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Horoscopes | Week of May 19-25, 2014

ARIES (March 21-April 19): I want to pick up where we left off last week, Aries, because I continue to feel that generosity is your best preventive strategy for keeping yourself clear of interpersonal unpleasantness. A few advance measures such as handing out sincere compliments, providing tacit agreement where your dissent would have no useful purpose, and neutralizing tension by kindly inquiring into the personal business behind the tense attitude (with genuine curiosity, and with good listening skills) will go far in disproving any claim you're only interested in yourself… a claim which, legitimate or not, is likely to be one aspect of their irritation. But with Venus still on your side, providing you a home-court advantage, you really needn't go into a full-on explication of why you aren't self-centered (especially when you'd make a more convincing case through actions rather than words). In fact, I strongly suggest steering clear of any potentially contentious tangles in which you'd probably end up defending yourself. Use your advantage to stay one step ahead of the game, then, generously making it about them in order to make things easier on you.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Ready to sort out all the logistical details that have been, intentionally or not, left flapping in the wind for many weeks now? Good, Taurus, because that clean-up moment has at last arrived. Whether we are talking about that regenerative health regimen you let slide, those work initiatives which remain good ideas but have yet to be actualized, and/or the sifting-and-sorting-and-reorganizing needs breathing down your neck for way too long now, this shit is ripe for the handling. Though your industriously attending to whatever duties demand this recommitment will grant you the expected endorphin-rush which accompanies productivity, please don't expect to receive any gold stars or gushing props from those on the outside. In fact, at the same time you're presumably reinvesting energy in these quite-unglamorous matters of mundane import (which, quite frankly, don't make for very lively conversational topics), other people will likely be eager to fill your ears with their stories and sentiments… without necessarily wanting to listen as much as they're driven to talk. You might as well play along: As long as their tales don't monopolize your productive work-time, you've got no reason to rob them of your attention… especially since the goodwill will come back to you, once Venus hits your sign very soon.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): It's actually a good time to put everything on the table, Gemini… especially any realizations you've come to regarding what you really want, on the heels of a couple Mars-retrograde-in-the-5th months of noticing your desires veering elsewhere than you'd probably expected. Though you could still likely find compelling reasons to talk yourself into, and/or out of, one or another option, you are reaching critical-mass in terms of understanding how all the data's shaking out. Now, all you've got to do is act on whichever personally gratifying urge is the one you're most moved to reach for—and stop trying to convince yourself to question this impulse, as if not trusting your instincts is somehow the 'smarter' decision (when that's very rarely the case). But if you indeed are stuck between two legitimately comparable options and there seems no way to tip the scales in favor of one or the other, let me suggest your ideal 'tiebreaker' consideration would be this: Which choice is more compatible with the day-to-day rhythms and routines you know are more productive and helpful for you (even if you wished you didn't know that)?

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Part of the challenge in thoroughly taking advantage of the opportunities in front of you, Cancer, is listening beyond the general pride, flattery, and honor in having received them at all… and hearing the fuller truth about how a particular opportunity actually speaks to your heart, or doesn't, as the case may be. Most of us are taught never to reject a potentially lucrative or high-falutin' chance to rise in public esteem, whether or not it comfortably suits what we desire to become. Who says no to a promotion? a raise? a shot at the big-time? Well, at times, the shrewdest among us know to decline what doesn't fit (or at least to stay relatively uncommitted, until a time when we have more information about whether it's likely to fit us better or worse in the future)—not because they are ungrateful for the break, but because they're holding out for what they really want and rightly understand that, before we can attain that holy-grail of opportunities, we're usually first tested in our desires by being granted the not-quite-right thing. While you're under no distinct pressure to reject anything if you're not ready for such a decision, you would be wise not to accept anything that doesn't feel ideal, just because you falsely assume you'd be foolish to let it pass by (even as your intuition knows something about it may be 'off').

LEO (July 23-August 22): In light of what's suddenly started to matter to you a whole lot more over these recent few months, Leo, I encourage you to correspondingly recognize the converse, too, which is: What might've really seemed to be an important reason to allow disconnection to occur with a pal, neighbor, or family-member may now, if you pause to think about it, not matter that much to you anymore. The opening of your eyes, the widening of your horizons, the eager awaiting of your exciting next-chapter… all these signals of massive self-growth you're still just on the precipice of experiencing should, I imagine, make any such unpleasantries from your past seem so small in comparison. Therefore, it wouldn't actually demand much of a stretch on your part to 'take the higher road' (though please don't use that phrase aloud) and let bygones be bygones with this person—not necessarily by processing anything together or expecting an apology (let alone full understanding of their breach), but by simply picking up a casual rapport where it would've left off, had that unfortunate disconnection not occurred. 'What's changed?' you might wonder. It's you, my darling… and it's still very much happening.

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): Last week's horoscope remains madly resonant with your week ahead, too, Virgo, as you (hopefully) continue to take the lead in important discussions about your future aspirations. The trick is still to keep pursuing your interests, yet in a tone which reflects you don't merely have your own self in mind (even if, in some ways, you do). Effective leadership requires you to wisely understand other people's successes as a reflection on yours—and, likewise, their discontent as a symptom of something you're not doing right. It can be very lonely at the top if you don't bring anybody else along with you. And furthermore, you can't actually get there (or surely not stay there very long) unless you have the assistance, sometimes overt and sometimes unseen, of plenty of contributors along the way. Presently, you must strike a balance between (1) proactively 'selling' your plan, with descriptive enticements and heartfelt praise offered to those you in fact do need on board (perhaps even one particular very-important partner, client, or investor) to make this thing fly, and (2) reserving offers of any incentives, titles, or responsibilities you'll later come to regret having given away.

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): It's probably time to loop back around to whatever professional-growth (or other expansive outside-world) steps you already began taking and/or decided would be the best to take, now that Mars is direct again and giving you a renewed shot at proactively making progress happen. Under the circumstances you've been put through by the planets these past few months, Libra, it's totally understandable that your focus drifted, your attention got hijacked, and/or you ended up having unexpected interpersonal drama to contend with. And though I can't legitimately report that every last bit of the aforementioned distractions have been wrung out of your life, I can urge you to once again remind yourself that good-luck Jupiter remains in your career/public-life house (the solar 10th) for two more months… continuing to frame this as an excellent period for pushing beyond where you've previously been, with regards to how much responsibility is under your watch, how high up the ladder you're sitting, and/or how much more widely you become known for your efforts. Please be sure to ground your stretch on firm footing: Begin your forward push by reaffirming what you've already accomplished, to yourself and those around you, so you're building atop what's already built rather than 'starting fresh'.

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): The recent few months' relative crazy—and I sincerely mean no disrespect by using the term 'crazy', merely to reference the odd discontinuities or mystical experiences that have dotted this time-period—is ready for you to start making coherent meaning of it, Scorpio. Incidentally, the meaning-making process does provide more choices and alternatives than may be immediately apparent, for what we experience can always be legitimately read in lots of different ways. And I also don't wish to imply all the crazy is over either (it probably isn't)… though, even if there are still a couple surprises waiting in the wings, you've already gotten a pretty complete picture of the general gist. Now it's on you, courtesy of the ever-bearing-down Saturn trining Jupiter-in-your-9th, to turn this strange chapter into a crowning inauguration: With Mars direct again, this is the beginning of you becoming more and more of the person you're being called to rise into, whether by inner-voice or spiritual-purpose or knowledge-of-your-unique-contribution. If you still need more palpable clues to this calling's direction, please ask for them from your version of the Great Divine. You will get answers in the weeks ahead.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): You've got a good shot at explaining to those who take umbrage with your particular brand of fun and/or creative expression, Sagittarius, just why you delight in what you do. Mercury's still in your relationship house (the 7th), making it easier than usual to convey your thoughts in language that the other person's likeliest to vibe with. Beyond that, though, you're at a point where you can't hold fragile alliances together much longer… not if their fragility is a factor of the other person not liking a practice, behavior, or attitude which you enjoy. So, if you're already pretty damn sure that someone isn't a like-minded comrade (though they may be 'perfectly nice' on the surface), you can feel free to let them know, if you're so moved. They might even gain some new understanding from your remarks, which could eventually lead to them becoming a truer friend (if both of you would still want that). But if you're not altogether certain of a particular person's stance toward you and your wild-west ways, this is a pretty awesome moment to have that discussion. Rather than adopting a challenging tone, however, I advise tapping into your exploratory open-mindedness… to find out the real truth underlying these dynamics.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): Should this week's return of Mars back to direct motion in your solar 10th lead to fresh or renewed struggle or strife, Capricorn, I recommend approaching the contentious situation with a combination of two tactics: (1) In any tense discussions which could become head-to-head conflict, do your part to stick very close to the actual details of the matter-at-hand… and refuse to let it devolve into a power standoff, which would drag in a whole bunch of other lingering and/or unresolved material that'll only make things tenser. Stay in the here-and-now, speaking only about what will work best in this particular limited scenario, not as a general action-plan or attitude toward life. Should the other party veer off, just gently redirect talks to the pressing topic—without criticizing them for veering off. (2) Try your damnedest to remember who this other party actually is as a living, breathing human… somebody who may be 'acting out' in this distasteful manner because of some other stress, hurt, or psychological damage inflicted long before they ever met you. The more you can personalize them, the less likely you'll take their difficult behavior personally—and, thus, the less likely you'll be personally difficult with them.

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): Please don't get caught on the small hooks, Aquarius. They're certainly there, you know… protruding into your psychic space, commandeering your concentration, tempting you to pay more heed to some little shit you won't remember a year from now than to what really matters. That is one danger presently posed by any otherwise-pleasant-enough rapport you happen to fall into, as you're basking in the other person's attention or hanging on their every word, because it feels really good to connect: The seeming importance of some wild-card turn in the conversation could become startlingly magnified, leading you to lose sight of the bigger-picture of your life and the position you've attained, just due to the fact that this moment feels so charged with significance. Though I don't mean to imply such a moment isn't significant at that moment, it's probably not justifiable cause for rethinking the fundamental values driving you forward. If anything, I recommend returning your focus to the guiding perspective you carry with you every day—and, if some hook in one interaction or another flirts with disrupting that perspective, figuring out how to consolidate this new piece into what you've already got (rather than, say, radically throwing anything out).

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Your absolute best defense against getting dragged into debilitating whirlwinds of others' unsettling suggestions or rude remarks? Truly and deeply appreciating what you have, Pisces… the richness of which is probably an underlying envy-generating factor in any troublemaker's attempts to knock you off-base. This does not mean rubbing your relative good-fortune in anybody's face, of course, since such vengeful or mean-spirited flaunts would only keep you caught in this unhealthy dynamic. However, it puts the onus on you to continually reassert this personal-agenda of appreciativeness—not necessarily in an obvious manner, where you outwardly impose your gratitudes atop whatever else is being said, but as an inward-focused method of neutralizing the emotional charge you experience when they sneakily (or not-so-sneakily) try to shake your confidence. As long as you decide what matters most in life and consequently orient yourself toward appreciating strides already made in those areas, what anyone else has to say about other matters of lesser-import ought to be psychologically irrelevant to you.