The Best Questions to Ask During a Tarot Reading
Discover how asking the right questions can transform your tarot reading results, offering you more direct and specific answers from Spirit.
A tarot reading is a powerful way to gain clarity and guidance on the answers you seek, but the quality of your reading depends entirely on the questions you ask. Asking the right questions is vital for getting the most out of your tarot session—whether you’re exploring love, career, or your spiritual path. Here, we’ll explore how to frame your queries for the best results, and why thoughtful questions matter.
Why the Question Matters
Asking the right questions in a reading may influence more than just the quality of the answers you receive.
The questions you ask the tarot are a perfect demonstration—not of that which you seek, but of how you see yourself in your own story.
When you ask active questions—questions that demonstrate your engagement and readiness to take action, you are showing Spirit that you are open to uncomfortable growth and change, and that you are actively involved in shaping your own narrative. This is a level-up on the karmic scale, and lets your Guides know that you have reached a pivotal point in your spiritual evolution, which allows them to provide you with their most profound and meaningful guidance.
Conversely, passive questions—questions that place an outcome or another person on the level of highest significance, may signal to Spirit that you are overly reliant on external forces to dictate the direction of your life. This not only limits the answers that your Guides will give you, it also limits your own capacity to change the result, by perpetuating a lack of belief and trust in yourself.
By asking questions rooted in possibilities and action, you reinforce a belief in your own power to affect change within your life. This shift in self-perception strengthens your relationship with your Guides, emboldens your personal power, and expands your possibilities out of the realm of limitation and into abundance.
How to Frame Questions for the Best Results
A well-intentioned tarot reading is (generally) aimed at uncovering insights that help guide you through your current circumstances. But the way you phrase your questions shapes the relevance of the guidance you receive. When crafting your question, keep the following points in mind:
Keeping a question focused in what you can do now, rather than what will happen in the future, will set you up for a spread with actionable results.
Making sure your question is open-ended will allow Spirit to bring through insights that you hadn’t yet considered, while keeping a narrow range of questioning can limit what Spirit is able to show you.
Ask the questions as if you are the main character, not a side-character in someone else’s story. This will keep you focused on your own journey and self-development.
For example:
Instead of asking, “Will I get a promotion?” try asking, “What is the energy surrounding my career, and what steps can I take to be in alignment with a promotion?”
Rather than asking, “Do I have a future with this person?” try, “Is this person in alignment with me and my journey towards my highest self?”
love & relationship questions
Love and partnership is one of the most (if not the most) common topics explored in tarot readings. When inquiring about love, or specific people in particular, it’s important to lock down what your intention is for yourself beforehand.
If you’re asking about your relationship, your focus could be on understanding partner dynamics or uncovering opportunities for the partnership to grow. You might ask things like:
What can I do to improve communication in this relationship?
What is a pattern playing out in this relationship that I should be aware of?
What am I meant to learn from this relationship?
If wondering about a specific person, your focus could be on gaining clarity to make decisions that align with your self-worth or boundaries, or exploring what it is that you are truly seeking from a connection with this person. You might ask things like:
How does [x] feel about me, and how does that affect the way that I see myself?
What role does this person play in my journey toward emotional growth?
How can I interpret their feelings in a way that helps me grow and make empowered choices?
These types of questions encourage self-reflection and empower you to make positive changes while deepening your understanding of your emotional world.
personal growth & spirituality questions
Personal growth should be the foundation of every question we bring to the tarot, regardless of the topic on the surface. When directly asking about your path, it helps to focus on the steps right in front of you, rather than trying to figure out the whole picture.
If you’re focusing on personal growth, your questions might center on uncovering limiting beliefs or identifying ways to cultivate your strengths. You could ask:
What patterns or habits are holding me back from my potential?
How can I align my actions with my values and personal goals?
What is my next step in becoming the best version of myself?
For spirituality, your questions might focus on deepening your connection to your intuition or understanding your purpose. You could ask:
How can I strengthen my connection to my inner wisdom?
What practices or rituals will support my spiritual journey at this time?
What lessons is the universe inviting me to embrace right now?
These types of questions emphasize compassion for yourself and encourage self-awareness and active steps forward.
career & finance questions
Despite the practical nature of career & finance inquiries, they are also deeply personal, and influence our self-perception in profound ways. When seeking tarot guidance about this aspect of your life, it’s important to first carve out specific intentions for the reading, to receive tangible and practical insights.
If you’re exploring career-related concerns, your questions could focus on aligning your work with your values or overcoming obstacles in your current role. You might ask:
What steps can I take to grow in my current career path?
How can I align my work with my long-term goals and purpose?
What energy surrounds my career growth at this time?
For financial matters, consider framing your questions around creating stability or improving your financial habits. You might ask:
What mindset should I adopt to attract greater abundance?
How can I improve my relationship with money?
What steps should I take to enhance my financial security?
These types of questions encourage you to take control of your professional life while offering energetic wisdom that boosts your confidence in both realms.
The Impact of Poorly Framed Questions
While asking the right question can lead to clarity and actionable advice, poorly framed questions can severely limit your ability to gain meaningful insight. Keep these points in mind while forming your inquiry:
Yes/No Questions Can Miss the Bigger Picture
Asking questions like, “Will I find love soon?” or “Is this job right for me?” can restrict the reading to a simple answer rather than exploring the deeper dynamics of the situation. Tarot works best when used to uncover possibilities and patterns rather than delivering definitive answers.
Vague Questions Lead to Vague Answers
Queries such as, “What does the future hold?” or “What’s going to happen to me?” lack focus and keep the answers open to a variety of interpretations. The more specific and intentional the question, the clearer the reading will be.
Overloading a Single Question
Combining too many ideas in one question (e.g., “What steps should I take to find love, improve my career, and connect spiritually?”) can make the reading scattered. Breaking topics into individual questions allows the cards to provide more targeted guidance.
When to Seek Professional Guidance
Sometimes the best way to formulate a question is to hand over your questions to a professional reader, and allow them to structure your inquiries in a way that yields the most clear and accurate answers.
If you’re ready to start exploring how tarot can help you on your journey, consider receiving guidance from a tarot professional with an entry-level reading that’s affordable, easy to try, and offers just a glimpse into the depth and magic tarot can reveal. If you’d like deeper guidance, check out Empress Witch Tarot for personalized online readings that resonate.
The questions you bring to a tarot reading shape the guidance you receive. By asking thoughtful, open-ended questions, you create space for clarity and actionable advice. Whether you’re seeking answers about love, career, or personal growth, a well-phrased question can make all the difference.