Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person.” – Albert Einstein
Have you ever wondered how long it takes to become a truly great Tarot reader? I know I have!
Back when I first started learning the Tarot, I used to imagine what it might be like to deal out some cards and know exactly what they meant. I was mesmerized by all those Tarot books that claimed to teach the Tarot in 30 days; a week; or even a few hours. You know the kind! The kind that sets the reader up for a big fail.
I want to believe in a magical universe; a magical universe where all we have to do is Will ourselves to mastery. A sort of self-help
gurus dream…think
that you will be great and you will be. Unfortunately, reality is slightly different. There is no magical formula to becoming truly great, no magical words and Hey presto
, you’re an expert.
Reality, in this case, is a little less magical than we’d like. Or maybe that’s a fortunate thing.
There’s only one way to become truly great at something:
- First, you must learn it by reading or listening to others who know how to do it, but most especially by doing.
- Then do some more. At this point, you’ll start to understand it, but you’ll suck. This stage could take months.
- Do some more. After a couple of years, you’ll get good at it.
- Do some more. If you learn from mistakes, and aren’t afraid to make mistakes in the first place, you’ll go from good to great.
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell, the sociologist, claims that the key to successful learning and mastering any skill, is practice.
The 10,000 hour rule
It takes anywhere from 6-10 years to get great at something, depending on how often and how much you do it. Gladwell estimates that it takes 10,000 hours to master something. What’s really interesting about this 10,000-hour rule is that it applies virtually everywhere,
Gladwell told a conference held by The New Yorker magazine. You can’t become a chess grand master unless you spend 10,000 hours on practice.
Want to be a great Tarot reader?
Put in 10,000 hours of practice. It’s that simple!
It’s possible to be great within a few years, if you have the God-given talent of a mythical master
Tarot reader, but most of us toil for over a decade and are still trying to get better. We’re still learning, to this day, and if we look back on our first few years of learning the Tarot — we’ll tell you we sucked (for the most part) back then.
Want to be a great professional Tarot reader? Same deal. I’ve been doing it full time for almost three years, and I’m still only competent. You have to do it, make mistakes, learn, really begin to understand it, and someday, if you stick with it, you’ll be great.
There’s no one who is great at his profession who hasn’t been doing it for at least 6 years — no designer, no programmer, no carpenter, no architect, no surgeon, no teacher, no musician, no artist, and no Tarot reader … you get the point. I dare you to name one. Most have been doing it for over a decade, and are still looking to improve.
It takes desire, it takes drive, it takes lots and lots of doing.
I’m just starting to learn the Tarot
So here’s the thing: don’t get discouraged if you’re just starting out. Have fun, like we all did in the beginning. If you have fun, you’ll learn to love it, and that’s when it clicks. When you love something, you’ll want to do it all the time, sometimes late at night and often, you’ll jump out of bed and want to do it before you move your morning bowels.
That’s how you get great. By loving it so much your morning bowel movement takes second seat.
Find that desire. Do it, don’t just read about it. Don’t buy a single product or book or magazine that claims to teach you how to read Tarot cards in minutes, hours, days. They’re lying to your face, with a hand in your pocket at the same time.
Do it, keep doing it, then keep doing it some more. It’s the only way to get great, but the good news: anyone can do it. It just takes some time and some doing. Hey presto.
When the world says,
Give up,
Hope whispers,Try it one more time.
~Author Unknown
About author
This article was originally written by Zen Habits, The only way to become amazingly great at something.
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17 comments… Let's discuss
Love it , Doug! I’ve been reading and learning and doing since 1987 and I still consider myself new and learning! LOVE Tarot and love your wonderful words of wisdom. And of course, the bowels comment not just once but twice tickled my funny bone like crazy!!
be well.
Hi Mzzlee,
Thanks for stopping by
I’m really glad you enjoyed this post and that it brought you a smile
Yes, when are we really truly a great reader? I think if we believe we have made it then there is no where else to go – I hope I improve with every reading, I’m never satisfied with what I do and one my sitters (or internet sitter) says that is right on the ball no one is more amazed than I.
Practice is the thing I guess (not that I get much of that these days since I gave up reading professionally) but the more I find you look into a card the more you see and begin to understand how variable a meaning can be.
Reading what others have to say about cards is also most helpful as it helps you expand your vision that those cards too.
Will I ever truly be great? I don’t think so, but I won’t give up trying
Hi Helen,
Thanks for dropping by
LOL I know the feeling well
I was amazed when I discovered that someone had attempted to work out a universal time frame (10,000 hours) for becoming an expert. I find the whole thing fascinating, but at the end of the day, 10,000 hours or not, practice is what makes the difference.
Thank you for your comment
While I love the site and the postings, I have to say that I was upset to find this post here. It is almost completely taken from Leo Babauta’s post on “The Only Way to Become Amazing at something” at Zenhabits.net (http://zenhabits.net/2009/11/the-only-way-to-become-amazingly-great-at-something/)
Hi Jason,
Thank you!
Yes, you’re right. It was completely taken from Zen Habits with only minor modifications to the article. I apologise for any offense caused by my actions and by not fully disclosing the source and origin of the article.
I didn’t explain this because Zen Habits allows his material to be used.
My actions were thoughtless and inconsiderate. They were not however, my attempt to deceive anyone or to steal other peoples ideas.
However, I now understand that if I’ve upset you then I have also upset other people. From now on, I will be completely open as to the source of information, and be as transparent as possible and I apologise for any offense caused by my actions.
Thank you for bringing this to my attention.
Thanks Jason for linking to zenhabits and Doug for being so open and clear on this. Maybe you’ll to put the linkback up in the article.
Thank you also for bringing the topic of practice to the attention of Tarot readers reading your blog – it is important and inspirational for tarot students in particular to trust that practice and exposure does actually help – it can be hard to tell if one is improving sometimes!
I don’t know how close to 10,000 hours I might be at almost 8 years in, but as someone who has been judged on youth alone when approached for Tarot it comforts me to be reminded that practice and experience with Tarot is the first indicator for a tarot reader at any age.
Thanks Doug, I look forward to your next post!
Hi Lionel,
Thank you for your words of support
Great idea! I’ve just added the link to the article.
Great way to put it. Like most things, being older isn’t always a good gauge of a persons ability. As this article indicates, practice, passion and enthusiasm are really the keys to becoming a great Tarot reader
Thank you for your comment
I feel like the correct answer to this question is something along the lines of, “How long is a piece of string?”
Given it is still early days for my experience with tarot, I think even after 10,000 hours and another and another, there will always be some new addition of knowledge or insight to make you an even greater reader. At this point, I don’t even care if I never read for anyone but myself, I’m just enjoying the discovery!
Hi Irmata,
I agree! The only standard by which we can be judged is our own – and this is often the harshest judge of all. I don’t think there will ever be a time that I could claim to be a “master”. There is always something else to learn; some new bit of information that helps me solve a problem that’s been lurking in the back of my mind for days, weeks, or even years. …….what a great way to put it.
What I find fascinating with the 10,000 hour rule is the amount of examples that Malcolm Gladwell gives of people reaching an “expert” level. For instance, a chess player (with 10,000 hours of practice) may have the skill level to compete for chess grandmaster but, there are so many other factors involved with competing at that level which go beyond what can be practiced – Psychological strength in coping with pressure is one.
However, he also points out that by that stage, with the amount of dedication applied (and the essential ingredient of luck included) the person is usually able to compete appropriately.
I’m not entirely sure what side of the fence I sit on with this. In many ways the Tarot itself goes beyond being simple a “skill” to be mastered and enters into something more spiritual – which is hard to claim “expert” with, given its trans-personal components.
I really appreciate reading your comment. Thank you
Fantastic Post Doug!
I never really thought of the 10,000 hour rule applying to the Tarot. However, whenever someone shall ask me this question, I’m so gonna give them the link to this post! As with all your posts, you’ve done a wonderful job!
However, like Irmata said, the Tarot being a tool that contains such vast and complex esoteric depths, that even after spending over a million hours, let alone, 10,000, one still could discover something brand new altogether. I’ve been reading Tarot since I was about 11, and I still find myself learning new concepts with the fresh bright-eyed wonderment of a newbie! I guess that’s the beauty of the Tarot. No one can truly ‘master it’ completely, for just when you think you do, something new comes along and wipes the slate clean
.
xoxo
Z
Hi Zorian,
Thanks for stopping by
Both of you make an excellent point. There is something about the Tarot which does make the label of “expert” hard to define – also, it’s actual impossible on some level to achieve this level given the trans-personal nature of the subject.
LOL how true
I have a long way to go then. But it’s okay coz I like studying it. It’s nice to have a worthwhile hobby. Thanks for the post.
Hi Douglas!
Great article as always! Even though I have been reading for many years, I feel like the perpetual student. I don’t think I’ll ever master all that there is regarding the tarot. But that is what makes it so interesting. As a Gemini, as soon as I think I have it figured out, I’m bored (which is probably why Geminis make lousy marriage partners! LOL) but with tarot, I am never at a loss of learning.
Blessings!
Theresa
Hi Theresa,
Thank you for your kind words
I agree, that’s what makes working with the Tarot so interesting – being the perpetual student, and still feeling like there’s so much more to learn
LOL Gemini!
Interesting article – I have an app for my iphone called “level me up” which you can use to time how long you’re working on a skill and assigns you levels on you’re way to the magic 10,000 hours. You have a profile and assign skills to the profile and each time you begin practice you tap them to start and stop a timer. Problem for me is that I can’t account for the time that I’ve already spent on Tarot. It’s so much part of my life at this point it would be like trying to distinguish how long I’ve been using my left ear…
Love the article. I am going to receive my first deck of tarot cards and i hope to learn something new everyday.