Liz Worth ~ Tarot + Astrology

One of the most challenging things a reader can do is read at a busy event. When you have a line-up of people waiting to a get a complimentary five-minute reading, it really puts the pressure on.

Event hosts usually hire tarot readers to add something extra to the evening: They want to treat their guests to something different, and they want to enhance the atmosphere.

But I find that event hosts often underestimate how popular readings are, especially when the host is covering the cost for the guests. A free reading? Yes, please!

If you haven’t read tarot at a big party – and I’m talking about events that are open to the public – you can expect to have more demand than you can realistically accommodate within an evening. People will sometimes spend their entire night waiting in line for a quick reading, forgoing any other enjoyments the event offers.

You can also expect the usual suspects of questions: People will often ask whether you see them finding love any...

What is the hardest question you’ve had to answer as a tarot reader?

In the time that I’ve been reading for other people, I’ve had my fair share of difficult questions.

Difficult, of course, is subjective.

Some people find questions like, “Is my ex coming back?” challenging because they are yes or no questions with an emotional charge to them.

Others find predictive questions difficult because their tarot reading style is less focused on the future and more on the present.

Tarot readers are always defining the boundaries of their work, and determining the best ways they can use tarot.

When I was starting out as a professional reader, there was a common piece of advice out there to turn down readings that didn’t feel like a good fit for your work.

There have only been a few times that I’ve turned people down, however. Sometimes, clients will come for tarot readings needing a type of support that just isn’t possible through tarot. Or,...

A couple years ago, a young woman named Gabby Petito had gone missing in the U.S.

It was a big news story here. People were obsessively following it online.

At the time, I was mentoring a few tarot students who were following the story, too.

They were particularly interested in seeing other tarot readers, psychics, and astrologers trying to crack the case through readings and divination on platforms like Instagram and TikTok.

“I find these videos really interesting to watch,” one student admitted. “But is it ethical to do readings like this?”

There is a history of psychics helping to solve crimes, but this practice has a controversial past and uneven results.

Psychic medium Kristy Robinett famously helped police in the cold case of Ashley Howley of Ohio, who was murdered in 2004. The story of Robinett’s assistance later became the subject of a documentary called Restless Souls, produced by the Discovery Channel.

This is one example of how helpful this...

A lot of people are surprised when I tell them I don’t spend all day reading tarot.

“Isn’t that your job?” they wonder.

But that question itself says a lot: Many people are used to thinking about work as a single job – one role or job title that you’re assigned.

When you’re self-employed as a tarot reader, you’re actually doing a lot more work than just reading for clients.

Being self-employed means making time to manage many moving parts along the way. There are administrative tasks, marketing efforts, and a lot of unexpected decisions to make on an ongoing basis.

There are also ups and downs, emotional rollercoasters, and imperfect days.

Here are three truths that you will have to accept if you are running a tarot business (or any other service-based business, for that matter.)

1. People will unsubscribe from your mailing lists and channels.

All of the big advice out there says to build a mailing list (which I recommend,...

I get a lot of questions about how to prepare for tarot readings from a reader’s perspective.

Readers are often concerned with protecting their energy by staying grounded. Or by shielding against a draining querent.

Boundaries in tarot readings go both ways, though, and it’s important to remember that our querents have boundaries, too.

But we might not always know what those boundaries are for each querent. Every individual will have a different comfort zone. And not all querents will be experienced with readings enough to know what they want from the experience.

People often come to tarot readings with an open mind. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that anything goes in a tarot reading.

Establishing some boundaries for your own conduct can go a long way in ensuring that querents have a great experience with you.

Here are a few boundaries I’m mindful of that you might find helpful, too.

Honesty and respect can co-exist.

Some tarot readers like to...

"How much should I charge for a tarot reading?"

This is one of the first questions people often ask when they start to read tarot professionally.

Charging for a tarot reading is a big step: It is a move that can change people’s perception of you.

Someone who is willing to pay you for your time is more likely to see you as a skilled craftsperson. They are invested in what you’re doing because they have some skin in the game.

When a client isn’t paying for a service, they don’t have anything at stake. It can be the worst reading, or the best reading, but either way, they’ve got nothing to lose it ends up being a bad experience.

But there is a "but" here, which is this:

There is actually a time and place to read for free – and a way to make it feel like a fair exchange. And that’s when you’re in the learning phases as a tarot reader.

I didn’t charge a dime for my tarot readings for seven years, because I was gaining experience.

I did offer...

When I started learning tarot, my goal was to be able to read tarot for other people.

I’d been getting all kinds of readings – palm, tarot, psychic, Akashic records – for years.

I had long been fascinated and awed by the way each reader seemed to hit on things that were so true and personal for me.

I cherished each of these experiences and wanted to be able to help others in the same way.

As soon as I could, I started reading tarot for friends and family, and eventually strangers. Over time, I built up my skills enough to feel confident charging for my readings.

When I first started my tarot business, I had certain visions of how it would all go. But I soon realized that, like many things in life, there are always surprises – and learning opportunities to grow from.

One of the things that I had to grasp was that tarot clients don’t necessarily think like tarot readers.

One of the biggest ah-a moments I had around this came up around tarot...

A lot of tarot readers develop their skills with the goal of being able to give readings to others.

The idea of sitting down, shuffling your cards, and helping someone through the guidance of a tarot reading is a fulfilling dream.

But once you start reading for other people, you soon realize there’s a lot more to it than being a good card reader.

People skills, time management, and clear expectations are just a few of the ingredients that go into delivering a solid reading.

This is where boundaries become key. Whether you’re just reading casually for friends and family, or setting up shop as a professional reader, boundaries are needed at all levels of tarot reading.

Even low-key, low-pressure readings for friends need them, otherwise you can end up on call 24/7 with friends who want you to “just pull a quick card” for them. Or who want to ask questions that put you in an uncomfortable position within your social circle.

So what are some boundaries...

Have you ever been in the middle of a tarot reading when, suddenly, an unexpected message pops into your head?

Or maybe you’ve been trying to answer a question, but the reply the cards are offering feels like a slight detour. It is an answer – even an acceptable one – but you’re not quite sure how it fits with the querent’s situation.

It's not uncommon to feel compelled to deliver a certain message that, to you as the reader, might feel a bit odd or unusual. Not because it’s irrelevant to the sitter (ideally, it should still relate to the context of the reading), but because you’re not sure how fits into the context of your querent’s life.

Tarot readers often have a limited view and understanding of their querents’ situations. Unless you’re reading for someone you know very well, you don’t have much to go on when it comes to the background of a question that’s been posed.

You also won’t necessarily...

A few years ago, I was hired to teach a few private classes to someone who had just started reading tarot. She had bought her first deck a few months before she booked on for some lessons.

After our fourth lesson together, I got an email from her: “I forgot to ask you something in our class today,” she wrote. “How much do you think I should charge for my readings?”

I was surprised.

Our lessons at that point only totaled up to about four hours of study. This student had also only ever read tarot for herself.

Given what we’d covered in our classes so far, I knew she still had a lot to learn.

I wrote back an honest response, telling her it was way too soon to worry about charging for readings. “Focus on learning how to read tarot first,” I said.

Practice, practice, practice is always my mantra with new students.

This wasn’t the first instance I’ve had this question, and it wasn’t the last.

There are a lot of reasons why I...