Laugh, play, sing, dance, have your emotions out loud and then see what happens. So much of the time we are expected to be certain things but have no room to try them out. Give yourself that room. You do not to be perfect and you do not have to have it all figured out. Play around. I have found that any time lost exploring is made up for by my own enthusiasm and effort. Besides, all of this isn’t to make you a more efficient person, but a happier one.

To access the messages brought out by tarot cards, you have to release what you thought the answer would be to let yourself process what cards did come out. It sounds like an obvious thing but often you have to confront your ego and accept that things are a bit different than you thought, especially while presented with things you did see. The truth is usually messy and filled with things we don’t know, if you’re going to be open to the messages as they are, you have to let go of control. You will need to suspend what you know, the way you know it, while still allowing yourself to be present with your wants and desires.

But, of course, to use the cards in a useful way, you do occasionally want a yes or no answer. Trying to make decisions is hard, why not get a little help? When looking for concise and clear answers, I’ve also been finding more lately that the cards really reward efforts to embrace your autonomy. Let yourself speak out which way you’re leaning. Rather than asking “Should I go to this event?” switch to “I’m planning on going to this event, is that the right call?” It’s ultimately still a yes/no, but you’re using your voice more actively. We’re speaking a plan and asking for backup instead of expecting some divine answer to come and save us from the mundane.

“I know what all the cards mean, I just don’t know how to piece them together into something meaningful.” This sentiment is the main issue I hear from people learning how to read tarot. Sure, memorizing 78 individual cards can be tricky but it seems like many people get stuck on contextualizing the cards.

If you find yourself in a similar place, I’m here to help! This article is part one of four I’ve written about how to build the meaning of the cards together into a useful tarot reading. Each card has its own definition (and evergrowing collective understanding), when laid out in a spread they complete full sentences of meaning. This particular article will illustrate how to read these sentences as part of a larger story. This is a technique I’ve used to deepen my tarot practice. I’ve focused my writing on those learning to read cards for themselves. Though this information can be expounded upon to read cards for others, I would greatly suggest reading for yourself before moving on to reading for others.