What do you do if you are using tarot to answer a question and contradictory cards come up together?

Many readers tend to emphasize the more negative cards.

If the question is, "Should I take this new job?" and the cards that come up are Three of Pentacles, Seven of Swords, Four of Wands and the Tower, what's a reader to do?

First,  the reading is mixed because it's probably a mixed bag.  Very few things in life are 100% perfect or 100% terrible.  The trick is to ascertain which aspects of the situation correlate with which cards.

My technique in this case involves reshuffling the full deck and asking specific questions.  In the case of my example, the questions might include "Can this job be lucrative?"  "Is this job appropriate for the skill level and experience?"  "Is the management fair-minded?" And so on.  That way, you can deduce where the Three of Pentacles comes in and where the Tower comes in.  Perhaps it's a great job with lousy hours, rather than a total disaster.

And that can make all the difference in giving an informative reading.