Have you ever wondered why some Tarot readers can pull a complex prediction out of thin air? Have you ever felt defeated because you said that only the truly Psychic could do this? I’m going to share with you a secret for fast tracking your intuitive readings.
This secret will completely turbo charge your Tarot readings and literally save you years of study. The great thing about this technique is that it’s probably the most fun you can have learning the Tarot. This technique won’t even feel like study and the great thing about it is, you can start using it today.
It’s so simple you probably won’t believe me when I tell you what it is. You’ll probably end up thinking, “this can never work!” But trust me, not only does this work, it’s also one of the easiest things to implement and you can implement it straight away. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced professional, this technique will truly open up new ways of building that all important story.
How I learned to use it
I only stumbled upon this technique after I turned professional.
I was in the middle of a Tarot reading and everything felt like it was going wrong – and I mean everything. Anything I said to the client, they disagreed with. I felt defeated, and slightly humiliated. I was seconds away from handing her her money back, when knowing I had nothing to lose, I started reinterpreting the cards.
I just started saying what I saw – the most literal interpretation possible.
Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t even have attempted it, but with nothing else to lose, I no longer thought of it as a risk.
When the client started to enthusiastically agree with what I was saying, when I saw her get totally absorbed in the reading, when I knew I’d managed to turn the reading around, I almost couldn’t accept how easy it was to do.
The Secret Technique
As soon as you deal the cards out, don’t think about anything. Don’t think about the Spread, don’t think about what the positions mean, don’t think about Elemental Dignities, don’t think about Astrological associations, don’t think about all the Divinatory meanings you’ve learned over the years. Don’t think at all.
As soon as you deal out the cards, just say what you see. If you see the Star card, say, “this person is learning Astrology.” As soon as you see the Death card, say, “this is a Sex issue”.
As soon as you deal the cards out, say whatever it is you see. Don’t hold back. The stranger, the more random, the crazier, the more seemingly improbable – the better the reading will be. Check out these examples:
- 2 of Swords: Scissors – getting a hair cut
- 6 of Wands: Going horse riding
- 7 of Cups: Swimming
- 3 of Swords: Listening to music and singing in the shower
- 8 of Cups paired with the 10 of Disks: You’ll buy a house close to a lake
- Moon: This person loves romantic walks at night
- Page of Cups: loves collecting seashells
- Page of Disks: A fossil collector
- 9 of Cups: A cocktail party
- 4 of Swords: A peaceful protest(er)
- 8 of Swords: S & M fetishes
These are some examples that I’ve used over the years.
This will develop your intuition like nothing else will
Allow your unconscious to read for you, allow yourself to trust the Tarot, allow yourself to trust…well, yourself. The time for second guessing is over. Use this technique today, and I guarantee you, the more fearless you are with it, the less concerned you are with making mistakes, the better your readings will become.
This is one of the few really fun, easy and effective techniques that I know of that will help develop your intuitive Tarot readings.
Check out this post for a list of more Crazy Tarot Card Interpretations: What You Were Saying!
What’s the craziest interpretation you’ve ever heard of, or given in a Tarot reading? Do you already use this technique? I’m looking forward to reading your crazy interpretations too – see you in the comments!
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I love this post. When I first saw it and the image of a pair of scissors along with the words “intuitive readings,” I thought you were going to suggest trimming a deck (cutting off the borders and consequently the titles of the cards).
I’ve had some of those experiences, but of course cannot remember any really good ones now. The most recent was a reading I did for a woman and there were four cards from Swords and I said that she recently had four surgeries…and she had.
So, can I ask, do you do this at the start of each reading or only when you feel stuck? Or just when it seems right?
Hi Barbara,
Haha – I might make that my next post
What a great interpretation – 4 Sword cards = 4 surgeries!
I’m not really sure at what point I use this technique (or any technique for that matter). Over time, many if the things that I do have become blended into a “system” but I find it really hard to describe – I think because each reading is so unique that I respond to that “uniqueness” in a slightly different way each time.
As a rule, I’ll do it about half way through a Tarot reading. I like to get a sense of the building blocks within the clients life before I get specific. I try and go as general as possible before focusing in on different aspects of the Spread.
…..difficult question LOL!
Lots of fun–and the more we can trust our intuition, (no matter how crazy the interpretation sounds), the fresher our Tarot readings will be!
Thanks for the post–
Hi Raven,
Thanks for dropping by and I’m glad you liked the post
What a great article! I like the 2 of Swords as a haircut especially.
This is good advice on getting practical and down-to-earth meanings out of tarot cards; an art which is sometimes lost today.
Hey Jason,
I’m glad you liked the interpretations
I agree…down-to-earth meanings tend to give everyone a level of confidence that more abstract meanings tend not to provide.
Another one is the Strength card – going to the dentist
I don’t use this technique myself but I remember a professional reader telling that one to me.
Hey Diane,
Thanks for dropping by and sharing with us a crazy, yet brilliant interpretation.
If ever the opportunity arrives, I’m gonna give this one a test drive
LOL! Excellent post! It reminds me of a corporate event I did last year, where it’s ok to get it wrong occasionally (people merry, loud music and having to do lots of readings in a row). Anyway, one guy came up and I pulled the Tower. I looked at this young guy and the Tower and immediately thought of extreme sports. I guessed climbing or bungee jumping, but it turned out he was a keen surfer and about to go to Australia. I warned him about sharks
Hope he’s ok!!
Hi Christiane,
What a great story! I love the interpretation – extreme sports!
Catherine at Tarot Elements is running a competition for the best Tarot story. You should put yourself forward for it – that story is awesome.
http://www.tarotelements.com/tarot-news/reading-out-loud-the-competition/
Thanks for sharing
Hi Douglas,
I love the way you´re looking at the cards!
When I saw the scissors I thought of trimming the cards as well as Barbara did (all my favorite decks are trimmed, Thoth included
).
You made me laugh with your interpretation of the 2 of Swords: I´m always at the last moment making an appointment with my hairdresser. One morning I felt I would like to go there that very day – I draw the 2 of Swords and knew “YES! There´s no doubt, I will get my hair cut today.” And really, I got my appointment immediately.
To give another example of a strange “literal reading”. I had a reading for a woman, a simple PPF-spread: Using TdM – a “good” coin-card, the XIII rx and XVI. I felt that there was nothing to be afraid of… So I told her that in the recent past everything was fine concerning her finances. But now it seems to me as if she is going to spend a greater amount in renovation of her home. She agreed (*I sighed with releaf*), she just bought a complete new kitchen!
At the end she revealed herself as a clear-sighted cardreader and confirmed that my reading was in total agreement to all that she saw herself. Dear, I got weak in the knees…
Thanks for this great post – let´s have a look what´s there for supper:
).
Ace of Coins -> PIZZA!!! (just kidding
Warm wishes,
Phine
Hi Phine,
Thanks for dropping by
LOL awesome!
Death reversed paired with the Tower – What a great interpretation!
I’m going to use that interpretation the next chance I get
Thanks for sharing!
When I first saw this post, the first thing popped in my mind was about cutting off my cards and just use my intuition, I was amused that others have similar experience with the photo in your post.
The truth is that somehow I am thrill by Tarot and like to collect cards but it wasn’t until recently that I decided to give a try into reading the cards. With just a new set of cards, I started to read on a voice chat room online. It was part of an experiment alone with another Tarot novice. I was kind of thrown into reading without a warning, LOL. I never studied these cards before, but thought that the images in the card might help me to give some light into the inquired matter. So without thinking about meanings by the book, I just let my imagination go wild by just looking at the card image LOL. Everything that was coming to my mind, I spoke of it …even when I felt that what I thought it was my imagination or was related with a past event in my own life. I associated my thoughts, my perception and personal experience with the person receiving the reading.
The first 7 readings were done like that, the other 3 remaining readings were done by the book and I must say to you, that the ones done by the book didn’t make no sense to the person receiving the reading compared with the ones done using my wild imagination. I came to conclude that–yes the little book that comes with the cards, its just a guide base of the author’s perception. However we all CAN’T see things in the same way even when we agree with, because we all have different way of see things, or perceive and transalate a visual or verbal message based in our perception or sense of reality.
During my readings, some of the cards repeat themselves but the funny thing was, that the message coming out of it, was not the same as other readings. I believe that when we do readings we share energy with the client and at that point, we only see what pertain to that client, perphaps this is why one card can mean something to one person but not for another… again.. perception comes to mind..
Thank you for your post.. I am thrill to know that others have discover this type of reading and its amazing all the information you can give base on what comes to your mind when you see the cards.. 
Blessings,
Liz
Hi Liz Lougee,
Oooops! My bad!
What a great way to learn the Tarot. Jumping into the deep end can sometimes be the best approach for certain people looking to learn a new skill – such as the Tarot.
It’s interesting that your own experience has shown you that “perception” seemed more accurate than the suggestions of a book. This is one of the reasons I don’t offer a lot of keywords for the Tarot cards – I think it’s important to stress that personal connection to the cards is worth so much more than rote learning.
I agree, the interaction between you and the client creates the dynamics of the Tarot reading. No two Tarot readings are the same, therefore, the Tarot cards themselves will always be slightly different each time.
I’m glad you enjoyed the post
Hey Doug,
As always, I love your posts and ideas. You keep the tarot fresh and alive! I’ve had some interesting interps too over the years:
8 of Cups – going to prison (client actually got busted in a drug raid a few months later and did indeed go to prison)
5 of Cups Reversed – hangover
3 of Pentacles – baptism of a child
The Tower – falling, an accident in the house (client told me her mother in law broke her leg when she fell in her house)
4 of Pentacles – going to Las Vegas
5 of Swords – hostile takeover of a company
Always good to think outside the box – it creates some very interesting interps.
Shanti,
Theresa
Hi Theresa,
Thank you for the compliment
These are great interpretations. I loved all of them. The 5 of Swords is really good, as is the 8 of Cups – brilliant!
Thanks for sharing them with us
When I was first reading I had a regular gig at a nightclub during the brunch shift, which meant that most of those I read for had been up since the night before. Some literal interpretations I picked up there were:
9 Wands – cut back on smoking and drink water NOW
4 Swords – time to leave the club and get your beauty sleep
Hi Leila Jo,
Thanks for sharing your experience
I really loved these interpretations – I’ll be adding these to my personal repertoire
Hey Doug,
Love the post. hehe! Using the pictorial key for conversive cuts can be great fun too. Sometimes I’ll just carry a deck to ask questions while I walk around. Just shuffle a couple times and stick them in your pocket. Should you find yourself pondering some huge mystery just pull the cards out, cut the deck and see if the bottom card of the cut hand relates to the situation. It will …btw. Whether you see it or not. Try asking what you will see next that deserves special attention. You will be amazed at the reults. I suggest a modern deck if your not prone to abstract thinking. Also, never forget that these energies resonate on many levels. You may end up seeing it play out through the rest of your day.
Have fun,
Love and Light,
Bulal
Hi Bulal,
Thanks for sharing this great technique
Congratulations on starting your new blog. I’m really looking forward to your future posts and I’ve already subscribed
Love this post. I do sometimes use techniques similar to this in my readings. Imagine the RW Emperor placed to the right of the RW Queen of Swords and she is giving him a real good talking to and telling him what she really thinks of him! Just look at the expressions on their faces! Keep the posts coming Doug!
Hi Lori,
Thanks for dropping by
LOL you sure can imagine the Emperor loosening his shirt collar.
I’m glad you liked the post
Here’s a few:
5 of Wands – a panel interview
Death card – seeing a picture of a skull (like in a party or something)
Tower – menstruation… lol… I think I saw this somewhere.
Great post!
Hi AJ,
Thanks for your kind words and for sharing your interpretations with us.
I think they’re awesome
This post couldn’t have been more well-timed for me. I did readings at a friend’s store last week, and was feeling a little stuck doing a reading for a boy (he couldn’t have been more than eleven or twelve). I usually have reservations reading for kids, but the whole family was getting them done and listening to everyone’s readings. The Present card was Five of Cups, and just looking at it made me say, “Did a friend move away recently?” Sure enough… I was right! This technique also works well with something else you posted when you’re feeling stuck, which is Keep Talking!
Hi Hilary,
Thanks for dropping by
I agree, the process of “keep talking” can really help to open you up to “seeing” what the cards are conveying. I though the 5 of Cups interpretation was awesome.
Thanks for sharing
I love your interpretations. Being new to Tarot, I’ve always felt intimidated by others that can just “click” and read their cards. I struggle with remembering the meanings of each cards… and I guess I just need to loosen up and read whatever I see.
Hi Kat,
Sometimes it can be hard to just say what you see. This is possibly due to tensions – they can be one of the main factors that make the process difficult.
Tensions can be the result of something as simple as “expectations”.
When we free ourselves of expectations (what we think a reading should be like), we can start to flow with the cards. Often we judge ourselves, our performance, our ability to “click” – but if we take a step back, and ease ourselves away from the self “judgment”, we can start to feel relaxed.
One of the best methods that I know, which makes this process easier, is to think of it as a bit of fun. Try to place zero expectations on yourself. Laugh and enjoy it, and the interpretations will come very easily.
Brilliant post I thoroughly enjoyed reading it thank you.
I did a reading for a friend a while back using the Druid Craft Tarot, a basic PPF reading, one of the cards was the Fferyllt XIV. Part of the image on the card is Glastonbury Tor and Chalice Hill, at the base is a lake, which immediately struck me as being shaped like a tea pot, with steam coming from the spout. I put this to my friend, that she knew somebody who insisted on having her tea in a pot served in proper china tea cups with saucers, I absolutely thought my friend was going to tell me I was bonkers, however, she proceeded to tell me that an ex care client of hers that she had been really close to and counted a good friend, had recently died and she insisted on having her tea in china cups from a tea pot!
I have to say, that my friend was very pleased with her reading, especially the reference to her friend with the tea pot.
Blessings
Laura
Hi Laura,
Thanks for dropping by and I’m glad you liked the post
LOL what an awesome connection you made with that card. A tea pot!!! Brilliant
Thanks for sharing
Hi Douglas
Sorry to be off topic, but I need to know if you do these kinds of readings with the Thoth deck (which I just started using myself)?
Wonderful post as usual, btw.
xxxNina
Hi Nina,
Thanks for dropping by
To answer your question – Yes!!!
I was using the Thoth deck when I first started using this technique ( I worked with the Thoth deck exclusively for years).
One of the main benefits to using the Thoth deck is the visual imagery on the cards themselves. Spend a little time getting used to the colours – especially the minor arcana. Each suit is coloured in such a way as to be easily recognisable at a glance. For instance, Wands are red, Cups are blue and so on.
Don’t worry too much about the symbols on each card. Just spend a little time getting used to the colours. When you can recognise each card at a glance, your ability to implement this technique will flow very naturally and easily.
I’d love to hear how you find the Thoth deck, and thank you for your kind words
Hi Douglas – this is my first comment here, and I have to tell you, this post has more value than you may know! Years ago when I transitioned toward professionally reading tarot cards, I HAD to learn this lesson. I was not used to doing back-to-back readings for many strangers in a row, where I didn’t have the leisure to “look up” in a book when I was feeling stuck. You just have to go for it! I also had to learn some quick-cleansing of the cards between readings too hehe!
However, themes often play out even in totally different situations. For instance, a man came in for a reading, and I remembered the King of Swords showing up, amongst other things. It felt like this man was his boss, so I went with it, and he said that what I said was resonating with him.
I shuffled the cards with intent to clear when a woman came immediately after for her reading, and the King of Swords came up again, but my impression this time was “father” and that he felt police or military somehow. Sure as heck, her father was in the hospital, and the other cards described how that scenario would likely turn out.
Later that day, another lady came in, and (you guessed it) the King of Swords was in their reading too, but in this case it felt like her partner and that he was a strong “mental” type and not paying attention to emotions. Sure as heck, he was an attorney, in trial at that time, and that is what the complaint was. Luckily it was temporary, but I told her ways to avoid this type of alienation in the future.
Just like an astrological aspect may bring the same type of reading over and over again (I always know when the Moon is in Scorpio, trust me!), I think themes in a similar card being the “issue of the day” can happen too. For those of you who might think, “Darn, did I not clear my deck enough and these people are tuning in on prior readings?” Maybe you did clear it sufficiently – maybe it is just energies that people that day are dealing with which prompts them to even get a reading with you in the first place! Thanks for the rockin’ blog Douglas!!
Hi AarTiana,
Thanks for dropping by
LOL yeah its something that only “on the job” training can give you.
Some great points! Especially the insightful way you describe the many faces of the King of Swords.
It can be very easy to lose confidence in ourselves when we keep seeing the same cards turn up – or encounter the same “theme”. I think your right to point out how important it is to trust ourselves when this happens.
Thank you for sharing your experiences and also for your kind words. I’m glad you liked the post
Dear Douglas and Tarot friends,
I’m so glad that you added the intuitive dimension to your Tarot work. That is one of the greatest gifts of studying Tarot, developing our intuitive side. For more historical background on this way of working with imagery and the mind, you can research “Art of Memory” from Ancient Greek philosophy and “vision-logic” as defined by Dai Leon in “Origins of the Tarot.”
If you would like to take this intuitive reading style to the next level, try supporting your querent by inviting her/him to describe what they see in the card. Do this before you make any statements or interpretations about the card. You’d be surprised how very accurate and powerful this can be for the querent. After the querent’s response, that would be a helpful time to add your intuition and knowledge of the card, blending all information together in a cohesive message. As you may know, we are all intuitive if we just open ourselves to the possibility.
Hi Katrina,
I agree, the intuitive aspect of reading Tarot cards is very important. I also think that the possibility exists for many people to become aware of it.
I think a fun and relaxed atmosphere can really assist people to open “…to the possibility”.
Thank you for sharing all this useful information – both the background information, and also the Tarot Tip.
This is one of the areas I have trouble with. No matter how often my intuition is correct, I still feel shy about relying strictly on it. So even though I have been readings cards for 15 years, I still have the safety net of a book handy. I need to find a way to move past that confort factor and trust my instincts, especially since my readngs are always scary accurate!
Thanks for the story
Hi Sandy,
Thanks for dropping by
I know what you mean. I’ve spoken to some highly experienced Tarot readers – they all go through phases of uncertainty.
One of my favourite quotes is, “Give up and you will succeed”. I never really understood the full implications of that until I went through a “burnout” phase.
As a result of this phase, a lot of the pressure was removed and I was able to judge the success of a reading based on how much “fun” I had – very important if “burnout” has taken hold. Nowadays (and I can still have moments of uncertainty) I try and put things in place that will remove any pressure I feel to “get it right”. This frees me up to relax, have fun, and enjoy what I’m doing.
Sometimes it’s just a question of figuring out what works best for us as individuals. For me, it’s having fun and remaining relaxed.
This is great, and certainly made me smile!
The best one I had was ’she buys loads of crates of oranges’ – bingo! lol
Dee x
Hi Dee,
I’m glad you liked the post
Was it a card that inspired you to see “she buys loads of crates of oranges”? Awesome insight
The method you mentioned here is exactly how I have been reading for years. Very nicely and succinctly explained too. I was so surprised to read this as I invented this method years ago. I did not read it anywhere really, it just came from combining things I’ve read along with lots of trial and error. It was amazing to see someone describing exaclty what I do so clearly. I guess we invented it simultaneously, or arrived at the exact same end result in different ways.
That is exactly how I read, and I never knew anyone else who did this in exactly that way until now. And I’d like add in that it was a great article and I agree wholeheartedly with all you said. It is a wonderful way to read in my opinion. It makes learning Tarot fun and spontaneous rather than memorization. And it works wonderfully as method. I often have been told I must be channelling the answers when I read and it often feels like I am. Once you get in the flow it can feel like that and can have that kind of results.
I hope many more people try it.
Babs
Hi Babs,
Thanks for stopping by
It’s strange how these things happen
I wonder if it has something to do with the collective unconscious? I’ve read about this kind of thing happen from time to time. Some of the most interesting examples are from the scientific community. I’ve often read how two or more people, entirely independent of each other, arrive at the same results at approximately the same time. I find stuff like that fascinating.
I really appreciate your kind words and I’m really glad you liked the article