9 of Pentacles

Range of meanings

Light: Investing time in learning or teaching a difficult task. Restraining yourself from physical or financial extremes. Making sacrifices as a way of achieving larger goals. Breaking a complex task down into simple steps. Wanting what you have. Knowing the difference between needs and wants.

Shadow: Being assigned to a task without being trained to perform it. Pursuing a position for which you are not qualified. Disregarding requirements. Refusing to dedicate adequate time or attention when learning about something or someone new. Always craving more.

Questions to ask

1. How might patience and empathy play a role in your situation today?
2. How have past efforts (or a lack of effort) shaped the situation you find yourself in now? To what extent is someone reaping what he or she has sown?
3. How have past efforts (or a lack of effort) shaped the situation you find yourself in now? To what extent is someone reaping what he or she has sown?
4. The woman on many versions of this card appears to have plenty of resources at her disposal. For you, how much is too little? How much is too much? What would be “just right?”
5. If you could not have what you want, how would you make do?
6. Could you make a complex task easier by breaking it down into smaller steps?
7. How patient are you during the learning process? With yourself? With others?

Advice

Personal Growth: Be patient with yourself. Seek advice from those who easily do what you must strive to do. Give yourself time to learn a new process. If you’re hoping to engineer a change in your own behavior, recognize the value of little steps toward your goal.

Work: Many problems arise when people are assigned to tasks to which they are not suited by training or nature. Where’s the disconnect? Identify what you don’t know, and ask for appropriate training. When using unskilled workers to do an elaborate task, scale expectations accordingly.

Relationships: We learn about love from our parents, but their examples may or may not be suitable for relationships we forge for ourselves. Everyone has something to learn about love. Model the level of love and patience you want your partner to provide.

Spirituality: Wanting what you have can transform your world. All too often, we get caught up in the ruthless cycle of pursuing “bigger and better,” when, in fact, we could very easily make do. Today, consider how you can delight in what you’ve already been given.

Fortune-Telling: Until you appreciate what you have, you won’t have any luck getting more.