What Do You Actually Value?
Plus: A Skeptic Asks, "Can You Actually Use Astrology as a Practical Tool?"
Over the weekend, I got to thinking about my values and what it is that I actually value about myself. This, in contrast to the more external and perhaps superficial markers that stand in for our worth in contemporary life. I think it's partially because (as listeners to the Hotter Than Ever podcast know) I am in an extended existential moment where I am asking myself all the questions that I ask my guests on the show, like, ”What do you want your life to be like for the next 30 years? What values will you orient yourself around? What are the things that give your life meaning and depth?” You know, the easy stuff. The stuff that’s easier asked than answered.
Listen Here! EP102: How Do You Measure Your Value?
I am looking at my life, and while I love the world that I've created for myself and my kids, I also regularly ask myself, “What would I do if my material circumstances changed dramatically?” How would that make me feel about my own worth? If I didn't have the home that I have, if I didn't have the ability to live where I live, if I didn't have the shiny car and cute clothes and external trappings - if all of those things went away, would I think less of myself?
When it comes down to it, the society we live in values the material. In fact, it demands that we work hard and orient our lives around achievement and acquisition, and keeps us tied to the grindstone to maintain whatever status quo we can accomplish by midlife. And what’s true for so many women in 2024, is that we’re staring down a potentially very different quality of life as we age than the one we might have expected.
I value chilling out
See, there’s that insidious superficiality again, wrapped up in the phrase “quality of life.” We are encouraged to think about “quality of life” in terms of material conveniences, but this episode is all about the other things that we might consider as centers of value for ourselves: how unique we are, who we are in our private and intimate moments, who we show up as when the people we love need us, how we care for the ones we love. In this episode I consider what we admire in ourselves that has no connection to the figures in our bank account or the images on our Instagram feed, our true values and the things that make YOU feel valuable inside and out. Maybe together we can make up a new code for ourselves that aligns with what gives our lives meaning and connection, not just money and stuff.
Listen to episode here!
Is Astrology…Like…Real?
Earlier this month, I talked to astrologer, branding expert and deep thinker Ophira Edut about how she learned to communicate the esoteric, mystical wisdom of astrology in a practical, useful way. I can't say that this conversation made me a complete and total believer, but given my history with astrological predictions coming true (a story I tell in detail on the podcast), it certainly opened my eyes to the history, depth and complexity of the practice.
Listen Here! EP101: How Astrology Just Might Help You Succeed with AstroTwin Ophira Edut
We live in a world where facts are increasingly devalued in favor of feelings and vibes, so I am always suspicious of anything that seems to promise solutions with no comprehensible grounding in something that I know to be true. It’s wonderful when a smart person educates you about a thing that you had once dismissed as shallow and “woo” by approaching it as a practical, intellectual inquiry, and that is exactly what Ophi does in this conversation.
I asked her point blank: “like, what *is* astrology?” because I really don’t get it. I understand that it’s a snapshot of the location of the planets and stars at the moment that you were born, but what is all of this interpretation and wisdom and insight into personality based on that heavenly pattern?
Ophi explained that today’s astrology is connected to lore compiled over hundreds of years about how the 12 signs operate and form personality types not unlike those we’d find in a DISC assessment or Meyers Briggs Personality Test. These more corporate approaches to self-knowledge have inspired her new archetype-driven way to think about astrology, the I*AM System. You can take the test here to find out what the stars say about YOU, and check out the AstroTwins’ latest book, The Astrology Advantage, for an even deeper dive.
I can't say I really understand it at all on any level (even though Ophi does a great job explaining it), but I will admit to having found truth and wisdom and guidance in a really good horoscope. And if all astrology ultimately offers us is hope when the world feels so chaotic and we don't know what to do next, I'll fu$#*ng take it. Honestly, I'll take it from anywhere I can get it, ‘cause I need it and I suspect you do too.
Listen to the episode here!