The Importance of a Well-Framed Question

You've probably heard this before, but whether you're reading for yourself or someone else, a well-framed question is one of the most important aspects of a reading because it gives the cards the framework for answering and guiding you. While a general reading can provide a lot of great insights, the insight received isn't as clear as a reading for a specific question. What many people who mention the importance of the question fail to explain well, however, is just HOW to do this, so I've written this post to provide some good guidelines.

First, don't ask multiple questions in one. For example, if you have three job interviews today don't ask, "How will my job interviews today go?" Instead, ask about each one separately using the company name or interviewer's name: "How will my interview at ABC Company with John Doe go today?" 

Related to this is the either/or questions. If you want to do a comparison, then there's a good comparison spread you can use, but don't ask something like, "Will John or Mike ask me out?" and then put down a line of  3, 5 or 7 cards or do a 3x3 box spread. (I'll cover the comparison spread in a later post and in a video later in my cartomancy and Lenormand series on my YouTube channel.)

Also, it's best to ask a positive question. If you want to know if your partner is cheating on your or lying to you, then you need to ask if they're being faithful or honest. Why? Because if you get a negative response to a negative question you don't know if that's a yes or a no. However, if you ask the positive question and you get negative cards or positive cards then you know. 

Last, it's best to try to avoid the closed yes/no question if you can rephrase it. I usually rephrase questions to ask, "What is the energy and outcome of ______________ ?" For example, rather than asking, "Am I going to get the job at ABC Company?", I'd ask, "What is the energy and outcome for me to get the job at ABC Company?"

My only exception to a rather general question is the one for my daily draw. First thing in the morning, after my meditation, I ask, "What does today bring me?" Usually I use either the Tarot de Marseille or the Lenormand. Just remember to keep any interpretations of those in the mundane because rarely is something truly dramatic happening in your daily life, so there's no need to panic over "negative" cards.

The last thing to remember is to stay detached from the outcome. This is why many books will advise against reading for yourself, but if you stick to the basics of interpreting the cards by remembering to relate all cards back to the question and before you even ask it be willing to accept whatever the true answer is that your'e given. Spirit doesn't lie, but I've seen plenty of examples of people trying to lie to themselves by twisting the meanings of the cards to give the answer they want instead of the truth. 

Love and Light,

~Diane Jarecki