8 Ways To Know Your Reader Better

Part of having a good connection with your reader is to know more about them. Here are 8 ways you can learn more about the person that you choose to perform your reading.

There are lots of questions that you can ask, and things that you can look for in order to ensure that you are picking the best possible reader for you. For each of the headings below I will be sharing my answers for them. Hopefully this will not only give you an idea what to ask, but also a better look inside me.

How much do they charge?

This is going to vary from reader to reader, and from area to area. A reader in Los Angeles can make a lot more then a reader in a town of 5000 in rural New Mexico (yep, that's me!) It is also going to vary depending on if they read as a hobby, or if they read as a full time job. For me I

• Am a mother to six children
• Have a husband on disability
• I live in a town where pretty much the only local jobs are fast food
  

So for me, I am now reading full time from home. I read on the hotlines and on my website. So for me I need to be able to charge enough to support our family. This is why I read primarily online, because it allows me to charge what I need to make to be successful. Looking at what a reader charges gives you a lot of insight into what they feel are important to them.

​Do they make predictions? 

There are some readers who can sit down with you and say "XXX will call you at 4pm on October 3rd". That is problematic for a couple of reasons. The first being that the cards rarely will give you that specificity. Another reason, and the one that I operate under is that I can tell you where things are headed on their CURRENT path, but we still maintain free will. You can change direction at any time, and the whole picture changes. Have you ever seen the movie Twilight? It's a lot like when we learn that Alice's visions of the future are subjective.  The person changes course and the whole thing goes in a new direction.  I get some flashes, but it can all change.

​Are they psychic? 

Not every psychic is a tarot reader, and not every tarot reader is psychic. I get flashes of psychic energy, but I cannot control it, and it is a lot like watching a movie on fast forward. You see the overall idea, but the details and the dialogue are not quite there. So I simply choose to NOT claim to be psychic. I instead advertise myself as an intuitive card reader. I use the tarot cards as a conduit for delivering the message. On my own site there isn't such a problem, but when I am reading on the hotlines there is a lot of misconception that everyone on there is psychic. You can find a lot of very good readers who are not psychic, so don't hold it against a reader if they are not. 

​What is their style?

A reader's style can tell you a lot about the reader. Each reader has their own special twists, methods and specialties. For me personally I specialize in relationships, past lives and spirit animals. Another reader may specialize in career readings, spirit communication and grief. And while I CAN read for other subjects, my specialties are where I really shine. Some readers like to give lots of metaphors, and rituals and what we call the "woo". I like to be fairly direct, with an occasional metaphor or pop culture reference and I always close my readings out with a quote to reflect on.  You can usually get a good feel of a reader through samples of their work on their website or social media. And when in doubt, ask. I have several friends who specialize in things that I don't, and I am happy to refer you to them if I can't help you the way you deserve.

​Speaking of social media - are they on it?

Here again is a case where a lot of readers aren't, but there are a lot that are. Some have Facebook, while others do the majority of their posts on Instagram. Several of my fellow tarot reading for others via YouTube. There are lots of ways to connect with your reader and get to know them better. I had a really extensive Facebook biz page, but a glitch made me lose it, so I had to restart it. If you'd like to follow me on Facebook here is the link: www.facebook.com/TucumcariTarotNM . Every Friday I do a free reading post, and you can also stay up to date with blog posts there.  I also have an Instagram page, but I haven't really done a whole lot with it. 

​How active are they in the tarot community?

This one is also an indication of how a reader works with others. How they interact with their peers is important. I belong to several Facebook groups around tarot - from how to make my business better, to staying up to date with the latest tarot news. I also am constantly learning. Sure, tarot is pretty much the same as it has always been - but methods and cards can change. I like to stay up to date with the latest in the community. I also interact with the community by doing things like blog hops. A site runs a hop, where each site writes a blog post about a specific topic or card, and each blog links to the one before and after it on the list. It's a great way to support each other, and to also expose our clients to different readers. Everyone wins! You might also look at those who write books or create decks (of which I do both!)

​How long have they been reading?

Now this isn't to say that a new reader can't be good. Some people are really gifted in that they can pick up a deck and almost instantly connect to it. It doesn't happen a lot, but it does happen. Generally speaking though a good reader has been around for a while. There are some places, like New York City, where someone opens a tarot shop, reads for a bunch of people and then closes up shop. Then they open up somewhere else under another name. This is a big red flag. Look for someone who has been around for a while, because they tend to really know what they are doing. I have been reading the tarot since 1997, although I didn't get into reading for money until around 2012/2013.  If you are interested in knowing more about what got me into tarot, feel free to check out the blog post "Tarot Saved My Life" . 

​and finally - are they religious or spiritual? 

Contrary to popular belief there are a lot of tarot readers who are Christian or Catholic. I've even met a couple Muslim readers. Maybe you really like to connect with a person who shares the same religious beliefs as you. Other people are spiritual, and believe in things like reincarnation, past lives, and gods/goddesses. Personally I have no place in my world for organized religion after some very traumatic events in my childhood. Instead I worship Anubis (who offers judgement on us when we die) and also the Voodoo Loa (which interestingly enough correspond to Catholic saints most of the time!).  I believe in magic, and have cast very successful spells in the past for other people. Not everyone agrees with that, and that is OK too. However knowing your readers belief system is a great way to tell if they are going to be a good fit for you.


What is the biggest thing that would help you when it comes to getting to know your reader? Drop a comment below and let us know what you think.