I’ve been giving a lot of thought of late to plans, productivity, and goals for 2018. It’s one of those things that I do at this time each year. I also wrap my year up at this time – you’ll find the post over on the author page.

The one thing I’m trying not to do is beat myself up too much over what I didn’t do – and trust me, my “didn’t do” list is extensive. I’m also trying very hard not to compare myself to anyone else – or feel envious of the success or apparent success of other authors. One thing I’ve learnt this year is that you can make your life look whatever you want it to look like on the outside while on the inside it’s anything but. It’s all about what the world sees, not what it really is. That’s such a Capricorn concept – and one that I’d wager many of us are guilty of.

As an aside, I’ve learnt a lot of other things too this year – as indeed I should during a Saturn year. I’ve written about them in my wrap-up post too. There’s more I didn’t say there about focussing on income producing tasks and building a proper business strategy – but we’ll save that for the goals post.

We came face to face with a lot of (shadow) Capricorn energy this year when we sold up to move north. There were a number of people who expressed surprise at the idea that by selling out of the Sydney market we were somehow stepping away from the ambition we apparently should have. People actually said, “what will other people think?” My answer? I don’t care. Others said, “but surely you should be aiming to use your equity in an investment portfolio?” My answer? Seriously? Someone else said “if you have real estate in the Sydney market you’ve made it. You know you’ll never get back in?” My answer? Yep, I’m aware of that and I don’t care. “You can earn so much more in a corporate job in the city and have so much more respect” So What? “What about a Plan B?” What about having faith?

What this year proved to me is that I don’t really care what others think. I genuinely don’t care. I have no inclination to keep up with anyone else’s idea of what I should be doing, thinking, accumulating, aiming for, working at. I don’t need to have the right house in the right suburb in the right city and drive the right car. I just want to be the best that I can be on my own terms. It’s taken me 50 years, but I’m now truly at that point. And it’s a grown-up don’t care, not a rebellious I can’t have it so I’m going to pretend that I don’t care and that I want the opposite when deep down I really do want what you have.

That doesn’t mean that I don’t respect your right to want these things – if, indeed you do. It means that finally, I’m where I want to be. I’ve made it. I enjoy hearing about other people’s holidays, experiences, success, whatever because I truly am happy for them. At some point, they’ve put in the work, made the choices, accepted the sacrifices and I respect that even if sometimes I question the motivation – even though I try my best not to.

Anyways, I’ll step off my soapbox for a bit now before I start on my anti-elitist bandwagon…trust me, you don’t want to be around for that!

Oh, if you want to know about Capricorn, the link to an old post is here. You’ll also find some keywords here.

Doing it for yourself…

We all have Capricorn somewhere in our chart. It’s in this part of life that we need to approach with practicality, respect, and resourcefulness. Are you making enough of your experience? Are you applying your resources where they are most effective? Are you wasting energy trying to compete against others? Are you working hard but not producing anything?

Check out where Capricorn is in your chart – that’s where you’re getting the warmth of the Sun’s energy right now – why not use it to do a health check on this part of your life? Are you applying sufficient focus to this part of life?

Not sure where Capricorn is in your chart? Check out this post or follow the solar guide below. Don’t know what the houses mean? Check out this post. If you’re new to this site (or new to astrology) start at the beginning with the Toolbox lessons.

• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Capricorn, the Sun is shining in in your 1st house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Aquarius, the Sun is shining in in your 12th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Pisces, the Sun is shining in in your 11th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Aries, the Sun is shining in in your 10th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Taurus, the Sun is shining in in your 9th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Gemini the Sun is shining in in your 8th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Cancer, the Sun is shining in in your 7th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Leo, the Sun is shining in in your 6th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Virgo, the Sun is shining in in your 5th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Libra, the Sun is shining in in your 4th house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Scorpio, the Sun is shining in in your 3rd house.
• If your Sun or Ascendant is in Sagittarius, the Sun is shining in in your 2nd house.