My origin story explains how I got hooked on Tarot, but there isn’t an obvious straight line from “reading for friends” to “launching a charity-driven practice.” Let’s connect the dots.
It was mid-February and I was gathering up all the financial info to do our taxes. My wife and I noted that while we did donate to some charities and raised donations for other causes… well, we didn’t give as much as we wished we had. At the same time, it’s hard to make space for those donations when you are keeping up with tuition payments, working in the volatile hi-tech industry, and taking a few surprise hits for car repairs all while trying to maintain a stable life in an unstable world. (No need for your tiny violins; this is a “first-world problem,” for sure. Every day I recognize the position of privilege I’m in. I am grateful for the support of family who made this life possible.)
At the same time, I had been going deeper in my tarot reading practice, with daily journaling and personal study. I sought out books, websites, and podcasts from tarot practitioners who shared the same secular approach to Tarot as a tool for insight. I learned examples of how Tarot could help us seek clarity by tapping into the subconscious parts of our brain. More importantly, I still got that same rush I did back in October, every time I sat down with friends to do a reading. This feels like something I was born to do, I thought. It’s the perfect convergence of my analytical engineering mind, the strategic storytelling from my marketing career, my extroverted personality, and my natural predisposition to find joy in being of service to others. How could I do more of it, and not just to friends and family?
I vaguely daydreamed about opening up some sort of tarot practice, but that was right up there with owning my own video arcade bar: a fun idea, but terribly impractical. I’ve spent decades building up a career in tech that pays the bills, plus I had other other pursuits like singing and gaming filling up time. I also know the “woo woo”stigma attached to Tarot. To be honest, it’s partially deserved. My Facebook feed immediately filled up with Master Trainers™ promising to “unlock the mysteries of Tarot” for a low, one-time payment if I act now. No wonder the skeptics are rolling their eyes.
And then the dots connected. What if…? What if I could do tarot readings exclusively for charity, like I did in October? I didn’t need it to be a career. Then I could help reduce the friction points of time/money/motivation preventing me from giving back to the world. And people would know whatever they paid was going to a good cause, reducing the stigma associated with the practice. Even better, I could move at my own pace, as I’m under no pressure for this to be “successful.” This is a project I can build up over the next few years and beyond, as a volunteer add-on to other activities, rather than as a replacement for them.
What if I could do tarot readings exclusively for charity?
This initiative is the perfect solution:
- I get to do something I love;
- I make it easier for others to support great causes;
- Local organizations get the help they need.
Win-win-win. Let’s get to work.
Tarot for Good 
Leave a comment