How My Approach to Tarot is Different

In Toronto it's getting warmer - I hear more and more birds singing every day, and on my walk today I even saw a bunch of tiny flowers poking through the mud.

I don't know what the season or weather is like where you live, but for me the springtime always reinvigorates me - and inspires me to try new things.

Springtime makes me think of learnings - new beginnings and fresh deep-dives into re-commitment to my interests and passions.

As I get ready to relaunch my Tarot Without Bullshit online course and group coaching program (next month as of this writing - April 2021!), I wanted to take a moment to talk about what makes my approach to tarot very different from anyone else out there.

There’s a lot of noise in the tarot space in particular and in the spiritual/wellness space in general, and it can sometimes be a bit difficult to discern which tarot reader and/or tarot teacher has ideas that are resonant with your own.

Don’t we all just read tarot the same?!

Well, no!

I'm not for everyone!

(To be honest, who is? And who would want to be?)

And so I have to say: my approach isn’t for everyone.

I don’t try to contort myself into someone whose approach will resonate with everyone - so, to make sure everyone’s as happy and aligned as can be, I wanted to spell out what’s important to me, and what’s different about how I do things.

Maybe you see tarot as ‘just for fun,’ or a silly entertaining game, but nothing really all that meaningful or serious - and maybe you see the tarot as just a bunch of dead trees.

Or, maybe you see the tarot as I do.

I see the tarot as a being, as an ally, friend, and family member.

I see the tarot as a lively, vibrant nonhuman being with agency - NOT an inert pile of paper.

I see tarot as alive.

I see tarot readings as collaborative conversations between ourselves, the cards, our clients, and all the spirits and energies around us.

I don’t see the tarot as 'random' or based on luck or chance.

I believe that all cards pulled are pulled for a reason.

I don’t believe in learning by memorizing the cards.

I used to be a university professor, and as a part of my Masters degree I have a diploma in Education.

Memorization is not a way to meaningfully retain knowledge, and so when I teach tarot, there’s no emphasis on memorization, there’s no long lists of correspondences or charts to practice over and over in your head, with no connection to meaning. No, no, no.

I see personal relevance in tarot as important.

I love The Moon card, even though it's not a 'good' card - when it comes up, it shows I'm on the right path.

I teach my students to activate what I call their Personal Libraries of Meaning.

I don’t believe you NEED books to read the tarot.

I believe when we’re new to tarot our primary text should be the cards themselves.

Once you’re more advanced, go for it – but not when you’re newer or struggling to flow with your cards, referencing a book can be a crutch that disconnects you from your intuition and what is going on in the cards.

I don’t think your intuition needs to be perfect before you read the cards.

I believe tarot can teach you intuition and energy skills.

I believe reading the actual image on each card is important.

I teach how to do this.

I’m an artist, and used to teach illustration studio and theory at a design school. The tarot is illustrated. You shouldn’t have to read the caption of an illustration to know what it’s about - the same is true for tarot.

Knowing how to really read an image is an indispensable skill for all interested in really reading cards.

When we choose a deck whose imagery we can relate to and connect to - and when we know how to read imagery - it becomes a lot easier to relate to the cards as energetic beings, as collaborators and friends with whom we build relationship and connection.

When we rely on memorizing, we cut ourselves off from relationship with the cards, and with ourselves.

When I teach tarot, my aim is to connect my students to themselves, their own intuition, their own unique and special way of connecting with the tarot.

I don’t want to create any clones of me! Instead, I teach tarot readers who become so grounded in their own identity, their own unique skills as readers and spiritual people, that they will never be mistaken for anyone else.

I want to create empowerment in my students, not dependency.

Confidence, not insecurity.

And teaching tarot is one of my greatest joys.

Interested in learning tarot?

Awesome - I’d love to hear from you (on Instagram, on email)!

Wanna learn a bit more about me and what makes me unique? Awesome! I’ve made a 12 minute video on this topic. Click the button below to watch!