Public events: do you offer the querent a choice of decks?

Note: this thread refers to public readings that are unpaid (i.e. charity, volunteer festivals, reading as a favor to a colleague, etc).

A yes or no with explantion why would be helpful. Did an advance search and got a bunch of results from the Reading Exchange forum.

What are the pros, to your mind, of offering the seeker a choice of decks? Cons?

Doing my first public event (Halloween party) tomorrow in over ten years. *It is an unpaid event* Aiming for fifteen to twenty minute readings a piece. I have Robert Place Vampire that reads very bluntly and to the point -y, good for brief readings like these. On the other hand, it's not my favorite deck for intuitive purposes, and I also am interested to see which decks querents will gravitate toward.

There will be dim lighting, however (a reader's horror), so it mayn't matter after all.

For private stand alone readings, (which I do not charge money for) , I always offer the Seeker a choice of three or so. I vastly prefer intimate readings and spend quite a bit of time with a person, having them examine the images and interact with them (always in excellent lighting), so in my opinion forthose readings, a choice of deck is a must.

pros: your querant will feel they had a part in the whole process - they choose the cards, they choose the deck.....
cons: none. Because you wont choose any decks for them to pick from that you can't read comfortably ;o)
Good luck )o(

Yes I do offer my clients a choice, many of them have been with me for years. I only have a few decks RWS, a couple of RWS based decks, Thoth, and regular playing cards. When doing parties/events I take one deck (well two) RWS and playing cards. A lot of times I run into people who use to read from playing cards so I will take them down memory lane and use them. I used the RWS because it is an old deck(it has character) with a lot of energy in it and most people recognize it. At parties I do three card spread. Have a wonderful time, have fun with it.

For me there are no cons... I learned to read cards from using playing cards, if it has a number and a suit I can read it. Besides if there was a deck I couldn't read from it wouldn't be with me. Besides the magic is within you, not the cards.

If time per reading is limited, I only bring one deck. That eliminates time taken up by the querent looking at several decks and possibly dithering over their choice. And if I don't know whether the lighting will be good, I only bring my Universal Waite, as it has the largest images and clearest of the two decks I use.

gypsiejones71 said:

pros: your querant will feel they had a part in the whole process - they choose the cards, they choose the deck.....
cons: none. Because you wont choose any decks for them to pick from that you can't read comfortably ;o)
Good luck )o(

Click to expand...

I agree with everything, and thank you for the well wishes. In my opinion, there is no such thing as a reading that gives the querent "too much" interaction in the process.

Well, *perhaps* if one just sets the cards out in front of them and asks them to do the whole reading themselves...

PAMUYA said:

I used the RWS because it is an old deck(it has character) with a lot of energy in it and most people recognize it. At parties I do three card spread. Have a wonderful time, have fun with it.

For me there are no cons... I learned to read cards from using playing cards, if it has a number and a suit I can read it. Besides if there was a deck I couldn't read from it wouldn't be with me. Besides the magic is within you, not the cards.

Click to expand...

Thank you as well for your kind wishes! I'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

Funny thing about the RWS is that, because I did not care for the artwork, I didn't own one for many years, and used proxies (i.e. clones) in its stead. I tend to believe that any querent that would feel comfortable with the RWS would be comfortable with a clone.

* *

Now, there's another issue not yet raised: the issue of decks that display more ethnic, cultural, gender, sexual and religious diversity. We've had a few recent threads on those subjects, and many people suggested offering more multicultural or sexually diverse decks as choices to querents.

Personally, when I read privately for a querent (i.e. long in-depth readings in a private locale), I offer a choice of three decks, at least one of which is a RWS-based "old faithful" that I feel comfortable with but which is homogenous in many ways (e.g. Druidcraft), and at least one of which is more heterogenous in some ways. I will also make sure that at least one deck is artistically divergent from the norm in some way: either more abstract, surreal, intentionally "primitive," or what have you.

But in a party atmosphere, where people have been drinking and are dressed up in fancy dress and the lighting is dim, I wonder how much people will appreciate a choice.

Apollonia said:

If time per reading is limited, I only bring one deck. That eliminates time taken up by the querent looking at several decks and possibly dithering over their choice. And if I don't know whether the lighting will be good, I only bring my Universal Waite, as it has the largest images and clearest of the two decks I use.

Click to expand...

A-ha! Two excellent points. It would indeed make sense to stick to a deck I know inside and out so the dim light won't impede me.

I used to do that at first but I don't do that anymore. I got tired of some of the querents' foolish sensitivity; the last draw was when I used a black and white deck (the Light and Shadow Tarot) and a querent complained the deck was too black and started freaking out. I bring one deck and if they don't like it, they can always go elsewhere. But then I've always read at events where they were many readers and the money raised was going to a pagan school, so if they didn't like my deck there were other readers to choose from. I guess if I were to read professionally I'd prefer to read online then so I don't get bothered about this.

Chiriku said:

What are the pros, to your mind, of offering the seeker a choice of decks? Cons?

Click to expand...

Pros: they get artwork they are comfortable which, which puts them at ease. They also feel empowered at the very start of the reading, which cannot be bad.

Cons ... <scratches head> ... Well, if you only own one deck ...

I own around a hundred. It's worth noting that "by getting the clients to choose", they choose only from the four or five I happen to have there on the day. And I don't waste their time and mine getting them to look through decks - I have the cards laid out in a row on the table, with the same Major Arcana card showing (Today it was The Empress, tomorrow it will be the Pope/Hierophant/High Priest), and ask them to quickly indicate which image they like best. Then I give them that deck, and whilst they shuffle, I put the others aside. Takes only moments.

WolfyJames said:

I used to do that at first but I don't do that anymore. I got tired of some of the querents' foolish sensitivity; the last draw was when I used a black and white deck (the Light and Shadow Tarot) and a querent complained the deck was too black and started freaking out.

Click to expand...

Hmm, I see what you mean. The funny thing about humans is that most say they want choice yet, when given it, it gives rise to even more complaints than they had before they knew they had options!

nisaba said:

And I don't waste their time and mine getting them to look through decks - I have the cards laid out in a row on the table, with the same Major Arcana card showing (Today it was The Empress, tomorrow it will be the Pope/Hierophant/High Priest), and ask them to quickly indicate which image they like best. Then I give them that deck, and whilst they shuffle, I put the others aside. Takes only moments.

Click to expand...

Excellent idea. I decide to give them a choice, I shall do just that, thanks.

Well, I did offer them a choice of decks, but only two: Archeon and the Robert Place Vampire. All but one of the querents (most of whom were men under 40) chose the Archeon. It was very illuminating to hear their comments about both decks and to note things about their personalities that seemed to influence their choices in deck.