How do you know...

I'm just wondering how do you know that you have talent to read tarot. Sometimes I feel like "do I really can read it or interpreted it well?" and afraid to have a mistakeswhen reading... especially when I read for other people.

I know just how you feel. I don't read partly because I am worried about this. BUt there are a lot of teaching threads on here (YES, Simone, I AM going to sign up !) where you can practise your reading and see how it all works - they all tell me that it is something we can all do if we just let go of the fear.... If you are getting results which seem right, you are likely doing OK. I've also been advised to read just for myself at first, and see how right it all seems. Good luck..... I know I'm going to need it !

I think it has less to do with talent and more to do with practise. The more you read Tarot for yourself and others, the less you'll have these worries and the fewer 'mistakes' you'll make. (And really, when the mistakes happen it's not that bad.)

Of course, it does help to have a 'talent' (is it a talent?) for being able to understand other people... but I think that can come through experience as well.

For me, these worries were my biggest obstacle when it came to taking the plunge into professional reading. The only way I overcame them was by actually doing what I was scared of: reading for others.

Kiama

There is a spread that addresses this, as posted be Marion, here is the link:

http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=7196

I agree, if you have the talent for it or not, it is a matter of practice!

Bec

For me, it was mostly input from people I didn't know.

I was always a bit unbelieving of friends and family who told me my readings were on target, because I figured they didn't want to hurt my feelings, especially about something with which I was clearly so engaged.

When I started doing online one-card readings for the Free Tarot Network, I began to believe the feedback, because it was from people who had no interest in making me feel good. That gave me the courage to offer more complex readings here on the Reading Exchange. Getting positive feedback from other readers here finally convinced me I was good to go. (And the unforeseen upside to that for my current practice is that I'm not taken aback when I am asked to read by other Tarotists, which happens a lot since my venue is a metaphysical shop.)

But I have never totally lost the feeling of "What if I'm not really any good?" I have, however, learned to ignore it.

I would add, also, that if people you have read for want to come back for more readings, it's a very good sign that you are doing just fine.

I feel that my "other" abilities (meaning skills I've developed outside of using Tarot cards) play a lot into Tarot.

I agree with Apollonia about it's the feedback from people you don't know that gives you the most.

To a certain extent, I always have moments of doubt. "Can that possibly be right?" Only feedback or reactions can help relieve those thoughts.

What is a 'mistake'? You said 'June' and it happens in August? You said to not drive on Tuesday and you should have said Thursday? Is an giant asteroid going to hit the earth because you told someone not to go out on a date with some guy? Will you tell somone they are pregnant (bad idea no matter what you believe) when they are not?

Tarot is not infallible, and no one reader has all the right answers each-and-every-single-time. Remember, you could be absolutely correct in what you tell a client but that does not mean they will necessarily act on your advice and what you tell them will be altered by their act, not your reading. I understand that beginners get paranoid about such things, but just because you say it does not cast a spell to make it happen or set it in stone for all eternity.

I tested my tarot abilites for more than 12 years on myself before I started reading for others (I never ever thought of that before) which was a mere coincidence. My first "public" readings were for friends and after my first tarot lecture I started reading for clients.

Now I have 98% readings on target and 95% regular querents and my first deck published so I think this a proof I made the right decision.

I was too young at 11 to even consider 'mistakes', only saw that card reading (with a regular deck of playing cards) a fascinating subject. So I experimented first on myself. Awed & intimidated by the results, I knew I was on to something big. Also knew instinctively that a reader's hands holds another's heart.

Too introverted to tell more than two of my best friends then, to their lasting credit though they dinna like each other nor interested in reading, they remained supportive of my efforts. Through the years from childhood to adult & readings for others, they acted as a barometer of the developing reading skills both with & without the cards. Though one of the friends passed on years ago & the other now hundreds of miles away, she remains a staunch friend & a reading client despite our disparate beliefs.

Therefore, highly recommend practicing on the close/willing friends with whom no need to fear censure before going 'public'. I went public whilst in junior high school.

There are no mis-takes, only that learning about self, others & life cycles which practice will hone & define.

If one has an interest, that in itself is a message. Such messages deserve to be followed for how will one know what could be offered?