversational kind of person. That's just my jam. And sometimes it's really interesting because the heart of the matter comes down a lot to what isn't actually being said. If you're listening to the words somebody chooses, and if you're paying attention to how they're acting and reacting, then you can have a much better idea of what to focus on, what's resonating, and what maybe you don't need to hammer home. Sometimes people aren't ready to blatantly confront the things that the tarot brings up. And in those cases, sometimes all you need to do is open the door and let it simmer for them. But hammering the point home when somebody isn't ready for that, that's not helpful. That's not empowering. We don't want people leaving a reading feeling worse than when they came in. So we need that active listening. We need that emotional IQ so we can build rapport and connect in a way that's helpful. Now, not all readers like this style, and that's totally fine. But for me, I love asking questions. And sometimes, a lot of the time, honestly, I'm not expecting an answer. It's just to get people thinking because the whole power of tarot is to shine that mirror so that they can kind of see their way through. And I love it when people are like, oh man, I never thought about it that way because it gets the gears turning. I know a lot of students are nervous to ask questions because they don't want to be wrong or look like they don't know what they're saying or doing. And again, that's not the style of every tarot reader, but that's the one that works for me. And I love the connection that comes from it. And this moves well into our next skill, having ethical delivery and boundaries. I think when you start reading for other people, it can be really hard to set those boundaries and to figure out where your ethics lie, especially because there are so many rules and so many do this, don't do this things out there that you really have to sit with it and make up your own mind. We do have to be able to deliver messages in because you want someone to like the reading that you're giving to them. But we need to be honest about what we see. Honest, though, doesn't mean cruel. You can be honest without sugarcoating, without beating around the bush, and without being mean about it. You also need to decide what you will and won't read on. For example, I don't love doing third-party readings. And when I first started, I did them quite often because people were asking and I wanted to deliver what they were asking for. And for me, the third-party readings that I am not into are the ones that are like, does so-and-so love me? What are they feeling about me? What are they thinking about me? Because the more I thought about it, the more I was like, man, I would hate if someone put thoughts or words in my mouth and told someone else this is what I was thinking or feeling without even knowing for sure. So anytime those questions come up now, I always tell someone I can't tell you what someone is thinking or feeling. And honestly, I think the cards kind of can. I just don't think it's very ethical because tarot readers aren't perfect. And I would hate for me to put some thought or word in someone's mouth that someone else believes when it's not even true. And let's be honest, if you can't ask that person how they feel about you or what they think about you, that's actually a bigger problem. Having boundaries with clients can also be difficult. Someone should not continuously come to a reading for every single thing in their life. They shouldn't keep coming over and over if nothing has changed or if they don't want to do anything to change it. I've had to say no to clients before because they were trying to book readings too close together when no energy had really shifted at all. Sometimes things take time and you have to be comfortable setting that boundary, whether it's how often someone can get a reading or the topics that you're reading on. I'll talk about health, but I won't diagnose anything. I'm not a doctor. If you want to know if you're pregnant, go take a pregnancy test. And if you know somebody needs more help that you can offer, we need to be okay with recommending a professional that can help them in that area. And as a tarot reader, we have to remember that it's not our job to have all the answers or solve all the problems. Which leads in to my next skill, beautifully. A really good tarot reader needs to be comfortable with ambiguity. And I get it. Somebody comes to you asking a question and you want to give them a solid answer. You want to give them the right answer. I think a lot of the time it comes from the desire to prove that we're legit. It's hard to say, I don't know, or it's not really clear. But we have to remember that we're not perfect and real life is messy. And because all that tarot is is a deck of cards that illustrates the human experience, that means that tarot is messy too. So a couple different things can happen. One, the cards can be unclear. Maybe you get the moon and the high priestess, that two of swords, the seven of cups, cards that indicate that there are options and the path ahead isn't totally clear. Now, within the cards, it tells us how we can find that clarity, which goes back to skill number one, being able to really understand and see the stories and lessons in the cards. But we don't always have the answers. That's not what this life is about. And for some people, especially people who like solid outcomes and light control, that's a really uncomfortable answer. But unfortunately, it's part of life. And I think part of this also depends on how you see the future. I've done an episode on this on the podcast, but I don't believe the future is set in stone. I believe that it is filled with possibilities and probabilities, but we still get to choose. And sometimes in where we are, the road ahead isn't quite ready to be revealed yet. And that's okay. So we have to be comfortable telling clients that you know what, it doesn't seem like there's a clear answer right now. And it can feel a little bit like you're being a magic eight ball, but such is life. There's also times where we pull cards and we just have no idea what's going on with the spread. And you're thinking, My goodness, how do I read this? How do these fit together? How do these relate? And it's really easy to start to panic in that situation. It's also easy to want to pull more cards. And if this happens to you, step one, take a deep breath, but don't start pulling more cards right away. Sit with it, talk it out. Sometimes even just describing the cards and what they're doing can really help ignite something for you. And normalize being confused. I've had this happen before where I'm doing a reading, I'm like, I don't know what this means right now. So let's keep going and we'll circle back later. And I've never had someone be upset or disappointed or think I didn't know what I was talking about because I needed a second, or I needed to say, hey, let's revisit this after we see more of the story. Because nine times out of 10, that's when it's going to become far more clear. This can happen a lot with the court cards as well. So if you're unsure if the court card is representing the query or somebody in their life, ask. Because wouldn't you rather ask, know what resonates, and then be able to interpret in a way that is meaningful and empowering than just guessing the whole time? And I've honestly had readings where it just felt like the person was trying to test me. And you will get clients like that. And it is not a fun place to sit in, at least for me, because I love the conversation. I love to hear people's stories. But remember that it's okay if you're human. Sometimes you'll find too that people don't react or say a whole lot, and then you start to question yourself. Now, I had a reading once where the whole time the lady was going, no, no, no. At the end, I asked her about it and she started to explain to me what was going on. And I was like, So you mean it is like this situation? And it is like this, and it is like this. And then it kind of started to click to her because I think at first she was so defensive. After that reading, she stayed and chatted to me for about another 45 minutes. So we have to remember that sometimes the messages aren't clear, sometimes the person's maybe not totally ready to hear them. Sometimes we're on the right track, but with the wrong lens. And sometimes things just need to take a little bit of time to unfold. All of that is okay, and it's an important skill to be comfortable with it. Okay, I said I wasn't breaking the skills, but I do think this last one is the most important one. And that's you have to be able to hold space for people in a way that is safe and non-judgmental. And we're all humans, we all have our own judgments, our own biases. So there's no way I'm going to sit here and pretend that any of us can be non-judgmental 100% of the time. But the ability to build trust and build rapport with clients is so important because people bring so much to a tarot reading. Things that they want to talk about, things that they haven't really scratched at yet. They bring hopes and dreams and emotionally heavy situations. A lot of times people are looking for validation from a tarot reading to know what they're thinking or feeling or wanting is okay, to have a better understanding of what's happening, why it's happening, and how they can move through that difficult energy. Some people come to a tarot reading for fun, but a lot of people come because they're feeling a certain way. And it's usually not all sunshines, rainbows, and unicorns. So we have to have the maturity to be able to deal with topics that are taboo or messy, maybe even socially unacceptable. And we need to react in a way that's curious and compassionate, not judgy. I've done readings for people who were in affairs before, people who have done things that they're not proud of. And who am I to judge? So many of us are just trying to figure out our way through, and we make mistakes because life is complicated. So always choose curiosity and compassion. You don't have to approve of someone's actions or agree with them, but we do need to be able to hold space for where they are and what they're sharing. Holding space can also mean that you sit with someone as they process, as they release. I always have Kleenex near my reading table because I often get people who cry because the release can be overwhelming. And that's a beautiful and wonderful thing. And people always apologize. No one should ever feel sorry for crying at a tarot reading. So much of the time, people are just wanting to be seen and heard. And that's such a beautiful part of a tarot reading. That's what we're here for, to hold that space. And it's not always easy. We have to remember that we are all human. I'm not gonna lie, when I do pet readings, if somebody cries during a pet reading, I will also cry, or at the very least, get teary-eyed. Because if you know me at all, you know how crazy I am about my pets. But I think sometimes that genuine connection can also be so meaningful. And I'm not like blubbering where I can't get words out or do my job. But I think it's important to remember that as a tarot reader, we are not all seeing, we are not all powerful, we are not here to do someone else's healing for them. We're here to guide and to help and to still be very human. So at the end of the day, it doesn't matter how good you are at shuffling or how beautiful your space is, or how many tarot decks you have, being able to weave the story, actively listening with an emotional IQ, having ethics and boundaries, being comfortable with ambiguity, and having the ability to hold non-judgmental space for people is what makes a great tarot reader. I'd love to know your thoughts. So leave me a comment, let me know what you think. Do you agree that these are the most important skills? Or do you think that it's something else? And if any of these skills are something you would like to work on and improve, come join us in the Tarot Lab. It's my membership program where we have monthly masterclasses, practice labs, lots of support, resources, activities, and exercises to take your tarot skills to the next level so you feel confident giving readings, even if you only ever want to read for yourself. And if you're looking for your own personal insight and reading, know that you can always book with me at adrianamari.com. For the month of August, I will be taking a brief summer holiday from Beyond the Shuffle. But I will be here July 22nd, July 29th, and then back on September 2nd. But for tarot readings and updates during that time, make sure you're following me on Instagram at AdrianAmari Tarot. And if there are any topics that you want to hear on Beyond the Shuffle, just let me know because I am an open book of tarot and ready and willing to talk. So until next week, stay open, stay curious, and I'll catch you next time on Beyond the Shuffle.