We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Salem Hoff a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Salem, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

In the summer of 2022, I decided that I wanted to learn to read the tarot in a deeper way than I ever had before. I’d been dabbling in reading the cards for a couple of years, but had never really put in the effort to really get to know them depth. A wonderful friend and mentor of mine, Julian Crosson-Hill, was offering an in-depth tarot class at The Temple of the Rebel Goddess. I knew from the moment I heard about this offering that it was something I had to be a part of. At that time, I honestly had no idea that all of this would lead me to be professional reader.

At the end of every class, we had the opportunity to practice our readings with another person in the class. At first, I was super nervous to even try and read for someone else. I would let my inner critic take over and it would keep me from relying on my intuition and spirit guides to deliver messages. The best piece of advice and the thing that helped me move through this was what Julian said to me: not every message is supposed to make sense to you. You are the vessel that delivers the message. It’s your querent’s job to understand the message you give to them.

Having the courage to take that first class, to say yes to being open to learn to trust my intuition, that was something I will always be grateful for. If it hadn’t been for that spark of courage, and my amazing friends who have helped me along the way, being a tarot reader would still be just a dream to me. I will always be forever grateful for where the universe has lead me to be.

Salem, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Being a tarot wasn’t an easy path to pursue. There can be a lot of barriers of getting into being a reader. I was lucky enough to partake in an amazing class that helped me learn to read the cards in depth and learn how they relate to certain aspects of our lives. My goal as a tarot reader is to help all my clients connect with parts of themselves that they’re hesitant to connect with. It can be a huge challenge to dive into the things that make you uncomfortable with, and my goal is to help make that investigation a bit easier for people. I want people to leave their reading with a clearer picture of what their problems might be, or have a sense of calm now that they know what things they are facing going forward.

The main thing I want all my clients and followers to know is that this is not work that I take lightly. I think that there is a certain level of reverence we should hold when we read the card, whether you read for yourself or you seek out a reader. Your tarot reading truly starts when you first decide to seek out a reading. Your intention, or what you’re looking for in a reading, is one of the most important things when you go for a reading, I don’t think any reading should be one sided. As a reader, my goal is to have your reading by a dialogue between me, my client, and the cards. My goal is to help decipher what the cards are saying, and helping my clients truly understand the wisdom the cards are passing along.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, one of the most rewarding things about being a reader is seeing my work truly impacting whoever I may be reading for. Usually I find that the messages that make the most impact for someone are the messages that make no sense to me. And that’s truly my job, to not understand the messages but to just deliver them to whoever I’m reading for. When people feel safe and comfortable enough to share how the messages are impacting them in the moment, it fills me with gratitude for being able to help people through the work I do and that it helps me serve my highest purpose.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

One of the biggest things I had to unlearn is trusting my intuition. In our society, we’re told that we should always trust our gut feeling. But as we move forward in life, we are conditioned to begin to ignore that inner voice. It was the biggest hurdle for me as a reader to let me ego move out of the way to let my intuition speak. The biggest thing that helped me work on reconnecting with my intuition was practicing reading the cards. Just pulling one card a day and asking something as simple as “what is my truth today?” can help bring that intuition to the surface. And I really find that consistency is key. Developing that simple daily routine can help strengthen that connection. It can feel difficult in the beginning to keep the intuition flowing, but the more you practice and trust, the easier it is to call upon it when you need it the most.

Contact Info:

• Website: thecardslingingwitch.com
• Instagram: the.card.slinging.witch