Professional Tarot Certification?

gregory

I have had no dealings with tabi at all, so feel OK about saying this.

agedog1, Netzach is not the type to make up an experience like that. Maybe 99% of the time tabi is perfect and maybe 99% of the people who send out responses from there are as fine and upstanding as you represent them - but even the nicest people do make mistakes. If Netzach says that's what came from them, then it did - however unrepresentative that response may have been for tabi as a whole.

It is extremely contrary to forum principles to accuse anyone of talking nonsense, and even more unlikely that Netzach made this up to be nasty. And as you will see, at least tabi is taking it seriously and has taken the trouble to ask for details. A more constructive response than calling another member names, I think.
 

Netzach

I'm not going to make any comment about agedog1's post other than to say that I'm sorry that my telling the truth angered her so and that I don't think she furthers her argument by being rude.

This was not a criticism of TABI as an organisation or of its members- I think the idea behind TABI is a good one. However, we were discussing certification and I was just explaining my reasons for deciding not to apply for TABI endorsement or for certification.

I have been contacted by ribbitcat to ask who did the reading. I do not intend to divulge this, because I don't think it's up to me to land a reader in the sh*t. This was not the reason I posted this here. The reading might not have been up to the standards that I expected but I'm quite sure the reader was doing his/her best. Maybe I've just been spoiled by the remarkably high standard of reading on AT.
 

Alta

I have removed a post wherein some name-calling occurs. I feel strongly that it is possible to defend a position without such tactics, that the English language can be used to describe one's position quite well.

I would ask members to feel free to discuss the topic to whatever depth they like, however to keep in mind basic Netiquette.

Thank you,
Marion
co-moderator of Talking Tarot
 

Sulis

Netzach said:
I have been contacted by ribbitcat to ask who did the reading. I do not intend to divulge this, because I don't think it's up to me to land a reader in the sh*t. This was not the reason I posted this here. The reading might not have been up to the standards that I expected but I'm quite sure the reader was doing his/her best. Maybe I've just been spoiled by the remarkably high standard of reading on AT.

The point is though that you did post here saying that the service you got from a TABI free reading wasn't up to scratch; Ribbitcat obviously wants to stop this from happening to someone else.
I think that if you're going to complain about a service and one of the people who helps to organise that service tries to sort it out then you should be prepared to give them the information they need to do that.
What's the point in saying the reading you got was unsatisfactory if you're not prepared to help make it better?

I'm a TABI free reader myself and I'd like to think that if I gave someone a reading that 'didn't answer the question and, in places, it sounded like a horoscope from the Sunday paper' then that person would let me know so that I could make improvements to my reading style.

Sulis xx
 

Netzach

Sulis said:
The point is though that you did post here saying that the service you got from a TABI free reading wasn't up to scratch; Ribbitcat obviously wants to stop this from happening to someone else.
I think that if you're going to complain about a service and one of the people who helps to organise that service tries to sort it out then you should be prepared to give them the information they need to do that.
What's the point in saying the reading you got was unsatisfactory if you're not prepared to help make it better?

Oh dear, I do hear what you're saying . . . but I really didn't want to complain. This happened months ago. I only mentioned it here in order to say why I thought that certification or endorsement was not for me. Ribbitcat tells me that the readers are reviewed regularly so I daresay this reader has improved since then. And I do hate causing trouble.

I suppose this whole business has been of value in that I now know that TABI is very concerned about standards and that the reading I got was, no doubt, an exception - which I didn't know before.

But Sulis - and anybody else - would you really give TABI the information if you were me? And how would you feel if you were a young reader and something like this came through months after the reading? I honestly don't think it's fair to her.
 

Sulis

Netzach said:
But Sulis - and anybody else - would you really give TABI the information if you were me? And how would you feel if you were a young reader and something like this came through months after the reading? I honestly don't think it's fair to her.

Yes I would give the information to TABI, especially if I was prepared to mention it on another internet forum.
And if I were that reader then I would sooner someone said so if they weren't happy with a reading they'd got from me because only with constructive critisism can someone be expected to improve.
If this person thinks that their readings are up to scratch then they are going to continue to read in an unsatisfactory way - that's what feedback's for.

Sulis xx
 

Netzach

OK Sulis, I'll be guided by you. Thanks for the advice.
 

gregory

Another 2 bits worth - if that had happened to me, I would have contacted tabi AT THE TIME with a copy of what was sent. If THEY asked for it now, I would perhaps give it to whoever administers the place - but not just to a member here who asks. But I think it's a fair cop for a member to say here that they had a negative experience with tabi without all hell breaking loose. I have had dreadful experiences at the hands of the British Foreign Office, and I shall say so wherever I like - that doesn't necessarily mean I want to land the individuals who were responsible in the sh*t, as I have no doubt they were doing their best. Sometimes any organisation hires people who aren't up to scratch..... and with luck the training they will get on the job will help them improve. I don't always want to get people who make mistakes into trouble (only sometimes ;))

But Sulis has a point too - if I were the reader I would rather be told personally, not have it complained to above my head. I would want to do a good job which people appreciated. (And maybe there are brilliant readers who can't spell. That I could live with, though it would grate on my nerves....)
 

ribbitcat

gregory said:
If THEY asked for it now, I would perhaps give it to whoever administers the place - but not just to a member here who asks.

I may be a mere member here LOL and am also a mere member there too - now ;-) but I did used to be rather a bigwig before I dealt with my control issues so sucessfully LOL ....let's say, I'm semi-retired with the relevant contacts and permissions ....

But I think it's a fair cop for a member to say here that they had a negative experience with tabi without all hell breaking loose.

True. However, you must not be surprised that TABI members would want more details of such a complaint.

that doesn't necessarily mean I want to land the individuals who were responsible in the sh*t, as I have no doubt they were doing their best. Sometimes any organisation hires people who aren't up to scratch..... and with luck the training they will get on the job will help them improve. I don't always want to get people who make mistakes into trouble (only sometimes ;))

Aaah, in the business world, the true purpose behind a disciplinary procedure is to establish the gap between standards and performance and then to take action to remove the gap. And this was my intent when I asked Netzach privately for details - this reader may need coaching, help with English especially if it's not their first language, and the mentor may require assistance also .....

But Sulis has a point too - if I were the reader I would rather be told personally, not have it complained to above my head. I would want to do a good job which people appreciated.

I wonder, Netzach, did you feedback to the reader at all ?

(And maybe there are brilliant readers who can't spell. That I could live with, though it would grate on my nerves....)

I guess so, imagine if you came from a face-to-face background and had little or no experience of written readings .....

ribbit
 

Moongold

tarotbear said:
I was offended because my first impression upon reading it was that the comment was somehow directed at a particular recent thread 'Dinner With Tarotbear' in which participants tossed a deck they could not connect with into a bonfire. This thread was a parody of other similar threads (Dinner with Waite, Crowley, Miss Smith, and Stu Kaplan - to be exact). The 'burning' at the end was strictly symbolic - a cathartic reaction carried off in the most humorous way possible.

The comment, however returns us to that historical anomaly of book burnings and Nazis destroying knowledge to keep the masses ignorant. Book burning will always and eternally be associated with Nazis, and the implication - intentional or not- that the members of AT ARE Nazis is deeply offensive, indeed.
Book burning has a history going back BC. I always associate it with Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 myself. There have been many more serious burnings than those of the Nazis; and some short time ago there were many jokes here at Aeclectic about the burning of the Little White Books that come with decks.

Methinks we should not take ourselves too seriously :D.

I now wonder why certification arouses such passions. Once I thought certification might be necessary if people were masquerading as counsellors and taking money for it. But now I think potential querents should and do use any means to assess what might work for them.

Looking for a professional reader recently I chose one who was a member of the Australian Tarot Guild. I knew her by name and knew she conducted workshops around the place. I must say that the fact that she was a Professional Member of the Guild did influence my decision. I didn't think they would list her if she did not know her stuff. I also knew she was about my age and had once worked professionally in education. That did matter to me.

But 'good' depends on what you want and need. I spoke with her before the reading and she explained the principles of her practice very openly. It was a good starting point for me and the reading was everything I could have wanted. It was really meaningful and accurate in what it picked up about my life and current concerns. She gave me a more than an hour of her time and a tape of the reading. I have decided to go back and do some of her workshops.

I'm not sure that we have TABI type certification here but this reader's status in the Guild did influence my choice. I needed someone good and did not want to take a chance on someone in a local bookshop. I did that once before and it was not worth the money. This is not to say that it is always like that.

So although this reader did have something equivalent to registration she also had many other attributes which attracted me to her. And I do think the onus is on the person who wants the reading to check out the reader.

But I don't think registration should be mandatory. I assume that people who read Tarot professionally are completely committed to their art. If they want to make their living through Tarot and it helps to have a piece of paper, then all power to them. It's just another way of putting yourself as a Tarot reader on the market.

'Certification' should not be compulsory, though and I don't think now that it ever will be. It is probably just another market force, and although that is dreary, we should not be surprised in this day and age. :rolleyes: