six of pentacles reversed
themes: imbalance, depletion, malnourished, underpaid, deficit, people pleasing, overextension
how this plays out:
undercharging for your services
selling yourself (or your ideas) short in a pitch
over-giving your opinions, lessons and expertise (to deaf ears, no less)
not asking for the raise (or accepting no for an answer)
biting your tongue to save someone else from the discomfort (meanwhile, you are swallowing the discomfort as it makes a home in your body)
over-extending yourself (for no real good reason)
maxxing yourself out with little or no tangible return (or for a return that you don’t actually want/need)
undervaluing your work, your efforts, your energy or your attention
validation, approval or permission seeking
not wanting to be mis-perceived as greedy, self-serving, taking advantage
“taking one for the team”
not quite desperation energy, but definitely people-pleaser energy
not asking for what you know you want and need
accepting less than necessary
invitation:
One of the most potent messages of the six of pentacles (reversed) is the invitation to explore and understand your part in this dynamic.
Where are you giving more than you are receiving?
Where are you simply not paying attention to your reserves (energy, attention, financials, your employees or team, your product, your services, your cashflow) that are now leaking?
Are you undercharging, over-giving, over-extending, or underpaid?
And most importantly, why? What are you afraid of? What are you seeking (validation, acceptance, to be easy-going, to be liked)? What do you believe to be true about working, giving, exchanging and receiving?
What about those beliefs are no longer serving you?
The six of pentacles (reversed) invites you to interrogate your relationship with exchange, specifically your ability to receive and hold on to nourishment.
Maybe you are charging accordingly, being paid accordingly, being recognized sufficiently, and perhaps you are immediately giving it all back or away (pouring more than necessary into your employees, spending on your family or friends, deflecting the recognition elsewhere).
It’s important to note that the six of pentacles is (and the pentacles in general are) not necessarily about money or material resources. It represents (im)balance along the soul journey of manifesting the tangible.
About the Pentacles: The pentacles suite is about taking anything intangible or from the ether (an idea) and making it real or physical. Examples:
wanting to have a baby, and then creating and growing and delivering a baby
desiring a new job, and then seeking, applying, interviewing and landing a new job
being inspired by a business idea, and then building a business
wanting a promotion, and then putting in the work to receive a promotion
See, the pentacles are not simply about money, or abundance, or receiving the things we desire. The pentacles represents the journey (and the efforts required) in creating that which we seek or desire.
And the six of pentacles is an important step along the journey of manifesting our desires, which is to find the balance between what we put in and what we get out. It’s like finding that sweet spot in exchange where everyone is nourished.
If we go back to our examples above and look at what the six of pentacles (reversed) may highlight about each:
it could be pre-occupation with the idea of, creation of, or nourishment of a baby, that is creating a deficit in self or other important areas of life, or even in the baby itself
it could be looking only at jobs that you are capable of, but not job that you actually want. Or interviewing and accepting a job that looks good on paper, but does not actually meet your needs
it could be pouring way too much time, money, energy into your business without receiving anything back in return (it could also be grossly undercharging for your products and services, making the business and your efforts unsustainable)
it could be that you already are ready for and deserving of the promotion and that all you need to do is ask, vs. overperform and burn out
So now coming back to self, where are you currently feeling imbalance? Where are you letting opportunities, resources, money, attention, or energy slip through your fingertips? What is your role in this dynamic? How is participating in this way serving you? And, are you getting that which you seek or is it time for another way?
See the six of pentacles (reversed) in action here.
