Tarot Burnout

Breathing life into a stagnant tarot practice

The other day when I pulled the 8 of Cups for my daily draw, it really had me thinking about stagnation. More specifically, stagnation in a tarot reading practice. I’ve been through these dormant periods more times than I can count on both hands and feet, they’re frustrating to say the least.

That feeling when you really want to work with cards but just can’t muster up the inspiration to pick up your deck… or when your daily pulls start to fall flat and feel empty, so you slip the card back in the deck and walk away. I think I can honestly say that many of us have gone through these phases and still go through them.

I wanted to share a few tips on how I personally like to shake up my tarot practice when things start feeling dull and listless. If you’re currently looking for some tarot motivation, I hope something that I write triggers some inspiration for you to pick your cards back up and give them a fresh shuffle!

Take a tarot break!

I know taking a break from tarot when you’re already feeling pretty detached seems counterproductive, however, giving yourself permission to take a break is a much different than falling out of your tarot practice due to stagnation or burning out.

These breaks are much welcomed in my own practice! Once I start to feel a burnout coming or my card readings just fall flat, it’s an indication for me that maybe I should take the weekend off away from my cards or skip a card reading challenge that month rather than just “power through it”.

During this time, do other things that may help inspire your tarot practice like reading a new tarot book or diving into some great tarot blogs or YouTube channels! I guarantee the inspiration will creep back in on its own and you’ll feel refreshed and ready to get shuffling again!

Here are some of my favorite books, blogs, podcasts and channels:

• Fortune’s Wheelhouse Podcast - While they’re not sharing new episodes, there are over 100+ episodes to listen to that are fantastic!

• Hermit’s Mirror Blog - Thomas’ blog is one of my favorites and he shares such great thought provoking questions and content.

• Tom Benjamin on YouTube - I really adore Tom’s videos, reviews and musings on decks and cards. He often gives me something to think more deeply about.

• Book: Mirror of the Soul - I’ve shared this book a million times but I’ll share it again, it’s fantastic! Each card has something to chew on and journal about.

• Book: Creative Tarot - I always recommend this book by Jessa Crispin, it has a lot of creative prompts for each card.

Switch decks or try a new system for a bit!

This is an easy trick! Switching your deck of choice, even just for a little while, can bring forth some fresh perspectives and invite you to look at the cards with new ideas. If you’ve been going through your tarot decks and none jump out to you, try working with an oracle deck or learn a new divination system like playing card cartomancy or Lenormand.

Whenever I’m feeling stagnant in my tarot practice, switching to a different system helps me reset a bit. This switch up often flows over into my tarot practice anyways by giving me some different ways to look at cards or read them. In the past, I’ll switch from tarot to playing cards, and since I tend to read playing cards much differently it gives me a chance to apply these techniques with my tarot cards and experiment.

Want to learn how to read lenormand, playing cards or even Marseille decks? Here are a few of my favorite books to explore!

• The Petit Lenormand Oracle - I really love Lisa’s way of teaching how to read lenormand cards, this book is excellent and thorough. Lisa also has a lenormand YouTube channel that I recommend!

• Hands of Fate - A great book to use if you’re interested in reading playing cards, I still use this method the most since it grants me a lot of creative play in the interpretation of my readings.

• Savage Tarot - This is not just a tarot book, it’s great for playing cards and pip decks such as the Tarot de Marseille. Highly recommend, it offers some fantastic perspectives.

Get creative!

Tarot doesn’t have to be used for divination or card reading, you can use your deck for creative writing exercises, poetry creation and even art prompts. Forget the messages, focus on the imagery and let it guide you in other creative ways!

Sometimes when I’m not in the mood to read the cards, I like using them in other alternative ways. This gives me a chance to still connect with my deck but in different light. I’ve used tarot for flash fiction prompts and illustration work, it’s always fun to see what inspiration I draw from a card or two!

For some creative writing inspiration, be sure to check out my good friend Samantha’s Substack! They are currently hosting a writing workshop this month called #PreptoberWithMe and it’s really good, be sure to give them a follow and check out what they share.

Rework and rethink your tarot goals!

Sometimes we simply need to shake things up and reclaim our tarot practice back. Whether you’ve strayed from your tarot goals or shifted in your practice in ways that feel off, you can find a way back to your center by asking yourself a few questions such as:

• Are you reading tarot for yourself or for others? Does this bring you joy?

• Why do you like reading tarot? Remember why you started in the first place.

• What does your ideal tarot practice look like and what do you want to gain from it? Is your practice similar or much different than this idea?

• How can you bring more inspiration into your card practice? Where can you seek this inspiration out?

A few weeks ago I was feeling pretty stalled in my tarot practice. Inspiration flew out the window, it stopped being enjoyable and I just didn’t feel like reading cards despite wanting to. Once I took a moment to reevaluate my practice it became clear to me, I was starting to do this more for others and not myself anymore. My card practice has always been for me and if others enjoy what I share, that’s great!

Once I regained this focus back, my practice started to bloom once again. Sometimes a simple check-in is all we need to get back on path.

If you’re enjoying my daily card musings and other content here on Substack, consider buying me a coffee! All tips are much appreciated (and enjoyed), thank you!

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