For Professional Readers

[Papa Tango]

It is interesting how terms and labels change over time. Not more than a couple decades ago--the term 'consultant' had quite a different take. On the 'employed' side of things, the label pretty much only applied to specialists working for larger professional groups--not an independant contractor--such as accountants, attorneys, and business development experts--that traveled somewhere else to give 'in-house' assessment and recommendations.

The flip of this was what people who were 'between flights', aka unemployed and between jobs--told others to avoid negativism and outside perceptions over being unemployed. I recall a stalled time of my life, sitting about a table with other "consultants" at the local unemployment office--checking in to get our UI checks...

 

[Saskia]

It depends, whether you want to tell or not. I mean are you proudly and openly a reader who's also looking for more customers, or would you rather keep it as your own thing, untainted by possibly hostile or narrow-minded strangers?

If you want tarot to be your only/main business and want to advertise it, then be open and explain what type of a reader you are (life coach, for example, or spiritual adviser, or whatnot). If that feels too out there, then maybe just a life coach who uses different methods, such as exploring intuition (if you want to elaborate further from the life coach).

If you don't want to share, you really don't have to. There's absolutely no obligation. I have other professions in addition to reading tarot and I normally only tell those. However, my husband is intrigued/proud about my tarot reading and he sometimes declares to new people what I do. Not that many are interested (or courageous?) enough to ask follow up questions so you might be fearing for nothing.

People take their cues about how to treat you FROM you and if you're proud or neutral about what you do, they usually take the same attitude. If you're trying to come up with excuses ("I know it's a bit silly"), you're giving them a reason to treat tarot as a laughing stock, too - this is what I've noticed.

 

[DownUnderNZer]

I just say and did have it on my FB page:

"I work on a corner in Kings Cross and went to the school of life".

But alas I am not a Professional reader.

DND

 

[starrystarrynight]

I'm mostly retired now, too--but my response was always simply that I was a freelance writer with different (other) streams of income mainly through Internet sales, as well. Then, I'd change the subject (asking the questioner the same query back is always an efficient strategy. Get 'em talking about themselves.)

 

[FLizarraga]

So a decade ago or so I decided to woman-up (as opposed to manning-up)