Before I create a plan, I like to sit with Isa to think about it. Then, I usually draw three Runes to support the issue I'm thinking about, and there tends to be a common process in those Runes. The first one will tell me what I need to consider, the second will tell me how to go about it, and the third gives me the results results I should get if I follow the plan.
It's a little like a Norn reading; Urd is the the past - what you must consider. This one may seem like a bit of a stretch, but hear me out. When you consider things, the past is a major part of that consideration whether you realize it or not. What have I learned from the past? I don't want to repeat the past. Should I try it again? I've done this and this, now how do I do this? Everything builds on the past one way or another.
The second Rune - telling you how to go about addressing the issue - represents Verdandi, what you must do in the present. This isn't always a clear action. Sometimes it is a skill or feeling you possess. Isa will help you process the meaning. Skuld aligns with the third Rune. She is not exactly the future, rather more what should be (as I noted above) if you do what you need to do in the present; the results you will get.
I had a few friends try sitting with Isa to contemplate a single issue in their lives and then draw three Runes. I should point out here that this process differs from an interpretation, because you have been sitting with the issue, considering it from all angles, weighing pros and cons, etcetera. It's more like a mini ritual. Anyway, here is what happened for them:
One friend had a situation at work and she wasn't sure if she should tell Human Resources about it. She sat with Isa an hour a day for three days and then she drew Algiz, Gebo, and Ingwaz. It was her past experience with taking care of herself through Algiz that gave her the gift (Gebo) she has for speaking up for others that she needed to use. Ingwaz assured her that the time was right.
Another friend is contemplating getting a second job to pay for a trip he wants to take. He sat with Isa for two hours and drew two sets of three, first on what kind of job he should get and the second on his ability to actually make the trip happen. The two hours and two sets signify the second job - 2, 2, 2. Wunjo (the joy Rune) and Kenaz (the torch Rune) overlapped these two draws. Along with Raido, the riding Rune, at the beginning of the first draw, and Ehwaz, the horse Rune, at the end of the second, he discerned that whatever job he got would have to use his artistic skills, because that is what would make him happy and able to stick with the job to raise the money for the trip. He could also make the trip work, but it might happen in a non-traditional way.
Finally, another friend recently broke up with her long-time boyfriend and she was thinking about contacting an old boyfriend, not to get together with him, but to resume the friendship she let fall by the wayside, so as not to create any problems with the boyfriend who just ended their relationship. She sat with Isa for a total of seven hours, an hour a night for a week. Then, she drew her three Runes - Laguz (the water Rune), Wunjo (the joy Rune) , Berkana (the birch Rune). Her relationship with the old boyfriend had always been easy (Laguz), they navigated everything without a fuss; it just flowed. The idea of reconnecting with him and finding out what he'd been up to for the past few years made her happy (Wunjo) and she wanted to act on that happiness. However, she also had to realize that whether or not he responded to her, was secondary to the fact that reaching out to him was a big step in moving past her recent break-up and getting on with her life (Berkana).
Through my own process and those that my friends undertook, Isa helped us to focus and contemplate before we drew our Runes, which gave us clearer results. I hope sitting with Isa can help you in the same way.
