Improving your Finances

This spread provides information on how you can best increase your personal wealth, given all the factors operating in your life right now. It looks at your best opportunities for stabilizing and improving your financial situation, and identifies any obstacles that might be in your path and how to overcome them.

This is a 5-card linear spread, in which the first two cards represents challenges or obstacles that need to be overcome, the third card represents something you can do right away to improve your financial situation, and the fourth and fifth cards represent longer-term approaches to overcoming these challenges and increasing your wealth and stability.

Example Reading

Deck: Hanson-RobertsQuestion: How can I improve my finances and gain financial success and stability?

It's interesting to notice that in this reading, both of the cards representing challenges in your current situation are reversed, while all three of the cards representing actions and approaches you can take in the future are upright, and there are two major and very positive trumps among them. This is a very good sign that even though things are bad right now, there are things you can do to improve your situation that will work, and work out quite well.

Challenges Card 1: The Moon, reversed. The Moon is a one of three Trump cards in this reading, showing that this question is more than just a mundane question of money and jobs for you – for that reason you will see a lot of spiritual and personal issues showing up here in addition to practical advice. A reversed Moon shows a fundamental unhappiness with what you are doing to earn money, but also some confusion over what else you could do and what you really want to do. This is a card of illusions, but in this case it is an issue of self-knowledge. It may be that what you really want to do you consider impractical or unrealistic at this point, or your past experiences in life have convinced you that you're stuck with what you have and it's too late to change it now. These emotional attitudes are part of what is holding you back from having a satisfying and lucrative career. The Moon is the trump card directly before the Sun – which is the ultimate card of success and fulfillment. In order to reach the Sun, it is essential to confront your innermost fears and assumptions to gain self-confidence and direction. You just need to believe in yourself and that it is possible.

Challenges Card 2: Three of Pentacles, reversed. On a more practical level, the other problem is that you are working in a fairly mundane job, in which your contributions and experience are not really appreciated. There is not much opportunity for growth and advancement, and the job market is competitive, meaning that you can get stuck

working a boring job for little pay because there are so many others fighting for the same job. Probably the career you are in now is a dead-end, financially speaking. This will lead you to make some hard choices in the future.

Action Card 3: The World. The World is the final card of completion and perfection. The World sends a message that all things are in their proper places and times. In this card, a woman dances within a wreath, representing the turning of the World. She has made a space for herself to dance, and as she dances, the world turns around her. This is your immediate action card, and it suggests several things you can do right away. First, this is a card of completion and ending. It says that in order to make progress financially, there are some things from the past that need to be released or set right. Because this is a trump card, this is going to be true on both a spiritual and a financial level. On a spiritual level – accepting and loving yourself for who you really are and letting go of your negative illusions about yourself and what you can or cannot accomplish. If you dislike the career you're in, decide what would make you feel like the woman in the card, dancing in her proper place. Make a resolution that you are releasing yourself from your mundane work, and pursuing what you really want to do. This is a card that promises long-term stability, and it is saying that you can only achieve that by finding your own unique place – that which makes you feel right and not conflicted or unhappy about your work.

On a financial level – if you have debts, figure out whether you might be able to consolidate them into one, more manageable loan, and get rid of some old ones entirely. This card suggests that even with the financial resources you do have, they could be brought better into balance. Examine your budget and see if it tells you anything – go through each item and ask hard questions about it. You may be spending disproportionately in some areas and not enough in others, or using up money on unnecessary areas that don't contribute much to your happiness or security. Think about the big things – are they really necessary? I am not suggesting you do this, but some people don't realize what they could do without that really doesn't contribute much that is positive to their lives – like cable television, or in some cases, an extra automobile (or any automobile).

Approach Card 4: Two of Rods. Over the long-term, this card suggests that you have some choices to make in terms of career. Rods is the suit of achievement, will, and career, and here we see a person trying to decide between the known career that he already has, and going out into the world to try something new. He holds the whole world in his hands, and looks out over the horizon as the sun sets on one part of his life, giving rise to something completely new. A change of career will best improve your financial situation in the long-term, and will also give you more energy and make you feel more positive about yourself and your situation. The Two of Rods also suggests that a partnership may be beneficial – so even if you feel you cannot do this alone, it might be worth looking for a business partner. Together you may be able to accomplish what neither of you could do by yourself. The globe in his hands and the World card above to

me suggests a world market, like that associated with the internet. There are all kinds of new home businesses revolving around the internet (I have two myself) that could supplement your income even as you are working in your current job, and which could eventually turn into a full-time career, freeing you from what you are doing now.

Approach Card 5: The Star. This card is saying to you that, over the long-term, have faith and trust in the Universe. A better future is waiting for you, but in order to reach it you must trust that it is possible. If you doubt yourself or your capabilities, or you worry that following your heart in terms of career will not be financially viable, you may never allow yourself to walk down this path. But by definition, this spread is about improving your finances, and this card would not be here if the career closest to your heart was not financially possible, and an improvement over what you are doing now. In the Star, the woman has one foot on the ground, representing her practical abilities and good common sense, and the other foot in the water, which represents tapping into her intuition and inner resources, listening to her inner voice. The light of seven stars shines down upon her, sending her blessings from the Universe. This card is all about unblocking your inner paths, so that all these energies can flow freely and combine to create the results you want in your life.