Hilary Duff, a Libra.
Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photo: Getty Images
With Mercury and Jupiter squaring off today, you could feel hopeful and self-assured, ready to take on any challenge. You’re likely to see the best in others and have faith in yourself, and the problems that used to appear insurmountable might no longer seem quite so intimidating. The trouble is that it’ll be easy for this confidence to shift into arrogance, and it could be tempting to overestimate your abilities or to make lofty promises you won’t be able to keep. Let your positivity and enthusiasm motivate you; just try not to get carried away.
It’s never been your goal to be universally adored: You don’t like every single person you encounter, and you don’t expect them to be impressed by you, either. Today, though, you might feel unusually bothered by other people’s dislike or disinterest, and you’ll feel motivated to change their minds. You imagine that if you just put in a bit more effort to charm them, they’ll appreciate you more. But really, you can’t force anyone else to like you; sometimes it’s just not a good fit, and that isn’t your fault.
It might be easy to overestimate your own productivity today. You’ll imagine that if you just buckle down, you’ll be able to take care of your entire to-do list, even crossing off some things ahead of schedule. But while this might theoretically be possible, it’s probably not realistic. Nobody can work at maximum efficiency all the time, and unexpected disruptions get in the way. Even if everything runs smoothly, you still need breaks, time to double-check your work or to just think. If you plan for everything to take a bit longer than you think, you’ll be much less stressed.
While you value stability, it’s not the only thing you care about: You need some excitement, too. You want to experience new things, to put yourself out there, to dive into the adventures that can help you grow. Today, especially, you might be in the mood to take risks. Just don’t get overconfident — remember that real risks always involve the possibility of failure. Even if you’re relatively sure that you’ll succeed, there’s a chance things won’t go the way you hoped, so make sure you’re clear about what’s at stake.
You know that everyone has flaws, and you try to be extra aware of yours. If you can objectively assess your own shortcomings and avoid taking foolish risks, it’ll help you to avoid messing up your life in major ways. Today, though, you might be sick of being so cautious and critical of yourself. You’re ready to throw self-doubt out the window and just live your life. But for now, try to find a healthy middle ground: Don’t ignore your inner critic completely, just take what it says with a grain of salt.
You might feel uncharacteristically indecisive today; while you’re usually good at making good choices and sticking to them, even under pressure, you might suddenly find yourself wavering. With so many options to consider, and no obvious front-runner, it’s hard not to second-guess yourself. If you need more time to make up your mind, ask for it — you’ll be happier if you don’t rush into anything. But if you need to act immediately, just do your best and trust that you’ll figure things out as you go.
If you’ve felt frustrated and discouraged lately, you could begin to feel more hopeful about the future today. Even if you’re still facing all the same problems as before, and nothing particularly good has happened, you could have more faith that better things are on the way. If you’re feeling especially optimistic, you might be tempted to sit back completely, trusting in luck or fate to make sure things work out. Your newfound sense of hope can buoy you, just don’t let it make you passive: You have to keep putting in the work, too.
Today, you might be tempted to jump at new opportunities without really thinking them through, or to take on additional work without considering whether you actually have the time for them. You don’t want to miss out or disappoint anyone, so you say yes right away and tell yourself you’ll figure out the details later. But while this approach can sometimes work out fine, right now it’s likely to produce unnecessary stress. There’s no need to rush; give yourself time to think things through before you commit to anything.
You tend to downplay your own strengths. No matter how much external validation you get, you remain aware of all the gaps in your knowledge, of all the skills you still need to develop. When others praise you, it can be tempting to brush their words off, but today, actually listen. Don’t assume that they’re just trying to flatter you, or that their opinions can’t be trusted: Instead, consider that they might see some good in you that you aren’t able to recognize.
Today, you might get the urge to open up about your deepest feelings. You’re tired of secrets and misunderstandings; you just want everything to be out in the open. Your honesty might strengthen your relationships, and at the very least, it’ll make you feel lighter. But while you’re entitled to share whatever you’d like about your own life, be careful not to get carried away and share other people’s secrets. Just because you’re in the mood for absolute honesty, that doesn’t mean others don’t deserve their privacy.
It’s easy to assume that the people you’re closest to share your basic understanding of the world. You don’t expect them to agree with you about everything, but you assume that more often than not, you’re in alignment. Today, though, the more assumptions you make about what other people are thinking, the more likely you are to be wrong. Instead of taking it for granted that your friends agree with you, check in with them. You could discover that the people around you are more complicated than you thought.
You like to innovate, to think big. While some people find satisfaction in the small, everyday moments, you tend to want more — you want to come up with brand-new ways of doing things, to upend everyone else’s assumptions, to take on wild and transformative projects. Today, though, your grand ambitions might be more stressful than rewarding. For now, stop prioritizing new experiences and groundbreaking ideas, and take some time to focus on the simple, everyday tasks that make up your life.
In general, you’re good at reading people, especially those you know best. You’re familiar with your friends’ patterns, and it doesn’t take much for you to sense when there’s something bothering them, when they’re angry with you, or when they’re holding something back. Today, though, be careful not to overestimate your own intuition. You’re not a mind reader, and it’s easy to draw the wrong conclusions. If you give people a chance to explain what’s going on in their own words, you might be surprised by what they say.
Buy Claire Comstock-Gay’s book, Madame Clairevoyant’s Guide to the Stars, here.
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