Twinn Swan

The 8 of Pentacles traditionally represents the apprentice who has spent a significant amount of time learning under a Master. When this card appears, it cautions us to deal with the consequences of our educational journey.

Who have you learnt from? What have they taught you? Why did they teach you what they taught you? Are you just regurgitating what you have learnt? Is this the only way to do things or do viable (and better) alternatives exist?

The 8 of Pentacles appears when we are being asked to apply all that we have learnt.

For instance, you may have learnt a great deal working at Company A when you had a great boss. But by the time you change jobs and work at Company B, you realise that much of what you have learnt is redundant and no longer valid. Similarly, you may have been a straight-A student in a particular school. However, when you changed schools, you realised that you were no longer as smart or as capable as you thought you were. The opposite may also be true. You may have been a dud at Company A but a stud a company B!

When this card appears, it cautions us to remember that not all that we learn is valid all of the time. As circumstances and times change, we need to change along with it. There are ideal circumstances for success and less than ideal circumstances for success. While hard work is a key ingredient to success, it is not the only ingredient that we need. If you have grown up in a culture where overwork is seen as a virtue, I say, think again.

Overwork–even an addiction to work–is a significant issue that arises whenever I see the 8 of Pentacles. This individual may prioritise their work above all else. While being committed to one’s career is, indeed, admirable, it is not the be all and end all of everything. Make it one of the goals of your life to spend quality time with your family and with the people you care about. Make sure that you remember to strike a balance between your work commitments and your family obligations.

A New Career

When it comes to career, the 8 of Pentacles can represent new employment, a new job and a new business. During this time, you can achieve a certain measure of competence in your chosen profession. If you are looking to go back to school (you may not be), it may also mean that due to this job you will have numerous opportunities to learn something that will be of value to you in your future.

All your career objectives will be accomplished when this card appears. Expect big career changes to come into your life when the 8 of Pentacles appears. Others may see how far you’ve come from where you started and may begin looking up to you.

Your skill and commitment to your profession and vocation will not go unnoticed. Tremendous success is on the cards whenever the 8 of Pentacles shows up. If you have started your own enterprise, the 8 of Pentacles indicates that more clients and customers will soon come into your business. If you have spent a period of time away from work to study, the presence of this card indicates that you will be able to put all that you have learnt and studied into good use.

The Dream Job

The Dream Job is perhaps something that we begin to seek when we realise that we’ve been unhappy in the careers that we’ve had thus far. What can you do on your own? The 8 of Pentacles shows one person working away. This doesn’t always mean self-employment, although it most certainly can. I find that this card tends to appear when it is less about teamwork and more about honing one’s own skill, competence and proficiency.

What are you truly good at? Do you even know? Let’s say that you discover that you are good at reading and writing for long periods of time. Then, we need to break it down a bit more. What kind of books do you tend to read and write? Has this been with you your whole life or is this simply a phase that you’re going through?

You can make small or big changes to your career by aligning your responsibilities and your work duties directly with the tasks that feel meaningful to you and towards which you have a natural inclination. As you craft your dream job description, I must say, don’t try to avoid everything you don’t like to do either. Include some of that into your job description, but have it at the periphery.

At the end of the day, the 8 of Pentacles comes to caution that try as we may, it is not possible to keep our work and personal commitments separate from one another. Some people may think that mixing business with their personal life is not a very wise decision. But at the end of the day, we have to also understand that for many people, a job is just a job and that their dreams may well and truly lay elsewhere.