I have been studying Tarot for 30 years now.

My pace has not been steady. I have taken a few brakes along the way, but Tarot has always called me back.

Thirty years and I am still learning. Tarot for me is a passion.
I read for clients. I read for my myself daily and I keep a Tarot journal.
I teach Tarot. I hold shares for fellow Tarot enthusiasts. I am always reading a new Tarot book and exploring another Tarot deck.

It should not be a surprise than that my perspective on Tarot has changed over time. My way of reading Tarot has also changed several times.

I believe that as I grow more confident, I become more open to experiment.
So far change has been good.

When I started studying Tarot I believed that if you were a good reader, your prediction would always be accurate.
It did not take me long to discover that the same reader could be so accurate once and not so much another time. Why?

I also noticed that a reader that was unbelievably good with me, was not so great with my mother. Why?

There were readers that used spreads and others that seemed not to use any.

Growing up in Italy, most of the readers I encountered used a predictive style. They read about love, work, finances, health, people you cared about and so on.

When I moved over to Canada, I discovered that many Tarot readers were very selective on what they would read about. Some would not read about health, or finances or legal issues or any person but the one sitting in front of them. I started to adjust my own readings to reflect that.
My mom has always been a straight shooter.
“What is left to read about than?” She asked me one day.

Over time I noticed a shift. Many Tarot readers did not want to predict any more, rather guide their clients, helping them understand better their own situation.

I am a Virgo, a perfectionist and an eternal student. It took me forever to decide that I was good enough to read for strangers and charge money for my services.

I am glad I did, because as soon as I started to read for strangers, I started to learn so much more. When you only read for yourself and people in your own circle, the meanings of the cards remain limited. In my experience, it is only when you start reading for strangers that you will encounter different cultures, religions, life styles and so on.

I remember clearly the fist paying client I had. I was so nervous! I never saw him again, so I can only speculate on how well or bad I did.
I do remember the reading. I believe I gave him good advice, mostly. I also remember looking at the 10 of swords and putting a very nice spin to it. I don’t think it was an accurate interpretation, but I was not ready to give the client very bad news.

For the first year I would only read about specific questions. I still believe that a good question will result in a much deeper reading, but you can have a very nice general reading also, and so I later started to offer them.

I pick up on people’s vibes easily and therefore I have never liked crowds, or parties. Eventually, I started offering Tarot parties and I love them. I do a lot of prep work ahead of time, but it is well worth the effort.

I like to make my own Tarot spreads, because I find I can use the cards more effectively that way.
Very recently I have started to be much more free flowing with my readings.
More like an open dialogue with the cards. I am trusting my intuition more.
So far the response has been good.

To sum it up. Practice makes perfect, but change is also good. Too much structure can fence us in and limit our growth.

Of course that’s just my own personal opinion and it may change over time.

P.S.

The image is from the Gaian Tarot deck, by the very talented Joanna Powell Colbert.