All The Hints In Your Natal Chart That Can Help You Crystalize Your Career And Purpose
I recently read a piece in the NYT that made me physically ill, because holy hell is patriarchal capitalism brutal.
The article, “Women Did Everything Right. Then Work Got ‘Greedy.’,” relayed the sad truth of a woman’s role at work: Even though womxn, on the whole, are more highly educated than men, we hit our earning potential sooner and often end up stunting our career growth to support our partners. The author points out that women who want to have children, and also continue to work, end up leaving the regular 9-to-5 workforce to pursue jobs with more flexible hours or other benefits. Because, hi, I could barely have a dog while working at a tech startup — I can’t imagine how people can have kids.
I posted it on my personal IG stories, and the number of responses I received from badass women who were mothers and excellent at their jobs who felt trapped between a rock and a hard place was startling. Some single women replied that they’d actually started their businesses because they wanted to be able to work their flexible hours when they eventually did have a kid. Others answered that they weren’t thinking about it, but they couldn’t imagine children in their early 30’s because they hadn’t done enough at work yet.
It bothers me that we’ve been having this feminist argument for decades, and we’ve yet to come up with a satisfying answer to this problem. By the end of the article, the author points out that it’s not a feminist issue — it’s a capitalist issue. And they’re right.
There seems to be a general groundswell of anarchist tendencies in millennial and Gen-Z womxn, which I’m hugely into. Instead of accepting the status quo, womxn are raising their hands and saying, “Uhm, excuse me, this system is kind of fucked, and I’m not quite sure I want to subscribe to it???”
Which, admittedly, can make figuring out what you want to *do* with your life a little challenging. We’re eschewing old rules and systems around career and work at a rapid rate, which means freedom — but also means we’re walking in uncharted territory.
Think about the old paradigms that millennials don’t ascribe to anymore:
paying your dues just because it’s “industry standard.”
waiting your turn, even if the people above you aren’t more qualified than you
staying at a job for 5-10 years because it looks “flaky” to jump from company to company
waiting until your 40s or until you get an MBA to become an entrepreneur
choosing between family life and a lucrative career
working crazy hours / hating your job / not asking for a raise
resigning to workplace sexism because it’s the norm
Yo, getting rid of tired parameters means we’re unrestricted by societal expectations — but it can be extremely daunting to have what seems like all the options in the world at your fingertips! Like, hello! Where do you even start???? I’m smiling, but I’m also panicking!
I know I’m not alone in this feeling of pseudo-liberation. Because I can do anything, I suddenly feel like I must have the exact right answer as to what it is I am going to do with my sweet, sweet freedom.
Unfortunately, finding our purpose doesn’t always work this way, no matter how much we want it.
I wish it were as easy as the Universe slapping you on the back of the head like, “BOOM, mf’er. Here’s what you’re supposed to do with your life!” But the truth is, our purpose is continuously changing. Because we’re always evolving, and that is an excellent thing. I guess we need to surrender, in some way, to the fact that we * don’t* always know where things are going. One hundred percent clarity isn’t necessarily the goal.
But that isn’t to say that we need to just tread water in an ocean of uncertainty. There are tools that we can use as anchor points — or maybe, as buoys. Astrology is a really great place to look to when we’re searching for clues as to how our life purpose and career path can shape up.
We sat down with astrology expert, Emmalea Russo of Avant Galaxy, to learn a little more about the cosmos can make clarity of our career trajectory.
First, you’ll need to pull up your natal chart. (Link to natal chart). It’s best to use a robust system like Astrodienst so you can see your full chart with all the planets and aspects. When thinking about our career path and life’s purpose, there are a few details to take note of: your North Node, your Midheaven, and your 10th House.
north node: your leadership style
“It’s also sometimes called the True Node, but North Node is your life path. It’s not necessarily going to tell you specifically what you should be doing, but it’s sort of like how your highest self works best in this life,” says Russo.
“It can also tell you a lot because your South Node, which is always the opposite sign of your North Node, is what you’re supposed to release and move away from in this life — kind of like what you’re not supposed to do. For instance, my South Node is in Libra, and my North Node is in Aries. That tells me I’m supposed to be independent (like being an entrepreneur) and I’m not supposed to work in a partnership or under someone else, which are more codependent Libra qualities.”
Your North Node can give you a hint as to how you best work when you’re in your purpose — it’s how you shine and progress in the career you choose. If you’ve got a North Node in Aries, it doesn’t mean that you need only to pursue work that’s solo in nature — it just means that as a leader, you’ll be singular, fiery, independent. You could be the type of hands-off boss to a company of hundreds of employees ... or, you could be a freelance artist who makes their hours. It just depends on how you want to interpret your chart.
midheaven: your big mission and legacy
You can find your Midheaven at the top of your chart. It’s also sometimes called MC, which means Medium Coeli, or Middle Sky.
“Your Midheaven is almost like what we’re aspiring towards when we get to the end of our lives.”
Your Midheaven signifies what your end goal would be if you fulfill your purpose or the impact you’ve made on the world if you did your job “correctly” in this lifetime.
“For example, if your Midheaven is Aquarius, your end goal is to bring the future into reality and be part of the collective — to move others forward and be less self-centered. Whereas if your Midheaven was in Leo, it would be like, ‘Okay like it’s all about me. Like, I’m going to be like Beyoncé.”
Your Midheaven is like your legacy — how are you going to be remembered for what you did?
the tenth house: your clues and hints
On the astrology wheel that your natal chart rests on top of, the 10th House represents career, long-term goals, fame, and public image. Looking at your 10th House, and which planets live there permanently or are transitting through it can give you a more up-to-date look at what to expect from your career and work.
“If your Sun is in your 10th House, it could mean that a lot of your consciousness is spent on your work. Or, your career lights up your life,” says Russo. She explains that our 10th House planets show us what skills we could be born with, but also what’s happening in real time as the planets transit through the sky.
“You could be having a major Pluto Transit through your 10th House, and that’s going to uproot things and maybe change your career; it could be like a whole rebirth of that area. Or you could have like Jupiter there, and that means money expansions — a raise, or new clients.”
Here’s the thing: There’s no single right answer when it comes to the query, “What is my purpose?” But when asking those big, existential questions, it’s helpful to have tools like astrology to at least orient us. Like everything, astrology is subjective, and if you have further questions, you should undoubtedly sit down with an expert to have your chart read. (You can work with Emmalea, or any of our practitioners on Holisticism!)