zan_chan
[size=+2]Welcome back to the Intensive Deck Study (IDS)! [/size]
This group is a support system for those who want a way, a reason, an opportunity to spend time with the one special deck of your choosing. With so many beautiful decks available, and our collections ever-growing, it becomes at times difficult to choose which deck to actually use. So many decks sit on their shelf, or in their drawer, loved, but unused, unlooked at, and under-appreciated. This study is meant to give the deck of your choosing the chance to shine, to stand-out, and to become the in-depth tool you hoped it would be when your first brought it home.
The basic idea is simple enough: choose one deck that you want to spend some time with, create a list of personal guidelines to post here in this thread, and use this group to share your experience with the deck. Simple as that! But, there are, of course, a few rules meant to give the group a certain cohesion, and to make sure that the IDS experience is one shared by all of its participants.
[size=+1]Rules, Guidelines, and a couple of Quid Pro Quos:[/size]
~Each participant will choose [size=+1]one deck[/size] that will be used as close to exclusively as possible for the period of time chosen by the participant. Of course, exceptions can be made (this isn't school!) for professional readings, or important readings for others. But, all readings done for oneself, and in the AT Reading Exchange forums, are to be done as close to exclusively as possible with one's chosen deck.
~To initially sign-up, please post in this thread with your intention to participate, the reason for choosing your deck, and your personal set of guidelines. HERE you can find a post by the illustrious rwcarter about his own IDS guidelines, which serves as a good example of how it's usually done.
~This thread is your IDS support group - remember that this isn't a competition and there aren't any rules about HOW to study, so please feel free to post about anything at all that is or isn't working for you in your studies, no matter how different your methods may seem from the rest of the group's. No one is an IDS expert and we're all here to support each other, so don't be shy and share your experience!
~Keep in mind that although a major part of our goal is to have fun, the name of this group is, in fact, the Intensive Deck Study - it isn't just a matter of choosing a deck to do all your readings with. There should be some actual study involved. For example, if your chosen deck is, say, the Druidcraft, you might study the animals, the trees, the locations, the time period, etc., etc. Remember something I always (obnoxiously) tell my students: Studying is FUN!
~When the time comes to end your IDS, or you would like to change deck, please just post in this thread and let us know. It is extremely beneficial to the group, however, if you can explain why you've decided to either finish or change your IDS. Learning about other participant's ups and downs is an excellent learning experience for everyone. Thanks!
[size=+3]Please let me know by PM if you join the group, change deck, or leave the group![/size] I may not always catch each post in the thread, so staying in the loop will be important for me to be able to update the list of participants. Thanks!
[size=+1]How to Choose Your Deck[/size]
The most successful IDSers always seem to be the ones who explain that they didn't choose their deck - rather, their deck chose them. In your heart of hearts, you shouldn't have to ask whether or not you've chosen the "right" deck - you should know. If it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't.
As a rule of thumb, however, the best IDS decks are decks that would seem to require studying. Many, the vast majority, perhaps, of modern decks are little more than clones of the RWS. These decks are probably not the best candidates for an IDS. Of course, if you find enough within them to want to study, you're more than welcome to, but in my experience with IDS, those who choose heavily RWS-influenced decks, usually are the first to abandon their study.
[size=+1]Overall:[/size]
Remember, the most important thing is to Have Fun and enjoy your study. It should be serious, it should be intense, but those things should be fun!
If, in the course of your IDS, you aren't having fun, and you aren't enjoying your time with your deck, and you avoid this thread, if not Talking Tarot overall, something is WRONG. Talk about it with the group, work with the group to figure out what's wrong, and learn how to move past it
*And of course, a huge thank you to the wonderful thorhammer for starting the IDS originally and for being all-around awesome We wouldn't be here now without her
This group is a support system for those who want a way, a reason, an opportunity to spend time with the one special deck of your choosing. With so many beautiful decks available, and our collections ever-growing, it becomes at times difficult to choose which deck to actually use. So many decks sit on their shelf, or in their drawer, loved, but unused, unlooked at, and under-appreciated. This study is meant to give the deck of your choosing the chance to shine, to stand-out, and to become the in-depth tool you hoped it would be when your first brought it home.
The basic idea is simple enough: choose one deck that you want to spend some time with, create a list of personal guidelines to post here in this thread, and use this group to share your experience with the deck. Simple as that! But, there are, of course, a few rules meant to give the group a certain cohesion, and to make sure that the IDS experience is one shared by all of its participants.
[size=+1]Rules, Guidelines, and a couple of Quid Pro Quos:[/size]
~Each participant will choose [size=+1]one deck[/size] that will be used as close to exclusively as possible for the period of time chosen by the participant. Of course, exceptions can be made (this isn't school!) for professional readings, or important readings for others. But, all readings done for oneself, and in the AT Reading Exchange forums, are to be done as close to exclusively as possible with one's chosen deck.
~To initially sign-up, please post in this thread with your intention to participate, the reason for choosing your deck, and your personal set of guidelines. HERE you can find a post by the illustrious rwcarter about his own IDS guidelines, which serves as a good example of how it's usually done.
~This thread is your IDS support group - remember that this isn't a competition and there aren't any rules about HOW to study, so please feel free to post about anything at all that is or isn't working for you in your studies, no matter how different your methods may seem from the rest of the group's. No one is an IDS expert and we're all here to support each other, so don't be shy and share your experience!
~Keep in mind that although a major part of our goal is to have fun, the name of this group is, in fact, the Intensive Deck Study - it isn't just a matter of choosing a deck to do all your readings with. There should be some actual study involved. For example, if your chosen deck is, say, the Druidcraft, you might study the animals, the trees, the locations, the time period, etc., etc. Remember something I always (obnoxiously) tell my students: Studying is FUN!
~When the time comes to end your IDS, or you would like to change deck, please just post in this thread and let us know. It is extremely beneficial to the group, however, if you can explain why you've decided to either finish or change your IDS. Learning about other participant's ups and downs is an excellent learning experience for everyone. Thanks!
[size=+3]Please let me know by PM if you join the group, change deck, or leave the group![/size] I may not always catch each post in the thread, so staying in the loop will be important for me to be able to update the list of participants. Thanks!
[size=+1]How to Choose Your Deck[/size]
The most successful IDSers always seem to be the ones who explain that they didn't choose their deck - rather, their deck chose them. In your heart of hearts, you shouldn't have to ask whether or not you've chosen the "right" deck - you should know. If it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't.
As a rule of thumb, however, the best IDS decks are decks that would seem to require studying. Many, the vast majority, perhaps, of modern decks are little more than clones of the RWS. These decks are probably not the best candidates for an IDS. Of course, if you find enough within them to want to study, you're more than welcome to, but in my experience with IDS, those who choose heavily RWS-influenced decks, usually are the first to abandon their study.
[size=+1]Overall:[/size]
Remember, the most important thing is to Have Fun and enjoy your study. It should be serious, it should be intense, but those things should be fun!
If, in the course of your IDS, you aren't having fun, and you aren't enjoying your time with your deck, and you avoid this thread, if not Talking Tarot overall, something is WRONG. Talk about it with the group, work with the group to figure out what's wrong, and learn how to move past it
*And of course, a huge thank you to the wonderful thorhammer for starting the IDS originally and for being all-around awesome We wouldn't be here now without her