Readings for people... HELP!!!!

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 22 Feb 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Esmeralda	22 Feb 2003
How do you do readings for people on the internet, I told my friend I will do one for her, but we can only communicate through IM/chat.... So what do I do? And... how do you do readings for ANY other person... Hope I'm nto too much trouble.... heheh Esmeralda

Alex	22 Feb 2003
I'm not sure I understand the question you are asking. You get a question, choose a spread, shuffle, pick the cards, lay them out in front of you, in their positions... then you turn the cards side up and "tell" the person what you see. I hope that has answered your question. Alex.

HudsonGray	23 Feb 2003
You do it the same way as if someone wrote to you asking for a reading. They don't have to be in the room for you to get a reading done. Just keep their name & question in mind as you shuffle & lay out the spread, then interpret it, write it down, and send the reading by email. It works. They have to let you know what question they want answered, or at least some indication about what they want to know. You should give it a try--it won't be too weird.

Major Tom	23 Feb 2003
Some good advice. :) It's really that simple. You just do it. :laugh:

Trogon	23 Feb 2003
Howdy Esmerelda... You've gotten some good advice here already. I'll add that I do readings over the internet fairly often, at least one or two every week or two. I've got several on-line friends for whom I do readings and it works just about the same as doing a reading in person. I ask the querrent about what their question might be, or what area of their life they're wanting to examine, ask them to keep that in mind while I shuffle. I also focus on this as well as the person's name and try to keep their face in my mind if I know what they look like. Then shuffle the cards and deal them out in whichever spread I've chosen. Then I proceed the same as I would if the person were sitting next to me, except my "speaking" is done by typing into the chat window. I explain what I feel or see about the card, get their feedback, etc... Piece of cake. Anyway... I usually use Yahoo Messenger. It gives you a nice, resizable chat window, it's private, and you can stay logged on as long as you need to. You can get Yahoo Messenger at http://messenger.yahoo.com/. You can also use AOL Instant Messnger in the same way, which you can get at http://www.aim.com/. Of course, whoever you're doing the reading for will also have to have the chosen messenger software and you'll have to know what their screen name is. Personally, I've never used IRC. I've also done readings on Pogo.Com - this is a game web site and I've done readings there by setting up a private table in a game such as chess, dominoes, or pool. The drawback is that you must continue playing the game off & on while you do the reading, if the game sits idle for too long you will get booted out of that particular game and have to start again. Hope this has helped some... say "hi" to Quasimodo for me...

Esmeralda	23 Feb 2003
Thanks guys! This really helped me!!! Oh yeah.. and Alex, I will as soon as I move to Paris in 1 1/2 years... lol! Hahaha!

HOLMES	23 Feb 2003
i must speak of caution here . first due to your age and your comment how do you do a reading. i must caution you to first. to learn the cards, and how they relate, by praticing on yourself right now with three card ( as the pro say) (i myself say if you want to push yourself,, do CELTIC CROSSES) ((can hear the boos of those who had such a hard tiem with the cross eheh)) i am a the book and inuition reader good esmeralda, while others are strictly inuition, and others are more book knowledge. still in when it comes to inuition, there must be a good grasp of the cards before praticing on others due to your own ethics and morals. does you really want to give the best reading as a reader ? then if you must do it by inuition. without prior book learnin. (although if you do pick up a book i suggest the 78 degrees of learning for you as it is mostly picture based and inuition) i suggest what i never did eheh, and that is where you take the cards and write down what they mean to you and spend some time learning them. coming from what i did my first year when i was 15. i read that book by eden gray mastering the tarot i think it was called over and over, and when i read for a person. ( i in my own stubborn way, never did self readings) i would read the whole page, of what the description said, and then the divinatory meaning. and think a moment and says it says in the book this and that,, and i agree, or don't agree because of this feeling or this picture and move on. i didn't have access to tarot advice you can get here, and knowledge so if you want to be a serious tarot reader, it is good to learn the basics and pratice a few spread beforer reading for others. as reading for others is a great responsiblity and it is the tarot reader ideal responsiblity to try to do their best for the client. as a simple word can change or define their whole world in some manner.

Esmeralda	23 Feb 2003
Do not worry, I have done Tarot before, and just because I'm still learning doesnt mean anything, I know how to use them. Must say, Tarot is not a Gun! Plus, I do the for my friends, and I dont push anyone into anything, they know that I'm 13 and learning and that I KNOW how to use tarot and its their choice if they want a reading from me or not.. I'm not mad, if it sounds like I am, but I do HATE discrimination and now I feel that I'm discirminated because of my Age. Ouch!!!

Athara	23 Feb 2003
You're not discriminated for your age, but for the experience that others think you lack. If you do have experience, it should be OK.

HudsonGray	23 Feb 2003
Yeah, it's the experience factor, not the age. Even if it's just 'words' that you're saying, they carry weight. Put in someone's mind the niggling thought that they're going to break up, and they start looking at/overthinking/examining every aspect of their relationship till it becomes a self fulfilling prophesy. What you tell them CAN make a huge difference, so the more experience you get, the better off the reading is. And the knowledge of how to phrase things. I've seen someone who said he did a reading for a co-worker, was new at it, and had told her she'd have an abortion in the next 12 months. He'd gotten the Sun and the 10 of Pentacles cards...... ????????????? I can't begin to imagine how the co-worker felt about this. I'm sure she was influenced by what he said, even if I sincerely doubt he was accurate in his reading.

Kiama	24 Feb 2003
Esmerelda: I began learning Tarot when I was 9. I know what it's like to have my age used aainst me in all parts of my life, simply cuz I started doing everything very young! But Holmes is not discrminiating against you. He is one of hte nicest people I know, and I know for sure that he would not intentionally do such a thing to anybody! There is never a point in Tarotwhen we stop learning. It is a life-long process, and nobody can ever know everything about Tarot ever. So, you're here on Aeclectic, and we're all students, just the same as you, seeking knowledge and insight about Tarot. We'll never stop! :D That's the beauty of Tarot! I learned to read effectively through reading for my friends, so you're oing the right thing here. You'll find htat no matter how good you get at reading for others, there is always something you can learn from each reading you do! (Have you read my thread about Emotional Pincushion and Failure? I'd been reading for others for nearly... Well, half my life, and even now, 9 years later, I find myself learning so much from one single reading for a friend in a pub!) Life and Tarot and being a student of both is a beautiful thing. :D Hope this helped! :*:*:* Kiama

Silverlotus	24 Feb 2003
I do hope you haven't been turned off this forum because a bit of a misunderstanding, Esmeralda. I do understand how you feel though. I started learning Tarot when I was around 12 or 13. Reading for others was difficult because I hadn't learned yet to really look at the cards and let them speak to me. It was partly because I am impatient, and partly because I didn't have a deck that really ment something to me. Once I found "my" deck, it was amazing how things improved, sorta (but that's another story). What I got from Holmes post was a concern for your experience. Of course, for all we know, at 13 you could have several years experience. I will say that when I was still very unsure of my skill, I limited myself to personality spreads and weekly forcasts. :) No advice given! But that was my personal choice that fit with my personality and beliefs. Even now I feel a little odd doing a spread about someone's love life or what-have-you. It's hard to keep the advice out of it, and it's harder still when someone seems to ignore what you are trying to tell them. So, as you for your question about how to do readings for another person - with caution. If you can, figure out what sort of person they are. If they are going to take what you say with a grain of salt, then it may be OK if you feel sure in your skill. If the person is going to believe everything you say like it is coming from the mouth of a god, I would pass (for now, at least). For the actual mechanics of doing a reading for another person, opinions vary. You can ask the person to tell you the question, or not. You can allow them to shuffle, or not. Most readers at least let the other person cut the cards, some don't. Lay out the cards, facing the other person or facing yourself. Whatever works. For readings over the internet, you've been given some good advice already. Doing it through IM, if both of you are patient, lets the person ask questions of you while you are reading. Emailing the reading gives you more time to think about the cards, and the person could send you questions back in another email. Whatever works here too. But never stop studying those cards. You can learn a whole heck of a lot about yourself by how you feel about the cards. Don't just memorize a book, look at the cards and write down what you feel. You can combine your meanings and the book meanings if you want, and keep a Tarot Journal (an excellent idea, btw). I've rambled long enough. Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions. :)

Esmeralda	24 Feb 2003
I didnt say I was disicriminated, I just felt that way... Oh well... things happen... Dont think I'm mad at anyone :D I'm not! lol Esmeralda

The Readings for people... HELP!!!! thread was originally posted on 22 Feb 2003 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.