Tarot is a map of human experience, and a compass for exploring the territory of our inner world.

There are 78 cards (or arcana, which means mystery) in a standard Tarot deck, divided into sections:

The Major Arcana

22 cards that represent the journey of the human soul from innocence (The Fool) to experience (The World). These cards explore the big themes of human life - love, authority, power, change, spirituality etc.

The Minor Arcana

56 cards split into four suits that each represent a human realm - Swords (thought, communication, the head); Cups (emotion, relationship, the heart); Wands (passion, self-expression, the gut); Pentacles (work, success, the feet). These cards explore day-to-day situations, events and personalities.

How do I use Tarot as an executive coach?

Many of us associate Tarot with fortune-telling, scarves, crystal balls, the occult, and Solitaire in Live and Let Die (IYKYK). And it is certainly a practice that is still used by many with the intention of ‘knowing beyond the veil’.

But it is also increasingly a tool used for self-connection and personal growth.

There are many moments within a coaching journey - a journey where two people are working in partnership to deepen the self-awareness of the coachee and create meaningful change in their life - where Tarot can be valuable. Here’s a few examples of when I might ‘pull a card’ (or five…):

  1. To shine a spotlight on what’s REALLY happening in a situation. When everything seems confusing, a single card can allow you to cut to the heart of the matter.

  2. To uncover a message of guidance or support from your inner wisdom.

  3. To explore different perspectives on a situation.

  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.

Why is Tarot so powerful?

That’s a great question. And it’s one I’m currently researching in my Master’s dissertation. There are two main ‘mechanics’ that seem to make Tarot a uniqely powerful tool for personal growth

It's a tool for introspection and psychological processing.

By getting to understand the structure of a Tarot deck, and working with the images on the 78 cards, we get to know ourselves better. Through our response to the cards, we can meet parts of ourselves that are familiar and comfortable….and parts of ourselves that are unfamiliar and uncomfortable. Tarot strengthens your intuition, which gives you clarity and direction and ultimately supports you to make choices that are right for YOU.

It's a conduit to a shared consciousness.

Whether you think of that as a higher power, the Universe, or some other more-than-human idea, Tarot cards seem to help us access universal human experiences in a way that doesn’t make sense, cognitively. Cards will pop out that are exactly fitting for the situation you are facing, and very often give you a message that helps you come into alignment with your unique life path. Yep, sounds slightly psychedelic…but it IS!