Your Zodiac Sign's Biggest Problem, and How to Fix It
Everyone has their flaws. But what if you could figure out your biggest problem in life and actually change it? Here's how to reach your greatest potential, based on your sign:
Aries
Yours is the first sign of the zodiac, the “baby” so to speak, and your need for recognition and attention is a little, well, infantile. You naturally assert your ideas and opinions in any situation, no matter what the context, and tend to make things about yourself. It feels good to be recognized for your accomplishments (and boy, do you have a lot of them), but you chase this validation and demand others acknowledge how you feel, what you say, and what you do 24/7. It can come off as self-centered and pushes others away—which, ironically, deprives you of the attention you need.
In an aggressive display of independence you start to act out, as if getting ANY kind of attention is getting good attention. Your great ideas, creative mind, and natural drive form the skill set of an incredible leader—which you have the potential to be! Use this to inspire your peers with your abundant enthusiasm, and offer your suggestions to help them grow. With friends, remember to ask them how they’re doing and actually listen. Let them win from time to time, and use your intrinsic passion and eagerness to support them to meet their goals. You shine brightest when you’re being recognized for *good* reasons!
Taurus
The most well-known trait of your sign is the one people take the most issue with—your stubbornness. According to Jan Spiller and Karen McCoy in their book Spiritual Astrology, your stubbornness comes out when you refuse to see the worth in others's opinions simply because they’re not the same as yours. Your unwavering values include personal morals and work ethic but also include your attitude towards your actual valuables and possessions. You assume your subjective truth is the only truth, and lose respect for people who don't line up with your thinking.
Your need to have your merit recognized inspires you to work hard and prove yourself, but believing others are “wrong” or “bad” just because they aren’t carbon copies of you isn’t helping anyone. Blocking out feedback from others and insisting on only doing things your way stunts personal growth and true intimacy in relationships—so try to open up! You can follow your intuition, but let others think, feel, and act how they want to without your usual silent, passive-aggressive judgement. Just by observing and listening, you just might learn something! Being flexible with others and connecting by sharing ideas will make your friendships and partnerships more fun and valuable.
Gemini
Your sign gets dragged a lot for being two-faced, and to be fair, you switch up your thoughts and opinions so much that you might as well be two different people! It’s not that you’re fake—you’re actually one of the most genuine, self-expressive signs! You just have such a short attention span and live so in-the-moment that your whole personality changes just based on whatever your current attitude and surroundings are. You’re always analyzing your environment and taking in information, and love to talk, talk, talk about it all. You network like a pro and have tons of acquaintances, but others have difficulty forming solid relationships with you because who you appear to be is so different every day.
You may be written off as superficial, especially because you're not the best at remembering plans or delving deeper into a conversation. You can build worthwhile connections by living for more than just the moment. Make plans and commit to them—or at least put it in your Google calendar so you can say you tried to remember! At the next party you go to, try to have a longer, one-on-one talk with someone without derailing the conversation with your side stories and jokes every two minutes, or needing to find a bigger group to entertain. Little things like this show people that you’re not as unreliable as your sign is believed to be and that you really do care.
Cancer
Emotions are abundant in every area of your life, and you’re especially sensitive to them, even for a water sign. Your empathy is through the roof too, and according to the book Spiritual Astrology, this is where your natural intuition and motherly instincts come from. It's also where your famous crabbiness originates, too! When you insist on acting on your feelings all the time, you come off as moody. But you recede into your shell or lash out with your claws as soon as someone else’s mood is too much, and people have a hard time understanding how to handle you.
When others have to bear the brunt of your feelings while stifling their own, it’s an unfair exchange and jeopardizes your relationships. In her book The Ascendant, Jodie Forrest recommends that you learn to forgive others’ mistakes and talk things out, instead of locking yourself up tight in a shell when you feel shafted.Your loving nature is one of your greatest assets, and your ability to take care of people is second-to-none, which is one of the reasons why your sign is so adored! You’re truly the mom friend of the zodiac, but keep the moodiness down so you don’t come off as the wicked stepmother instead!
Leo
Your sign is represented the Sun. Bright, fiery, and dazzling are all words that are often used to describe you! Unlike the Sun, however, the world doesn’t revolve around you. You can turn people off with your demand for attention, even if you don’t realize you come off that way. Your ego is the biggest in the zodiac, and is somehow the most fragile, too! You need to feel noticed and validated, but going overboard and showboating yourself just for the sake of being in the spotlight isn’t the best way to get that approval. Like the natural performer your sign is known to be, sometimes you play a different role and fabricate personality traits that you think are likable.
You don’t need to worry about being likable, Leo, because your sign is one of the most charismatic and lovable. The Sun is the source of all energy and life in the solar system, and similarly, you’re the most creative and generous sign. A healthy dose of realism and consideration (boring, I know) and letting others have their own moments to shine goes a long way. It’s not always about you, and that’s okay. Being true to yourself and honoring your relationships only strengthens your bonds over time. When someone truly close to you tells you how supported you make them feel, you’ll see that it’s way more satisfying than showing off for a crowd.
Virgo
At your best, you’re a diligent, considerate, and practical person who works your ass off and makes sure your loved ones are happy. At your worst, you come off as an obsessive perfectionist who annoyingly fixates on the tiniest details. Usually, you use this attention to detail to improve your workplace or the lives of those closest to you, even if it means skipping out on self-care. You insist on overextending yourself to make everything better—even if no one asked you to. Your sharp eye is great for picking out flaws, but when you use it to endlessly criticize someone, it takes a toll on your relationship.
People don’t want to constantly hear everything they’re doing wrong, so they reach out to you less and less, and you become upset because you’ve “done so much for them!” and they “don’t even appreciate it!” Sound familiar? Learn to use your critical eye to point out the positives rather than any shortcomings. You make razor-sharp observations and can come up with genius solutions–but people have to actually want your feedback first. Jodie Forrest’s The Ascendant suggests you remember that “sometimes ‘perfect’ is the enemy of ‘good enough,’” and learn to give out some praise every now and then!
Libra
Although Gemini has the reputation for being two-faced, your sign is usually guilty of being even more flighty and superficial. You’re a social butterfly and the biggest people person ever–it's ridiculously easy for you to make and keep new friends. The pleasant vibes you carry around with you aren’t always easy to maintain, but your naturally-accommodating ways and need for balance keep them going. However, when it turns into consciously acting differently in order to be a people pleaser, sh*t gets messy!
When your over-the-top people-pleasing isn’t reciprocated, you feel like you’ve been treated unjustly, which leads to inevitable conflict. Your sign can be codependent, which is why you love relationships so much, but it’s important to make sure other people aren’t held accountable for your wellbeing. You love to love people, but it's unhealthy to mold your own personality depending on who’s around just to satisfy your thirst for socialization. You can fit in anywhere with your intrinsic social graces, and people love your wit and manners. There’s no need to act a certain way when you have plenty of greatness to contribute if you can just be yourself!
Scorpio
Your sign loves mysteries and is a natural at getting to the bottom of things. You find a deeper meaning in everything, and are magnetically drawn to anything shrouded in secrecy. Speaking of, here’s a secret for you: You have to chill out! There’s not always hidden symbolism or underlying motives to something, no matter how hard you try to find them. The Ascendant explains that your sign has a “very powerful unconscious mind.” You know that embarrassing or painful memories, childhood issues, and different habits buried away in the subconscious are the root causes of many human behaviors. While most people ignore or are unaware of this, you fixate on it.
In order to figure out the inner desires of others, you become suspicious, play mind games, and perform little tests to see how they react. You can come off as inappropriate or too intense when you try to psychoanalyze people, whether it be friends or strangers. Your need to always seek the "truth" leads to obsession and paranoia, which compels you to investigate harder in search of something that may just not be that deep. If you absolutely must question someone or something, make sure you have someone you trust to bounce ideas off of so that you don’t get lost in a black hole of doubt. Take it easy, and realize that not everyone is out to get you.
Sagittarius
Your sign is known for its constant motion and never-ending pursuit for knowledge. You work hard and blast yourself out of your comfort zone at every opportunity; be it by traveling, hands-on learning, or setting bold goals that you always somehow surpass. There’s nothing wrong with this, and the confidence you have in all of your experiences and knowledge certainly isn’t misplaced. However, the tendency to come off as a know-it-all is definitely an area that all Sagittarians can improve on! You easily become preachy and impose your opinion when no one’s asked for it. For a sign that's supposed to love learning, you sure talk over others a lot, and habitually dismiss any ideas or beliefs different from your own.
It’s hypocritical to label your view on the world as fact just because you over-prioritize your own experiences, and then immediately reject anyone who believes otherwise. Saying “I’m just being honest!” isn’t a good enough reason to explain why you tactlessly denounce others’ harmless views. You can accumulate as much knowledge and life experience as you want, but what good does that do for you when you don’t have anyone to share it with? Experiencing things firsthand isn’t the only way to learn. Listen to others, and learn to talk with them rather than at them. You can absorb so much just from hearing others’ stories and ideas, and even if you don’t like what they have to say, you can politely agree to disagree.
Capricorn
Take a deep breath, Capricorn. Unclench your jaw, relax those shoulders, and let yourself chill out! Your sign is the hardest worker in the zodiac, and definitely the most serious. You don’t suffer fools gladly and your lifestyle is very “all work, no play.” The book Spiritual Astrology explains that your incredible drive and motivation come from a need to feel in control. This can manifest through your incredible dedication and discipline driving you to work your way to the top, which is how you achieve all of your bold goals. At your worst, your desire for order gives you an authoritarian personality with no tolerance for spontaneity or surprises. You throw yourself into your work and put up a stone-cold demeanor that people find unapproachable—whether you mean to or not.
Aquarius
Everyone gets it—you’re unique! You love to stand out and, true to your nature as an air sign, love to talk and socialize even more. Nothing makes you happier than when you get to add your controversial opinion to a discussion and 1) force others to reconsider their stance and 2) earn recognition for your viewpoint. As a result, you make it a point to share your ~different~ and *special* thoughts all the time. It stems from the fact that you’re the zodiac’s archetypal rebel. According to The Ascendant, you’re a natural revolutionary born to assert your independence in every way possible.
This is the root of your humanitarian and progressive views–your sign is all about fighting the power–but it also causes your unpredictable and sometimes annoying behavior. You’re genuinely eccentric, with a charming idiosyncrasy exclusive to your sign, so there’s no need to ham it up and risk alienating yourself, especially when your intentions are so good. Your endearing peculiarities and bright ideas are enough on their own to make you stick out, you little weirdo! This way, you have the opportunity to stand out and be recognized by your whole group for the best reasons.
Pisces
It’s time to wake up! You’re always tucked away in your own little world, lost in your daydreams. No matter how hard others try to hold your attention or keep tabs on you, you somehow always manage to slip out of their grasp and disappear. You’re more emotionally wide-open than any other sign, filled with compassion, and incredibly sensitive. Minor shifts in emotional atmosphere that most people wouldn’t even register, you perceive as blaring sirens and flashing lights—so wanting to live in your own head is understandable. You get overwhelmed easily but at some point, you have to deal with the real world.
What does your own little world feel like? How does it differ from reality? Let this question inspire you to make real-world changes so you won’t have to emotionally clock out as much. When you’re living on a different frequency than everyone else, you can’t connect and share all of the love and feelings you have to offer. The book Spiritual Astrology explains that your sign’s hopes and dreams have the potential to manifest as a tangible, healing reality as long as you pull them out of your imagination and connect with real people who can help implement your ideas. Your vivid dreams, colorful imagination, and creative mind are the tools you use to visualize this perfect world—so don’t keep this utopia locked up inside your head! See if you can come up for air more often.