Your Monthly Horoscope: February 2018
After what felt like the longest January ever, we've finally entered the short month of February with a bang!
We open the month still under the beams of a potent and dramatic Lunar Eclipse in Leo that lights up our leadership and creativity, while reminding us of our desire to stand out in the Aquarian crowd. February is a much calmer experience after the last two months of shifting planets, but we still have a potent Solar Eclipse (think of it like a super-charged New Moon) right after Valentine's Day that will have us thinking about the hopes and wishes we want to see grow in the future.
We may receive insight about what needs to be released so that we can stand up in our Leonine leadership and light up the collective Aquarian sky with our individual gifts. Mars in upbeat, enthusiastic Sagittarius will provide us with just enough fire to keep working through our Saturn in Capricorn projects, while the planets dance from socially active Aquarius into spiritual and dreamy Pisces. Spend time with friends and get involved in like-minded organizations during the first half of the month while we're in Aquarius. After that, take Pisces season as an opportunity to unplug from the matrix to defrag your inner workings before spring.
Find your sign's horoscope by clicking through the slideshow gallery below:
Aries
March 21 to April 19
If January felt like a battering from all the work that suddenly found its way onto your plate, Aries, February will give you a moment to catch your breath. The workload is still there, but you'll be given a chance to have some fun with friends and also get so much needed solo time.
Love/Sex:
With the Eclipses lighting up your sector of Romance, Creativity, as well as the House of Wishes & Friendships, there's some fated meetings in the cards for you this month. Pay attention to whom you meet when out enjoying yourself, as new friendships can easily lead to relationships. A word of advice would be not to try to make anything be anything other than it is. Practice the art of vulnerability and openness, Aries. Everyone knows you naturally kick ass, but do they know you have a heart worth loving up on as well?
Career:
Think about infusing more imagination and creativity into your work. Working hard doesn't have to mean working uninspired. Part of being a trendsetter is being brave enough to do something never seen before. Take the first half of the month to draw Inspiration from your friends who may share your vision. You may find yourself extra fired up about your life philosophy. if you've been itching to restart a spiritual practice, this would be an excellent time to start. You can use welcomed downtime alone to reconnect with your inner voice. Come Spring, this will pay dividends, energizing your work with the bright ideas you come up with this month..
Health:
Me Time is part of your prescription for the Month, and after the Solar Eclipse on the 15th, you may want to go inside your personal bunker until your birthday next month. Consider this the dream time that happens before one breaks out of a seedling shell. Meditation, visioning, dream journaling, or even a spiritual retreat would be super helpful. Once your soul feels sufficiently recharged and settled, you'll be ready to bust onto the scene for your Solar return!
What did your zodiac sign say about your sign?
Janelle Belgrave L.Ac is a New York City based acupuncturist, astrologer, and clairvoyant intuitive. You can catch her on Twitter chatting about a mixture of Astrology, healing, politics, and her unhealthy love of Game of Thrones.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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Another season of Love Is Blind has come to a close, and almost two months later we’re still unpacking the drama that is Clay and AD. The finale, reunion, and post-interviews with Clay and AD after season six of Love Is Blind left millions of people wondering - why couldn’t AD see the signs? Clay told her he had a fear of marriage, his parents experienced infidelity, and he seemed to have many doubts about saying, "I do."
After changing his mind at the altar and hearing AD question why she feels like she’s never enough, I was finished watching. I didn’t need to hear anything else because, at that moment, I realized this wasn’t about Clay; this was about AD feeling inadequate before she ever met Clay.
If I’m honest, I don’t watch much dating television. TikTok keeps me updated with the clips that I need to see in order to be kept in the loop, but it’s difficult for me to watch an entire season of dating TV because seeing Black women settle for less and questioning their beauty is a trigger for me. In many ways, there were points in my life where I was AD, settling and ignoring red flags because I wanted to be loved.
Now, on the other side, it doesn’t feel good to see Black women lower their standards on national television. There have been many hot takes on this couple and who was in the wrong. Did Clay play in AD’s face or did she not listen to the truth of what he told her from day one? Was his reason for joining the show to promote his business and not to find the one?
We’ll never know the truth, but what we can do is learn tactics to better our self-worth. Founder and CEO of The Self Love Organization Denise Francis shared her expertise with xoNecole on what tangible steps to take to improve feelings of worthiness. “Self-love blooms in a garden where self-worth is planted, nourished, and whole. However, when your self-worth is challenged, displaced, or broken, it could be difficult to rebuild," Denise explains.
How To Rebuild Self-Worth
During her self-love coaching sessions, Denise likes to walk her clients through the cornerstones of rebuilding self-worth: grace and self-compassion. To her, self-worth is never lost, it's only displaced, so practicing self-compassion and giving yourself grace is a must. "We tend to place our self-worth in entities and people of ourselves such as relationship status, physical appearance, material possessions, social media followings, what others think of us, and more. Self-worth is not something to be measured by anyone or anything outside of ourselves because we all innately hold value and worth.
"Self-worth is not something to be measured by anyone or anything outside of ourselves because we all innately hold value and worth."
"When we place our value into people or things, we tend to feel that we are not enough, worth it, special, or important when relationship status, job titles, friendships, and physical appearances are lost or changed. We then tend to feel lost within ourselves because we’ve placed our value outside of ourselves. Using grace and compassion, you can rebuild your self-worth by returning home to who you are at your core," she concludes.
How To Return Home To Yourself
Denise advises taking a step back and using self-reflection through journaling by answering the following journaling prompts:
First, ask yourself, "What do you tend to attach your self-worth to and why?"
Is it your relationships, your job title, your finances, your appearance, etc.? Why do you think you place so much emphasis on external status? How does it make you feel when you are defining yourself through these entities and/or people outside of yourself?
Then, ask yourself, "Without these things, who am I?"
Once you have your answers, show yourself kindness, remove the shame, and, as Denise says, "Redefine yourself by detaching your value from the things and people you have no control over and no longer serve you. Challenge yourself to define yourself outside of titles and societal values."
"By returning home to your core, you find value in who you are as a person. You begin to find value in the way you love instead of your relationship status, your compassion instead of your popularity, your drive instead of your income/job title, and your heart instead of your physical appearance," she adds.
"By returning home to your core, you find value in who you are as a person."
"Be intentional with healing your self-worth by leaning into the people and things that nourish your core values. Surround yourself with the people who love and cherish you, they will always remind you just how valuable you truly are."
It all goes back to self-compassion and grace. As Denise explains, leading with those two things as you heal and rebuild your self-worth allows you to reduce negative self-talk that might come up for you. "This weakens thoughts like, 'I am not enough... why am I never enough?'" she shares, "And 'I don't deserve this while strengthening thoughts like 'I deserve better,' 'I am enough,' and 'I am worth it.'"
Denise continues, "Once you return home and remember the irreplaceable person you are, you can rebuild your self-worth by placing it back where it belongs. It belongs to you."
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Featured image by LaylaBird/Getty Images