Raising The Bar On My Tarot Reading Skills

When I started embracing the wonderful world of tarot, I made a decision to take the learning process a step further in the hope that I could improve the readings that I do for my clients daily. I have recently gone through a difficult month obtaining my three certifications from the Tarot Certification Board of America. This blog post chronicles my experience obtaining my certification and serves to encourage fellow tarot readers interested in raising the bar on their tarot reading skills to get themselves certified.


How Did I Get Started?

I was introduced to the wonderful world of tarot through a basic and advance tarot class conducted by my tarot teacher Renae just barely a few months ago. She had my heart and mind prized open to what she termed "metaphysical science". I did not hurl myself into the course expecting to become a professional tarot reader. I was just curious and wanted to find out what science was there behind tarot. However, her tarot class had intrigued me by demonstrating its relevance to our day to day activities and how we managed our respective challenges dotted along that journey called life. Contrary to my original belief, it was not a fortune telling tool.

2 months after graduating from that advance tarot class, reading for family and friends with accuracy was not enough for me. While Renae had continued mentoring me post the classes, my voracious appetite for greater knowledge about the world of tarot led me to search for ways to take my skills a step further. I discovered the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI). As a member of the former, I was introduced to the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and the Free Tarot Network (FTN). I never looked back since.


What's The Point Of Getting Certified?

The TCBA was purpose-built to upskill tarot readers like us, depending on our goals. It aimed to raise the standard of tarot readers to legitimize the tarot community. Some tarot readers may just want to read casually for friends, and do it well. Some may want to make a career out of it by reading professionally. And there are some who might want to mentor or teach tarot readers who are at the beginning of their journey with their tarot cards. Whatever goals you have, TCBA's different levels of certification are created to meet these goals. They are, Certified Apprentice Tarot Reader (CATR), Certified Tarot Reader (CTR), Certified Professional Tarot Reader (CPTR), Certified Tarot Consultant (CTC), Certified Tarot Master (CTM), Certified Tarot Instructor (CTI) and Certified Tarot Grand Master (CTGM).


A Difficult 2 Weeks Preparing For CPTR Examinations:

My desire to better my skills and knowledge to attain the goal of ultimately teaching and mentoring prospective tarot readers was what drove me to TCBA. In the first two levels of certification examinations (CATR and CTR), I not only had to display a basic knowledge of tarot card meanings both upright and reversed but I had to also demonstrate my ability to do a reading with a spread of 1 to 7 cards. That sounded pretty easy for me, until I started to work on achieving my CPTR qualification. I swear, I had to nurse a 3 - day migraine due to mental fatigue after that experience ( I rationalized it as my brain's difficulty in getting started after years of having left school) but what a wonderful experience it was. And here's why.

According to the TCBA website
(www.tarotcertification.org), I was required to supply the examiner with the following:

- my own personal code of ethics
- demonstrate how I use my code with my clients
- demonstrate how I handle troublesome or impossible questions and situations
- explain how I intend to teach, mentor, or assist prospective tarot readers in how to read tarot card
- verify that I have performed a minimum of twenty-five professional quality tarot readings
- rephrase at least three improper or impossible questions and then answer them to the satisfaction of my examiner
- demonstrate a high level of competency using tarot spreads using up to twelve cards

While the entire process sounds daunting, particularly for tarot readers like me who are relatively new with the art, it was necessary and definitely applicable to our day-to-day efforts of performing meaningful readings for our clients.


Code Of Ethics Is An Important Foundation For A Tarot Reading Consultancy:

The code of ethics is the critical foundation of a tarot reader's practice. Thankfully, I had already set up a full fledged tarot consultancy by this time, Sun Goddess Tarot, and did have a self-drafted code of ethics which I adhered to. And mine went like this:

1) I will only speak the truth from what I have read in the cards
2) I will not judge you whatever the outcome of the reading may be
3) I will provide my sincere advice in the hope that you can uncover possible solutions to your situation
4) I will not accept questions related to lottery or other luck-based games
5) I will not offer any advice outside the scope of my expertise including financial, legal, religious and medical advice

Besides, my membership with ATA and TABI also bound me to their respective codes of ethics.


Demonstrating Proof Of Reading Experience:

I can understand now, why the log of at least 25 readings was important to the process because robust tarot reading experience was necessary to make the certification process more meaningful. In fact, the certification process had been useful in reminding me of how I should be applying my code of ethics to the readings that I do for clients everyday.

Being able to articulate my mentoring goals and explaining with conviction how I could mentor my peers was also an important step in the process. At that time, I could relate my experience of helping beginner tarot readers who had contacted me with requests to re-interpret their card spreads either to affirm their accuracy or to provide alternative perspectives.


Dealing With Difficult Questions:

I can assure you that in my experience reading for my clients, I had often come across a question that seems perplexing at first glance, unfocused or may border on a request for medical or legal advice. I can easily rephrase some unfocused questions, or refuse a reading for one that borders on a request for medical or legal advice. However, my experience of being tested on rephrasing difficult questions has helped to raise my confidence in dealing with them more effectively. I learnt to put myself in the shoes of the querant and manage responses with more empathy.


Designing A 12-Card Spread:

When I was asked to do a reading using a 12-card spread, I went into a bit of a panic because I was never taught to read using a 12-card spread before. I have learnt a few spreads in my time, like the basic horse shoe spread, the Celtic Cross, and the past, present and future spread. But a spread with 12 cards was not easy, so I had to make a decision at that time to quickly design my own spread. My 12-card spread went like this.

Card 1 - Self
Card 2 - Situation
Card 3 - Feelings
Card 4 - Thoughts
Card 5 - Past influence
Card 6 - Present impact
Card 7 - Start doing
Card 8 - Stop doing
Card 9 - Development
Card 10 - Outcome
Card 11 - Obstacles
Card 12 - Advice


Having A Mentor Helps:

Renae had been mentoring me constantly by advising me on my interpretation of the spreads I had done for my clients, or providing alternative perspectives to some of my readings. She had also set up a Facebook group amongst her ex-students from past tarot classes to spur active discussion around our respective tarot related issues or questions.

I also tapped on the expertise of Brigit, a professional tarot reader, mentor and blogger to help guide me along my journey. Her tarot blogs, coupled with the reading opportunities that I got from clients who visited her website provided me with more reading experience under my belt.

Also at that time, as I had applied to be a reader on the Free Tarot Network, I had to simultaneously undergo rigorous training. For this purpose, I was assigned with an experienced and qualified mentor. It was a fantastic learning curve for me, because the FTN mentor was dedicated in helping me read not only accurately, but also more intuitively.

The skills I had learnt both from Renae and the FTN mentor had helped me with my CPTR examinations.


Tips For Those Interested In Getting Certified:

1) For tarot readers at the beginning of their journey, focus on getting more opportunities to read for actual clients, beyond family and friends. The experience will go a long way to helping you respond to the more difficult questions that the CPTR examinations require a reader to respond to.

2) The tarot community is also generous with help and advice. Play an active part in the various tarot associations either locally or around the world. Subscribe to popular tarot blogs. Search the internet for other professional tarot readers' websites. Not only do you get a wider perspective on the subject from experienced tarot readers around the world, they are also ever ready to support you through your journey, if you ask for help and advice.


What's After The CPTR for me?

I have decided to further hone my skills with my clients, and build an abundance of experience doing different type of readings either in person, online, via phone, Skype, Facebook or at events. I also want to practice doing multiple spreads preferably self-designed according to what my intuition tells me. Once I have built that experience and confidence, I plan to complete the next level of certification, CTC, which requires me to write my own curriculum for teaching the 22 major arcana cards and demonstrate that I can attribute the 78 cards to another esoteric or occult paradigm, as well as justify their particular attributions. It sounds daunting already.

I love tarot with all my heart because of the limitless opportunities it brings. While the certification had helped raise the standard of my tarot reading skills, my experience reading for actual clients had helped hone my intuition and improve confidence in my skills. At the end of the day, what's important in this business is that we remain true to putting our clients' interest first.

About The Writer:


The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She has recently achieved a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America. A member of the American Tarot Association and the Tarot Association of the British Isles, she is also endorsed as a reader for the Free Tarot Network.

She can be contacted at www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot or www.sungoddesstarot.com