How I work with leaders as an intuitive tarot coach
We’re in Canary Wharf. It’s London, October 2019.
Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the heart of Europe’s financial centre.
25 highly successful, educated, results-driven executives unlocking powerful personal and professional insights. And on the screen in front of them? A trio of tarot cards.
I’ve been using Tarot with clients for three years now, and I am continually in awe of the impact it has. Powerful change happens for us when we get out of our heads (where fears and limiting beliefs live alongside our intellect), and connect with the intelligence that is held in our emotions, intuition and body. In coaching, I use a range of tools to facilitate this for people, and one of those tools is tarot. In this blog, I’ll explore what Tarot is, my beliefs on it, and examples of how I use it with coaching clients
So what IS tarot?
A tarot deck consists of 78 picture cards. Think of it as a ‘map of human experience’, covering the Big Themes (love, power, creativity, change, spirituality etc) through to everyday events (balancing work and family, taking on too many projects, the joy of hanging out with friends etc). Because the experiences represented by the cards are universal, they help us connect with our subconscious, and reveal information to us that we have been ignoring or unable to see.
In my experience, there are always 'meaningful coincidences' when you use tarot - the cards that show up often seem exactly right for the situation. I can't explain this, but I think it’s a combination of our subconscious accessing the information it needs to access in a given situation; and an alignment of energy when the reader (me) focuses their attention on the person being read for.
What are my beliefs about tarot?
I don't believe in fortune telling - our future is not fixed. It’s decided by the actions we take each day. I also don't believe in channeling spirits, but I DO believe that human intuition is incredibly powerful and picks up information that can't be understood by the brain alone. I've seen it, over and over again :)
How do I use Tarot in a coaching session?
Well, it depends on the client and the situation, but here’s a few examples:
1) To shine a spotlight on what’s REALLY happening in a situation. When everything seems confusing, a single card can allow us to cut to the heart of the matter.
2) To offer a message of guidance or support. For example - I pull a card each week in my online course, The Intuitive Career Journey, asking ‘what does the group need this week?’
3) To explore different perspectives on a situation. For example, a client might be deciding between two job opportunities, so we might pull a couple of cards for each option to see what might be the pros and cons of each one.
4) To surface the invisibles. This is, for me, where the real magic often is. There’s something about the pictures and the themes in a tarot card that often allows us to face up to something we’ve been ignoring. The other day a client realised, when faced with the 6 of Swords, that she’s been assuming that her new job is going to be a nightmare, despite having no evidence for that, and it’s been creating real anxiety. This realisation allowed her to see the situation as it really is - a new chapter in her career.
In all these cases, I believe the cards are allowing someone to connect with their ‘inner mentor’ / soul / intuition / whatever word works for you. The message is from INSIDE the client, not outside.
I hope that this gives a flavour of how and why I use Tarot. In my experience, the more ’head-led’ the client - highly dependent on intellect and rationality - the more transformational it can be to have this totally new way of exploring their experience as a leader, and as a human being.
Curious to learn more? Follow me on Instagram where I do weekly #tarottuesday posts; sign up to my newsletter; or just drop me an email at victoriasmithmurphy@gmail.com!
I’m currently opening up a limited number of spots for 121 coaching programmes for leaders who want to bring soul and spirituality into the working world, unlocking a whole new level of meaning and impact. Email me at victoriasmithmurphy@gmail.com if that sounds like YOU!