I was a budding entrepreneur from an early age and talking business has been a favorite topic of mine since I was itty bitty. I did a lot of kooky stuff to earn my own scratch as a kid: I created paid backyard carnivals for the neighbor kids, held regular garage sales for old toys I no longer played with in my toy box, and set up $.05 face painting days at the pavilion in the playground. I was always looking for ways to be creative, delight others, and earn cash doing it.
That hasn’t changed for me. The Portland Tarot is a great project and is so fulfilling. It’s probably not too surprising to know that it doesn’t pay my bills, yet. I’m super pleased that it mostly pays for itself, since I’m still in the act of creation, and creating quality work isn’t cheap.
So, what do I do to pay the bills? I’m lucky to say I also get to do something I love for my daily work, too. For the last ten years, I’ve run my own branding, design, and web development shop, Cogflower Creative (formerly Pridemore Design).
Business is Hard: Tarot Makes it Easier
Let me tell you — Tarot has been an incredible pal to me over my years of running my business. I use it for all kinds of work-related questions: to better understand the souls of my clients’ businesses, to help clients move through muddy waters, to make challenging decisions… It has kept me sane, grounded, and even helped me to make hard calls I would wish on no one. (Of course, if you’ve run your own business, you know that there’s no escaping those from time to time…)
I won’t mince words. When you run your own business you are taking on your own personal crucible. It will grow you. It will change you. Running a business is a significant rite of passage—and not one you ever finish and get to declare, “Done with that!” and move on. It will make you stronger in every area of your life, if you stay present and engaged and willing to grow.
I have learned so much about communication, responsibility, personal power, and passion through my years of running my own business. Once I added Tarot, though, I found I made much better use of my time, made more mindful decisions, navigated sticky waters with people with a measure more grace, and stayed much better on track with my big picture goals.
Because there’s one thing for sure…
If you develop a good relationship with Tarot, it won’t hesitate to tell you when you’ve gotten off track. @PortlandTarot <– Tweet This
And what if you don’t work for yourself, but are an employee somewhere else? You may not work somewhere that you free to use Tarot, and that’s cool. Use it on the sly, when you get back home, or get a phone app so you can take a “bathroom break” to check in about pressing matters that come up in your day.
Ideas for Using Tarot in Your Day-to-Day Business “Stuff”
Here are some cool ways I like to use Tarot in the day-to-day of my biz:
- Checking on the potential outcomes of different paths/options
- Checking in with myself about where I would best utilize my efforts when I’m trying to decide what to do next
- Evaluating the relationship dynamic between myself and a colleague or client
- Evaluating the pros and cons of various services I might purchase (especially ones I don’t have immediate access to testing or wouldn’t be able to successfully evaluate without a lot of potentially wasted effort)
- Getting additional info about the personality dynamics I might experience with potential collaborators and contractors
- Checking in with the “soul vision” or “astral blueprint” of a client’s business, to make sure whatever aspect I am working on lines up with that
- Helping clients move through a stuck point or “what if?” area of their marketing or biz
- Getting a big picture view of my business and what areas I can improve upon
- Getting a sense of what my blind spots are and what sort of support I need to invite in to resolve them
- Help me revise difficult letters and correspondence to make my message clearer, neutral, and better at addressing the big picture needs that live under the surface of the issue at hand
- A kick in the ass when I am feeling disconnected and unsure of my path, usually resulting in procrastination (Tarot will basically tell me sometimes, “Just get to work!” The implication is that it will sort itself out if I do. And I have to say, getting a talking to from Tarot is way more fun than getting it from a boss. It’s funny how much easier it is for me to comply without any pissiness. It actually makes me laugh, which is way more conducive to real productivity!)
Ultimately, Tarot is just another great tool to add to the business arsenal. Intuition is, hands down, one of the most important gifts you can use to run a successful business or move up the ladder in someone else’s.
Now It’s Your Turn
Did any of these suggestions resonate with you? How do you use Tarot in your business or job? Have you had any big “Ahas” in your work that came from an amazing reading you did for yourself? Tell us all about it in the comments.
Keep on the lookout for future posts about using Tarot in business… I’ve got lots to say on the topic. And I’m curious to know what you’d like to hear more about, too!
P.S. If you want a reading for your business, check out my one-on-one readings. There’s all sorts of goodness we can download about your relationship to your business. I especially recommend my Divine Business Blueprint Reading, if you want to do some deep, juicy work.
P.P.S. And if you want to go one further, take a look at the soul of your business through my divine branding sessions. This powerful work will help you open new roads in how you communicate about what you do to your perfect tribe. This is especially powerful for folks up-leveling their existing business. It will blow your work wide open and help you communicate with heart AND soul, from a place of gorgeous ease. Drop me a line to learn more.
