August is a Blue Moon month which means I’m full twice this month. I’m creating extreme tension pulling between your hearts and your beliefs at the beginning and end of the month. Your heart will choose between you and your spirit versus looking at others for guidance and connection. You have the chance to dream and embrace your authentic self to live your life freely in perfect alignment with your soul or take time worrying about others, what their concerns will be or reactions are to what you do or say. It’s always your choice. Choose wisely.
From Venus:
It’s time. Now is the time to be fully feminine. Do you know what this means? Go into your heart. Your heart knows. Connect with its guidance. Breathe in its peace. Follow its wisdom. What are you waiting for? What else do I need to do to invite into your fullest self?
When I’m in fire, I want to burn brightly, creatively and boldly. Right now, I’m calling you to go inside of yourself. I’m shining the mirror so you see your heart and soul, not your face or body, but your soul. Can you see it? I can, from here, and you shine as brightly as the Sun. Know yourself and know your worth. It’s time.
From Mercury:
I love to play games and I get to again in a few weeks when I move backward in Virgo. I get to pull at you in physical ways when you question everything about your work and day-to-day happenings. I’m going to be adding to Venus and I love to play with her. She doesn’t mind (well, she does, but I don’t care) when I add to her energy and muddle with your thoughts. It’s great because your feelings get involved too. I wonder why you don’t understand my intentions. I’m so misunderstood, so now I get company when you join my club. I thrive on the company.
Let’s play together. My riddles are worth solving. My new riddle – what do you get when you mix mind games with heart walls and lack of will? Right – look around you. This is what you get. How do you like it? Will you let us help you? We’re trying. Look up. Look inside. There are no riddles when you look inside and create your life around what you see there. You can be so brilliant – all of you. Right now, though, I get to play with Virgo and Venus.
August Happenings:
Dates:
The Full Moons are on the 1st and 30th. The New Moon is on the 16th.
Venus retrograde July 22nd – September 3rd. Mercury retrograde at August 23rd – September 15th.
Uranus stations retrograde on August 28th.
There are beautiful days when the planets conspire to support you. Those are on the 1st, 16th and 25th, coinciding with two of the lunar phases. There’s richness and opportunity for you.
You can take advantage of opportunities. You have influence, charm and openings for success. You have the energy to fuel your direction, guide your decisions and allow your passions to be fulfilled. You also have the ability to clear pathways.
There are days that are going to feel more difficult, August 9th, 22nd, 28th. These are the times when you’re getting pushed and pressed to take it easy, not push forward. Take time to fully appreciate yourself, your relationships and your unique ways of showing up in your life.
Star Power:
This month is a wonderful time to lead from your inner knowing, to lead from your heart, to lead from that instinctual remembrance of who you are. The key is going to be to not succumb to the delusion, the misperception, the miscommunication and the misinterpretation that the mind likes to explore.
The mind really wants to take a back seat and wants to be relieved if it’s forward position, because it knows it’s not doing that well. Once you give it permission to do that, then the heart can come forth, so you can hear its whispers. Then, your soul through your intuition, can become your guide.
This month is filled with opportunity. The opportunity is for you to be able to live in your body, in your heart, in your intuitive knowing, guided by your soul versus being in your mind with the games that your mind continues to play.
When Venus enters her retrograde station, it’s the start of a 40-day dose of tough love. She hits you hard in the areas you desire most – success, love and money. She turns your focus inward and shines a great big light into YOU, so you see into every nook and cranny.
With all of your focus on YOU, she wreaks havoc with your ability to attain your desires. Success, love, money seem to leave you.
Damn.
Why does Venus insist on doing this?
She expects you to know exactly what your value is without reflection from the outside world.
Let me say this again, “She expects you to know your value no matter how others respond or DON’T respond.”
What does this look like?
You wrote a great post and no one reads it.
You give a wonderful speech to tepid clapping.
You set up 10 sales calls and 4 are no shows and the other 6 don’t buy.
You go out with a new guy and feel you really connected and he doesn’t call.
You tell a joke and no one gets it.
You send 30 invitations to a fun soiree you’re hosting and most everyone has other plans.
Venus makes you look at yourself. And look at yourself. And look at yourself.
Without relief. Without feedback. Without validation.
Venus wants you to believe deeply and unwaveringly that you’re successful, lovable and valuable.
You are successful – even though your efforts are not getting you the expected results.
You are lovable – even though friends and family seem to have forgotten how great you are.
You are valuable – even though no one is buying from you.
Talk about trusting yourself. Bam. 💥
This is a big deal.
Without any input from others, Venus wants you to know the answers to the following:
Success:
Who is the authentic YOU?
What makes you unique?
How do you show up as your true self in every situation?
Why do you wish to fulfill your soul purpose?
What’s your definition of success?
How does your definition of success satisfy your real desires?
Love:
In what ways do you love to be loved?
Where does love actually rank in your priorities?
How often do you express self-love?
What are your favorite ways of showing love to others?
Why do you desire certain things and not others?
Where is the joy and pleasure in your life?
Who makes you happy?
Money:
Why is money important to you?
Is there reciprocity in your life?
Are you generous with others?
Who supports your financial wellbeing?
How do you value yourself?
In what ways to you attract money?
Do you receive fully and easily?
How can you stand unwavering in your commitment, regardless of what’s happening around you?
Work with Venus in her retrograde station. Once you do, you’ll come out the other side of the retrograde able to ensure your success, love and money.
Venus (Rx) – 5-pointed Star
Venus has the most elegant star cycle that creates a flower.
Occurring in just five parts of the Zodiac, Venus retrogrades traces out a five pointed star – the pentagram or pentacle (the five pointed star inside a circle). This symbol is a potent Venus image.
Within your lifetime, you’ll only see Venus retrograde in 5 of the 12 zodiac signs as she stations retrograde every 18 months for 40 days and will return to same zodiac sign every 8 years.
Venus Retrograde (Rx)
Details: Venus retrograde – July 22nd – September 3rd @ Leo 28 – 12°
Venus retrograde pulls all of the outward connections and turns them inward. It’s like having a multi-faceted mirror reflecting only your image for weeks on end.
People constantly want to make sure they’re in lock-step with everyone else. If you’re the same, then it must be right. More sameness is better. You may say may like diversity, yet strive for homogeneity. Let’s take a look:
Since everyone’s applying to a ton of colleges, we should too.
Most kids do a lot of activities, so we need to make sure ours are also fully scheduled.
If they just took a trip to Europe, we plan that (or something better) for our next vacation.
Overall, the time to settle down is X, to get married is Y and to have children is Z.
Home ownership is for everyone – oh and the bigger, the better.
This pursuit of sameness is insane.
People are also constantly comparing themselves to others to make sure they measure up. Because if they have or do something you don’t, then there must be something wrong with you.
“Why do they have it so easy?”
“She’s always out with friends. She has so much more fun than me.”
“Why do sales come so easily to him?”
“Look at their pictures. Their teenagers seem to want to be with them. Why don’t ours?”
“They’re always travelling. They have the best life.”
“We’re in the same business, why do her products sell better than mine?”
On and on and on…if you deem yourself ahead, you bask in your achievements. If you decide you’re behind, you fret, rationalize and judge your position. In relation to what, by the way?
People make life a relentless and depressing competition. With thoughts and conversations returning again and again to your perceptions of other’s lives.
You compare.
You compete.
Only to find yourself wanting.
That’s the key. When you constantly use others as a measuring stick, you come up less than. It’s inevitable when you think about it.
Venus Rx: Dates & Signs
Venus takes her ‘backward spin’ once again after moving forward since the beginning of 2022. Over the last few years, Venus has been retrograde 3 times and she’s asked you:
July 2023 –Leo/fire: To be authentically you – without inference from family, society or cultural conditioning; previous dates July/August 2015 & 2007
December 2021 – Capricorn/earth: To know your value as a leader; December 2013 & 2005
May 2020 – Gemini/air: To have satisfying conversations with loved ones; May 2012 & 2004
October 2018 – Scorpio/water: To love your yourself deeply and wholly; October 2010 & 2002
April 2017 – Aries/fire: To love how you show up in the world; March 2009 & 2001
Do’s & Don’ts with Venus Retrograde
In 2023, from July 22 – September 3rd, while Venus is retrograde, take the time to review the areas of success, love and money. Venus rules beauty and design too.
Things you do and buy during Venus retrograde may be ones you regret. “What was I thinking?” or “How could I have said that?” or “Why did I think he/she was my perfect mate?” are the questions once Venus stations direct.
Do’s with Venus Rx
Take extra care with anything new regarding success, love, money (and beauty)
Make plans to beautify yourself, your home or office (plans only)
Review your relationships
Assess your finances, including investments, budgets and projections
Declutter and give away that you no longer love or use
Practice self-care
Notice who shows up from your past
Dive deeply into your feelings
Get healing
Journal on reflective questions about what brings you pleasure
Internalize your creative pursuits to evoke more depth and feeling
Begin the writing project you’ve been putting off for so long
Don’ts with Venus Rx
Get married
Start a new long-term relationship
Get a tattoo or cosmetic surgery
Buy expensive items – clothes, jewelry, etc
Launch a new book, offer or product
Make big investments
Buy large ticket items (cars, appliances, homes)
Begin big home improvement projects
Redesign large areas of office or home
Spend frivolously
Come out with a new image or style
Begin a PR campaign
Support Tools:
Regarding success, here’s a list of tips for your business during Venus retrograde period:
It’s the perfect time for client appreciation and customer loyalty programs.
It’s a great time to act like the leader you are and respond to your customers and following by giving them stability, security and solid footing.
It’s a wonderful time for human connection – 1:1 calls, extra TLC and nurturing of your prospects.
It’s amazing for team building or retreats.
It’s perfect for photo or brand shoots (if you know the photographer already).
It’s excellent for those in the health, beauty, fitness industries.
For everyone else, it’s creativity time, so write the book, organize your social content or do outreach and record your sessions for the Podcast.
Also, for the business-minded among you, it’s great for planning, strategy, diving deeply into optimizing and/or solidifying your core business.
Regarding love, rose quartz, rhodochrosite and rhodonite are the best self-love crystals. Each asks you something different. Rose quartz loves you unconditionally, so only asks you to connect with her. Rhodochrosite wants you to remember times when you’ve felt loved and cherished and to wrap yourself in that energy. Rhodonite wants you to heal those aspects of yourself you don’t particularly appreciate or value.
Regarding money, if you haven’t joined our 12-month Star Boost support program, you’ll want to as there many bonuses (yes, a few money ones too!) Our on-demand webinar Become Recession Proof is also included with its 39-page ebook.
We’re taking a different approach to the monthly forecast to bring you the most impactful and supportive information. This month we’ve interviewed Kim to talk about the big shifts in July.
Q: What can we expect in July? Is it more of June or something different?
A: As we enter July, we have that beautiful continuation of the June energy filled with lots of connections, ideas and fortuitous unexpected news. We’ve got the ability to continue our growth and expansion. Then we get to a point where we reach the middle of July and the energy shifts.
There’s a split in the month – the 1st half and the 2nd half. It’s evident and felt out in the world. During the 1st half of the month, if things have been going smoothly for you, they continue for the 1st 2 weeks. If not, you come to a tightening and it feels like you’re threading the needle. If you typically live on the edge, go into the core with this narrowing. You narrow your focus to optimize and streamline. If you typically hold yourself back, extend yourself to reach for the edges. Take a leap of faith. The stars have been urging you for the last few months. Will you listen? Now is the time for you to take action, because during the 2nd ½ of the month, the action will be done for and to you.
Q: This doesn’t sound pleasant, tell us more about the 2nd ½ of the month.
A: There are 2 reasons for the mid-month energy shift:
July 18th – The nodal points move into new signs as they do every 18 months. This time they move from Taurus and Scorpio into Aries and Libra. The last time they did this was on December 26, 2004.
July 22nd – Venus stations retrograde through September 3rd.
Q: Is the energy shift a big deal this year?
A: It is a big deal due to the squaring of the nodes with Pluto. These are cardinal signs, signaling the beginning of something new and they are at the cusp of the end of each sign. So, it’s a beginning and an ending. The key question for everyone is; “How can relationships, particularly in families, shift their current power structures to be open to something new?”
Additionally, Mars is opposing Saturn adding confinement and road blocks. This will be a very frustrating time. The days of July 18 – 23rd are going to feel heavy, confrontational and may be overwhelming.
Here’s what I wrote back in October 2022 for the annual forecast:
July 18th @ 3:59 pm ET Nodal change – Fighting for Equality
On the World Stage
The soul destiny takes a turn and moves from Taurus and enters Aries. The repeating nodes occur every 18 years and not to scare you, but the last time the Aries North node and Libra South node changed was the week of the 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean.
Current and Prior Aries| Libra nodal dates:
July 17, 2023 – January 11, 2025
December 27, 2004 – June 22, 2006
April 7, 1986 – December 2, 1987
In Evolutionary Astrology, the True node indicates the collective soul destiny and changes every 18 months by going backward through the zodiac. The dragon’s head symbolizes the North node and shows how the collective can heal, thereby relieving its soul karma as indicated by the dragon’s tail or South node.
Moving toward the North node, Aries beginning in mid-July, changes what’s happening in the collective between the prior nodal pairing of Taurus and Scorpio. Throughout 2022, women’s rights (Dobbs), money fluctuations (recession) and climate crises (weather & more than 1.5°C) are the focal points. Beginning in mid-July, the focal points switch to righting the wrongs of inequality, injustice and imbalance in all relationships, including organizations, countries and the world. Libra represents the courts and diplomacy and when in the South node, it’s the negative aspects of each. So, think imbalance in the courts and ineffective diplomacy.
Personally
The tensions between the polar opposites strains the wounding to bring it to the surface for healing. The answers are always in the North node.
This nodal change makes it Mars time once again as the collective soul destiny takes on his energy while leaving the effects of the collective soul karma behind. Throughout 2022 and until July 2023, the world has been dealing with Mars and Pluto as the aggressors for peeking at the uncomfortable and unfamiliar hidden things. Now, it’s time for these things to be seen and felt with courage and bravery. That’s the key – is the world brave enough to face the effects of the hidden agendas, power plays and bad acts? If so, walking toward awakening and honest leadership is available now. If not, there’s dithering, compromise and unhealthy relationships.
It’s time for bravery, leadership and inner authority. It’s time for quiet power and diplomatic solutions. It’s time for charm, grace and elegance while seeking the value in healthy partnership in business, romance and on the political stage. However, the energies burst forth bringing impatience, aggression and violence. The forces seek out the hidden and smother them with platitudes and false promises.
* Note: There are two schools of thought, one speaks to the True Node and the other to the Mean Node. As these are usually separated by a few days, in this case July 12th for the Mean nodal change, using the True Node is more prevalent, so I’m using it here for simplicity.
Q: Now that we’re closer to the date, do you have any further information for us personally?
A: Yes, there’s actually more opposition, more adjustments and more contemplation. There’s a requirement to quiet down, to go deep, to be commanding, and then when we have sudden changes, it may not be as beneficial. It’s like threading the needle. It’s a tightening. It feels like we’re being held back.
My greatest advice to you is to follow your instinct, to gather yourself and to firm up your position. It could still mean spending and investing, but with people you know who are going to be able to deal with disruption, shifts and changes. They can help you stay the course. and help guide you through the next few months.
Q: How long does the shift last?
A: Throughout the rest of August. Now August is the month of tough love. I will get into that much more deeply when we get to August. But for now, suffice it to say that there’s going to be a review for you of your image and your position in the world in every area – style, leadership, finances, connections, relationships, and your home or office. There’s going to be a desire to change. And the desire is a DESIRE. It’s better to wait, plan and take your time to make sure the changes are going to be lasting and not just whimsical and indulgent. You’re not got to be pleased if you make lots of shifts in physical ways during the month of August.
Q: What are the do’s and don’ts for Venus retrograde?
A: In 2023, from July 22- September 3rd, while Venus is retrograde, take the time to review the areas of success, love and money. Venus rules beauty and design too.
Things you do and buy during Venus retrograde may be ones you regret. “What was I thinking?” or “How could I have said that?” or “Why did I think he/she was my perfect mate?” are the questions once Venus stations direct.
Do’s with Venus Rx
Take extra care with anything new regarding success, love, money (and beauty)
Make plans to beautify yourself, your home or office (plans only)
Review your relationships
Assess your finances, including investments, budgets and projections
Declutter and give away that you no longer love or use
Practice self-care
Notice who shows up from your past
Dive deeply into your feelings
Get healing
Journal on reflective questions about what brings you pleasure
Internalize your creative pursuits to evoke more depth and feeling
Begin the writing project you’ve been putting off for so long
Don’ts with Venus Rx
Get married
Start a new long-term relationship
Get a tattoo or cosmetic surgery
Buy expensive items – clothes, jewelry, etc.
Launch a new book, offer or product
Make big investments
Buy large ticket items (cars, appliances, homes)
Begin big home improvement projects
Redesign large areas of office or home
Spend frivolously
Come out with a new image or style
Begin a PR campaign
Thank you for reading & sharing with family and friends.
