The Competitor ~ The part of me that thrives in creative tension but sometimes mistakes chaos for productivity.
Keywords:
Conflict • Competition • Friction
Meaning:
The Five of Wands is all elbows and noise. It’s the energy of too many voices, too many directions, too many people vying for the same space. This card points to internal and external friction, the kind that can either sharpen my ideas or just wear me down. It’s asking me to notice where I’m fighting for the sake of fighting, or where I’m mistaking busyness for progress.
The Five lives in the space of unresolved tension. Nothing’s settled yet. Everyone’s still swinging their stick around, testing boundaries, jockeying for position. Sometimes this friction is generative, it pushes me to clarify what I actually want. Other times it’s just exhausting theater.
The card invites me to look at where competition is serving me and where it’s draining me. It’s also asking whether the battle I’m in is real or if I’m just caught up in the performance of struggle.
Connection to Previous Cards:
Yesterday’s Temperance asked me to blend opposites and find integration. Today, the Five of Wands says: good luck with that, because everything’s about to get messy. The shift is jarring. Where Temperance was about alchemy and synthesis, the Five is pure friction. It’s like I spent yesterday learning to hold contradictions gracefully, and today the universe is testing whether I can actually do it when things get chaotic.
Earlier in the week, the Seven of Pentacles had me pausing to assess my progress. The Five of Wands disrupts that quiet evaluation with competing demands and scattered energy. It’s the opposite of standing still in my garden. Now I’m in the middle of a crowded arena, and everyone wants something different.
The progression suggests that integration and patience are about to be challenged by real-world conflict and competing priorities.
Actionable Advice:
The Five of Wands is asking me to engage with conflict consciously instead of getting swept up in the chaos. It’s about discerning which battles matter and which are just noise.
– Write down every competing demand or priority I’m juggling right now. Then circle the two that actually matter most and let the rest sit for today.
– Notice when I’m arguing a point just to be right versus when I’m defending something that actually matters to me. Name the difference.
– Move my body in a way that releases tension, shadowboxing, shaking, dancing hard. Let the physical friction move through me instead of staying stuck.
– Identify one conflict or competition I’m engaged in and ask: “Am I fighting for something or just fighting?” Be honest about the answer.
– Step back from one argument or debate today. Just stop mid-swing and walk away. See what happens when I don’t engage.
Shadow-Side Warning:
The shadow of the Five of Wands is conflict for conflict’s sake. I might find myself picking fights just to feel something or creating drama because the friction feels more alive than stillness. Watch for the tendency to mistake chaos for momentum, or to confuse being busy with being effective.
The Five can also pull me into performative struggle, making everything harder than it needs to be because suffering feels more legitimate than ease. Another trap: treating every difference of opinion as a battle that must be won. Not everything requires a defense or a rebuttal. If I’m exhausted but still swinging, or if I’m creating problems where none exist just to have something to solve, that’s the shadow talking.
Journal Prompts:
• WATER (emotions, relationships): Where am I creating conflict in my relationships because connection feels too vulnerable right now?
• EARTH (grounding, stability): What’s one competing demand I can release today to create more spaciousness in my life?
• FIRE (passion, drive): Which of my current battles are actually sharpening my vision, and which are just draining my energy?
• AIR (thoughts, communication): Where am I defending a position I don’t actually believe in just because I started the argument?
• SHADOW (hidden self, integration): What would happen if I stopped fighting for one day and just let things be messy?
Personal Journal:
Nothing to say except … yep!
Guiding Incantation:
I choose my battles. I release the rest.
Not every fight is mine to finish.
Chaos swirls, but I stay rooted.
My energy is precious. I spend it wisely.
If you find resonance in these personal tarot-based reflections, you can explore more of my work at www.oldtownwitch.
