Coaching and Tarot Have More in Common Than You Might Think

Let's take a moment to discuss the similarities between coaching and tarot. My coaching practice combines life coaching practices, tools, and techniques with tarot consulting/reading. For me tarot consulting goes beyond just reading the cards and implies more of an exchange between reader and questioner.
 
Coaching sessions take place with a coach and a client. Tarot requires a reader and a questioner. (The reader can also be the questioner when doing readings for oneself.) When a coach and client begin their work together, focus areas are defined. With tarot, the process that a questioner goes through to formulate the question causes them to identify their most important issues.

 

In coaching, we use the technique of visualization. In tarot, we use actual images. We know that the human mind responds to pictures and detects patterns. We also know it is human nature to recognize in others what we cannot see in ourselves. For example, if you become aggravated because Stanley always interrupts you, you may be well-advised to examine your own style of conversation. It is likely that you, too, may interrupt others more often than you realize.

 

Depending on the question, this may be one possible interpretation if you should get the Knight of Swords reversed. Upright, the card can show spontaneity and energy. Reversed, it may be a sign of moving or speaking before thinking or without adequately listening or waiting for the other person to finish.
 
Viewing the pictures on tarot cards, the questioner can more easily recognize the truth. They can identify people or behaviors that play a role in their situation by the characteristics displayed by the people illustrated on the cards. For example, the same Knight of Swords may represent a person who is always looking for the next adventure, but may not plan adequately before rushing off. If you’re looking at the Knight of Swords as your potential mate, do not count on quiet evenings at home.
 
At the end of a coaching session, the client may leave with an action plan or a different, more productive way to deal with the coaching topic. At the end of a tarot consulting/reading session, the questioner also may leave with an action plan or a different way to view the situation. A coach listens attentively and makes sense of what she hears from the client. A tarot consultant/reader listens attentively and makes sense of the cards in relation to the specific question from the specific questioner at that time. In both coaching and tarot, the client and questioner play active roles in recognizing their own truths and deciding what action or non-action to pursue.
 
For me, the tarot offers another tool for coaching. Sometimes, a picture truly is worth a thousand words.