If you read Tarot cards for others, you probably know that panicky feeling you get when your mind suddenly freezes up during a Tarot card reading. No matter how experienced you are with giving Tarot readings, there will be those moments where you just simply draw a blank. There are many reasons for this, such as:
- You’re tired and losing the ability to focus
- You’ve pulled a “negative” Tarot card in response to the querent’s hopeful question (and you’re not sure how to interpret it in a sensitive way).
- You simply have no idea how to interpret a particular combination of Tarot cards (they make no sense!)
I have been in the above three situations more times than I can count! Over the years I have discovered three methods of shifting out of mental numbness and into divine insight:
1) Be honest & laugh!
Come clean to your Tarot reading client and tell them “my mind has gone completely blank and I’ve lost my train of thought!”
Don’t be afraid to have a good laugh – laughter breaks up stagnant energy, gets things moving and will help relax you and the person your reading for. I often find that this is enough to completely shift the energy and allow for some deep insights to enter your awareness.
This approach may not be appropriate if the subject of the Tarot reading is more serious, which leads us to the next method…
2) Ask your client a question
This takes the pressure off you, gives your client a chance to say something and can indicate to you which direction to take the reading.
Ask an open-ended question like “what stands out to you in this reading?” or “I notice a lot of red in these cards – what significance does that color have for you?”
There was a time when I felt that asking my client questions during a reading was “cheating” and unprofessional. However, experience has shown me that interactive Tarot readings are much more fun and insightful. You may feel differently, so go with what feels best for you.
3) Ask for a moment
Give yourself some space by saying “let me just take a moment to see if anything comes to me.” Your client will appreciate your willingness to go deeper and take your time gaining insight, rather than just rushing through it.
When I first began doing Tarot readings for people, I thought that I had to be talking the entire time I was giving a reading. It was exhausting! Allowing for gaps in the reading gives you and your client a moment to absorb whats been said and it can open the doors for more guidance and information to come through.
Change how you see those moments of “not knowing what to say”. A blank mind is like a blank canvas – this is actually when you are your most receptive to intuitive/psychic information. When you are too much in your head during a reading, it can cause your logical mind to short circuit, freeing you up to actually use your intuition. So don’t be afraid of not knowing how to interpret a card or having your mind clam up. Instead, welcome this with open arms!
🙂 In the comment section below, feel free to share what you do when your mind goes blank during a reading – do you panic? Or is this something you just don’t worry about?
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Tarot Tips from a Professional Tarot Reader
How to Connect With Your Deck in 3 Easy Steps
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Thank you for this… I am a newborn tarot reader… I am naturally intuitive however i am having a very hard time using the tarot… I used tarot references alot during a reading… Right now because of covid i do readings over the phone and so this allows me to use tarot references without my clients knowing… They turn out very happy with the reading but i am not… I am able to do readings just by using meditation but i included tarot into my life because i was always drawn to it…. How do i merge my natural gift with the tarot there is so much to know and then i go blank once the spread is infront of me…
Hi there! I really appreciate coming across these wonderful tips, as I seek to start doing more tarot readings. I have definitely fallen in blank states and have managed to navigate them through asking subtle questions or adding more cards. I however, do have questions about how to make a reading last an hour, especially for someone who is very quiet and doesn’t have much questions to ask? Or what is a great way to approach people who don’t want to ask anything or give away any information to see “how good I am?” Any advice would help!
Thank you 🙂
Neli
Great questions, Neli!
For longer readings, I usually choose a bigger spread with more cards. It’s good to have some little 3 card spreads in your back pocket in case you get through the main spread too quickly – you can always branch off and go deeper into a particular topic and draw a few more cards.
For people who don’t have questions or who clam up, ask them “what are you hoping to get from this experience?” OR “how can I best help you today?” – that will give you a bit of an idea of where they’re at and what they’re wanting from the reading.
But sometimes you’ll get a person who just won’t tell you much and you need to be okay with that and be okay just diving into the reading, exploring the cards and trusting that the cards that need to show up will and that your intuition will come through. Hope that makes sense!
TIP: practice reading for an imaginary person. Reading this way will get you used to doing all the talking!
Thank you for the exceptional suggestions Kate! I occasionally panic and every now and then don’t, it depends on the significance of the scenario.
Hi, Kate. 🙂
It’s been awhile since I posted here, but I do have a problem that I need help with and a few questions I’d like to ask. Okay. Here goes.
I have a set of Cards called “Star Cards”(Sakura Cards. They’re from the Japanese anime “Cardcaptor Sakura”.). They’re classified as Oracle Cards. In the beginning, I was reading for a friend of mine, my Nurse, and myself with these Cards, but after awhile, I stopped using them because I got bored of them. When I did want to work with them again, I barely got any answers from them. I tried my old method of explaining situations, asking the question(s), and then waiting for the answers to come to me. Now when I do readings with them, I barely get answers from them, nothing at all, or my mental illness talking. So my question is: Can Oracle/Tarot Cards eventually stop working for you? This has been my biggest fear and now I feel it’s come true because I can’t get a lot of answers like I used to in the past when doing readings for myself and others. I thought it was my Third Eye Chakra blocked, but that’s not it because it’s open. The problem is that I can’t get any detailed answers from my Cards and I don’t know why.
I don’t know what to do and I’m scared. I really love my Star Cards and want to continue working with them. I don’t want to stop working with them. They’re my friends. What do I do and what do you think is happening?
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
~Yalanda
I forgot to say that when I put each Card up to my forehead, I felt a tingling sensation where my Third Eye Chakra is. Even after I cleanse them. What do you think that means? Do you think that’s a sign that I CAN still work with my Cards or does that mean that I’m picking up their energy through my Third Eye Chakra?
Thank you again.
Hi Yalanda,
Sometimes this happens – it happened to me with my Robin Wood Tarot a few years ago. I’m not sure what’s going on for you here. Have you tried cleansing your cards? You can do this by wafting sage smoke over them, or putting them in a bag of quartz crystals or even putting them on your windowsill over night during a full moon. Sometimes our decks can accumulate lots of energy over time and this can distort readings. Or you might just need a break from your cards. Or you might need to try reading with another deck for a while and then come back to your star cards at a later date. One thing you could try is asking your deck “what’s going on here?” and see what it tells you.
I wouldn’t worry about this or think too hard on it though – sometimes if you take your readings too seriously it restricts the flow of energy and readings stop being helpful.
Relax, have fun and let me know how it goes 🙂
Cheers,
Kate
Thanks, Kate! 🙂 I just ordered a new set of Star Cards and I felt a strong pull to them, so I think my old set may have been too out of shape. I still have the old set tucked away in my nightstand drawer. But as for my new Star Cards, I’m going to work with them and have fun at the same time like I used to when I read for myself and others. When I did that in the past, I was getting answers left and right. So I don’t have to worry anymore. 🙂
Also, when I was looking through my new set and listening to a song, I broke down into tears, but not really sad tears. I was very emotional and I’ve been pretty emotional lately. But than you for your tips and I know everything’s all right. Especially with my new Star Cards. 🙂
Thank you again!
~Yalanda
This is good to hear, Yalanda 🙂 Sounds like you’ve already bonded with your new set of star cards.
Have you tried re consecration of the deck? Sometimes this helps put them back on track.
Thank you for the clear instructions on how one should focus before they start with the tarot card reading. It’s very true that unless we know what we need exactly, we may not feel the question from the heart and the result also might put us in dilemma. Thank you for the informative post.
Glad you enjoyed this, Saroja 🙂 Thanks for reading!
Kate, I love your site. I found it during one of my own blank moments. I just knew I needed to look for inspiration and there you were! Fortunately I was doing a reading on myself at the time and had an opportunity to go looking for what I needed. Though the blank spaces can be daunting, I have learned to appreciate them as the “space in between”. Sometimes there is an element of fake it till I make it in my appreciation :D.
When this happens, I’ll generally take 3 deep breaths and ask “what is the question in this” that open ended question will usually prompt something to come to me, or will prompt me to draw another card. Eventually, those additionally drawn cards support each other and create a bigger picture.
I’ve also found that the other person’s reaction in those spaces is part of the process. For example, if those spaces are met with agitation, then it may relate to attitudes or perceptions about control that are creating a block.
The key for me, is to remember for myself all of the things I just said when the spaces happen!
I don’t really have any tips on the blank mind. It made me laugh, ( I couldn’t laugh till just now after reading your article.) Just yesterday it happened to me. I was tired, hadn’t meditated and started doing a reading for someone. I will forever call it my ‘um’ reading for that’s about all I did after it began. I wish I had read your information before this so I would have had some idea on how to overcome that moment. Sigh! But now I know I’m not alone in this. Thank goodness! And thank you Kate for all your wonderful tips.
It happens to the best of us, Cindy! It happens to me more often than not, sometimes 😉
My comment really has nothing to do with the above-referenced topic; however, I didn’t know where to go to write to you to tell you HOW EXCITED I AM ABOUT YOUR UPCOMING 4-WEEK TAROT COURSE!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!! Although I have been reading tarot for about 11 years, I always welcome fresh insight and new ideas, and you are just BRIMMING with them! I love your website, your innovative ideas, your readings, everything! So I cannot wait to take your course! Blessings, my friend. Stay well. Glad you had a wonderful, safe trip to Alaska!
Sage – thank you! 🙂 This is exactly what I needed to hear today. Your excitement excites ME! Can’t wait to have you in my class!!!
Thank you for the wonderful tips Kate! I sometimes panic and sometimes don’t, it depends on the importance of the situation. When I go blank, I often pull an extra card to support the card that made me go blank. This is especially helpful if a negative, opposing or non-sense-at-first-glance card came up in the reading for a hopeful question. For example, when Death, Tower or any card that has an opposing meaning appears for a question regarding a relationship, success, etc., I simply pull another card from the deck, asking how does that card relate to the question, in which ways should it show itself in that area of life. The extra card is definitely a life saver, when the possible outcome of a pleasant situation is asked and the Death, Devil, etc. card shows up, or it is a rather serious reading or querent. You get a chance to say what you have to say in a more supportive and clear way, leaving no question marks behind and also taking a fresh breath and gap while pulling the extra card, plus I think it makes a satisfactory effect on serious people. 🙂
Yes! Pulling an extra card can be very helpful. Another thing I like to do if a card doesn’t totally make sense right away, is move on the another card and then go back to it after – I think my subconscious mind is working on that card while I am reading another one – and then once all the cards are turned over, it can make more sense as to how that one card fits in.