Your business partner planet for the year – with Claire Gallagher

Ever had a year where you were working just as hard as the year before, but everything felt heavier? Or a year where things opened up without you pushing at all?

That's usually not random. It's annual profections.

In this episode I'm joined by astrologer and author Claire Gallagher to talk about the timing technique we both use with almost every client. 

Every year of your life switches on a different house in your chart, and the planet that rules that house becomes what Claire calls your co-creator for the next twelve months. Your business partner for the year.

Claire's just released her second book, Cosmic Year, which is a fantastic resource on this technique. 

We get into how to work out your profection year, which years tend to bring the biggest business shifts, and how to work with your planet of the year rather than against it.

Claire also shares a tip that reframed my entire year, and I've been working with it ever since!

In this episode:

• How annual profections work, and why they need whole sign houses
• The profection years Claire sees most often behind big business changes, based on interviews with more than 40 people
• What each planet asks of you as your co-creator, from a Mercury year focused on messaging to a Saturn year focused on structure
• Why a planet in a difficult position can make you a better problem solver
• How your solar return adds another layer, and why the same profection year twelve years apart plays out differently
• Claire's method for building an actual relationship with your planet of the year

Work out your profection year using your age at your last birthday, then let us know in the comments how it's tracking.

MORE ON ANNUAL PROFECTIONS

If this technique is new to you, start with episode 115 here.

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About Claire Gallagher: 

Claire Gallagher has been a professional astrologer since 2015. With a focus on presence instead of prediction, Claire uses astrology to help others turn their inner voice on full blast. She’s the author of Cosmic Year and Body Astrology and the host of I Talk to Planets.

Get Claire's book: Cosmic Year – Your Astrological Guide to Co-Creating with the Planets

Visit Claire's website: astrologywithclaire.com

Find her on Instagram: instagram.com/refated.co

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Work with Sophia:

Visit sophiapallas.com

Book a Cosmic Business Strategy Session: bookme.name/sophiapallas

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PODCAST DISCLAIMER: 

The information contained in this podcast and the resources available for download or purchase are for educational and informational purposes only. ​

This information is not a substitute for advice from a professional who is aware of the facts and circumstances of your individual situation.

Transcript

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Sophia Pallas: 
Welcome back to another episode of the Cosmic Business Breakthrough. Today I am joined by another amazing guest. We have Claire Gallagher on today to tell us all about her amazing book, which is called Cosmic Year. I have it here on my desk. 

The book is about co-creating with the planets and working with annual profections. And if you've if you've listened to me or watched my podcast in the in the past, you will know that I love working with annual profections. And this kind of timing technique is just so powerful to use every year. And it's just such a it's also quite simple to work with. So I think it'll be amazing to have this chat with Claire today. 

Thank you so much for joining me. And yeah, tell us a little bit about you and your business before we dive into the profections.

Claire Gallagher (00:56)
Absolutely. Well, thanks for having me on. I'm really excited. I'm a fan of the show. So I love to listen to your podcasts on my walks. And well, my business is pivoting right now. So that can be an interesting topic of discussion since I'm in an interesting perfection year that has to do with changing my mind a lot. But I'm probably best known for my work in body astrology. And so right now I'm going through a cohort where I'm teaching other budding astrologers how to apply body astrology to their body-based work. So I have massage therapists and energy workers, et cetera. And so we're we're focusing on that. And so that's what my work is focused on at the moment. But I'm I've got big pivots in the very near future. So stay tuned.

Sophia Pallas (01:55.041)
Okay, awesome. And I feel that I need to reference your first book, Body Astrology, which I have here too. Thank you. and this this came out a few years ago, but I think this is a really powerful tool for people to think about how astrology can be so helpful in in allowing us to understand what's going on in our physical body and what might be the areas that we really need to be more

Claire Gallagher (02:19.517)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (02:23.446)
considerate of based on our based on our science. So this is an awesome book as well. Well that's really cool to hear. So tell me about what what got you into this technique, which is annual profections, why it's it's kind of been a game changer for you as well.

Claire Gallagher (02:43.591)
Yeah. So I I feel really lucky that I was taught this technique my very first year learning astrology. And so that was eleven years ago. And I kind of just loved it. It was like love at first sight, probably because of the simplicity of it and how it was simple and easy to learn as a beginner, but it still worked and checked out in real life. And I thought that was really cool.

So I ended up just using it in every consult since. so that's 11 years over and over and over again. And I got to see it in action and really felt like, hey, there's something to this. This really works, it really resonates, and it's something that my clients can grasp and understand. It's not hard to explain, it's not hard to understand. And so

Claire Gallagher (03:37.902)
I never expected I would write a book on it, but here we are. And yeah, that was my my toe dipping into annual profections and it just kinda I just kind of never looked back. I even prefer it over other timing techniques, even though I combine it with transits and solo returns. There's so much you can do with just profections alone. And that's why I find it so fascinating.

Sophia Pallas (04:01.965)
Yeah, it's such a great place to to start, I think. Like I and it still I find works like works sometimes better than other techniques or works like the other techniques actually work better when you first understand profections and what might be like how to focus your attention on the transits that are going to be most important to you during the year.

Claire Gallagher (04:26.491)
Exactly.

Exactly. Otherwise it's like way too much information. It's way too overwhelming. And so I find profections to act kinda like a filtering system for me. And I really appreciate them as a Virgo for that filtering system. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (04:32.61)
Too many things, yeah.

Sophia Pallas (04:40.526)
Hmm, yeah.

Sophia Pallas (04:44.846)
Yes. So s for our listeners, can you just explain to us how annual profections work? I know I have explained it on other podcasts before, but I'd love to hear you just give us a rundown of of how they work and how we can apply them specifically to our years in business.

Claire Gallagher (04:56.937)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (05:07.197)
Yeah, sure. So the technique itself is very simple, like I've said ten times already. And essentially, every year of your life is associated with a house and therefore a sign in your chart. Because for this technique to work well and to be correct, we need to use whole sign houses where a sign and a house correspond. And so every year of your life, it's built on age. when you have your birthday, you perfect or move forward.

Into a new house and new sign for the year. And what's actually happening is you're perfecting or moving the ascendant degree forward through the chart. And so it's kind of like each year you have a new rising sign, which is kind of fun to explore. And so you have this house that comes alive. It's like all the light switches have been turned on in that house. And everything in that house, if you have a planet,

It's activated. If you don't have a planet, that's okay. The house is still activated. So it it gets really hot and alive. And that house is also ruled or governed by a planet. And that becomes in, you know, astrology, we call it a time lord. I rebranded them in the book as co creators. Yeah. And so you have the very

Sophia Pallas (06:15.202)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (06:29.3)
Yes, which I love. I love that. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (06:33.871)
Essential pieces of the technique is that you have a house of the year, a sign of the year, and a planet of the year. And then you can get more complicated, but that's the basics.

Sophia Pallas (06:45.974)
Yes. Awesome. So I guess where we go with annual profections usually is to first think about the house that's being activated and what that might mean, what topics might be activated for you in that particular year. And obviously for business, certain certain houses are gonna be more are gonna feel more you're gonna feel more action in your business in when your your perfection year is.

Or you've perfected into a certain house, I suppose, than others. So would you think for business generally I I think about the second house being the house that we associate with how we earn money, our resources, that kind of thing. So if we pref if we perfect into a second house here, which would be around the age of, if we're thinking about if you're in your 30s, that would be

Claire Gallagher (07:33.353)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (07:46.329)
37, that's right. 36 would be a first house year. 37 is a second house year because we're thinking about your like a 12-year cycle. And what's really cool about profections is you can look back 12 years ago and think about what was going on for you to get kind of the flavor of the year that you might be in now. So if you are around 37 and you're in this, or you are 37, you are in a second house year, and that means there might be extra focus on.

your resources, how you're making money. And you might find that that that kind of part of your life gets highlighted for that year. And any planets that you have in that second house, or the r or the ruler or the co-creator of that second house, then becomes the the planet that you're really focused on for the year and on what's going on with that planet becomes the guiding. Yeah, your business partner for the year. Yes, exactly. So

Claire Gallagher (08:26.119)
Okay.

Claire Gallagher (08:38.461)
Yeah. It's like your business partner.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (08:46.708)
What would be so s we've talked about second house, what would be other business related profection years, do you think?

Claire Gallagher (08:52.221)
Yeah, so I did a lot of interviews when I prepared to write this book. I interviewed over 40 people. And what I noticed was I saw some interesting patterns. Obviously, the second house came up, for sure. the tenth house definitely came up for sure. The house where your mid-heaven is located, whether it's in the 10th or the 9th or even the 8th or the 11th, that came up as a business year as well.

Sophia Pallas (09:04.118)
Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Sophia Pallas (09:19.393)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (09:22.397)
But interestingly enough, I also noticed that the seventh house had a lot to do with business. And sometimes I wonder if that's because our business becomes like this deep relationship that we have. and also when people work with clients, I noticed a lot of shifts when their seventh house was activated in their business. So I guess if I if I had to narrow it down, and I can't deny the first because a lot of times

Sophia Pallas (09:35.201)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (09:44.492)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (09:50.57)
Mm.

Claire Gallagher (09:51.966)
When people are in a first house year, they're often making big decisions about where do I want to go next. And so I would say also the sixth house is just like you're just really busy. So one, two, one, two, six, seven, ten, and your mid heaven house are typically where I see big business changes for people.

Sophia Pallas (10:05.206)
You just busy yes. Yeah.

Yep. Yes.

Sophia Pallas (10:16.91)
Hmm. Yeah. And just to clarify for those listening, we're talking about whole sign houses. So that means that your mid-heaven can be in a different sign to your 10th house. It's not always. I'm one of those lucky people that has my mid-heaven in the 10th house. So it keeps it less complicated. But but yeah, a lot of a lot of people, depending on where you live, where you were born in the world, you will have you may have your mid-heaven in a different house if you use whole sign houses.

Claire Gallagher (10:27.806)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (10:33.132)
that's nice.

Sophia Pallas (10:46.06)
And so it's great to think about what's going on for your mid-heaven specifically when it comes to your public reputation, your business as well. So that's a really good tip. is interesting that you bring up the seventh house because I am in a seventh house perfection year right now. And I have definitely noticed changes around my work. And I always do associate strongly with a seventh house year because I have

Claire Gallagher (11:01.705)
Sophia Pallas (11:14.006)
Three planets in the seventh. So it's always there's always a lot going on. So I'd love to know kind of how you approach it when you've got so you we've got a we've got a co creator planet. So a planet that rules or governs your your house of the year. So for instance, mine as an example is the seventh house. It's Scorpio.

So there's a lot of scorpionic things that happen in my seventh house, but also it's ruled traditionally by Mars. So Mars then is my co-creator planet for the year. And I would be thinking about what Mars is doing transit-wise, whether Mars is going retrograde, which it is, whether there's going to be any, whether it's going to be in signs, it's it's happy in. I would also, and this is kind of, we might dive into this.

In a little bit, but I'd also be looking at my solar return chart and seeing where is Mars in my solar return? Where is Mars in my natal chart though? Firstly, how well positioned is Mars to do its job in my natal chart? Right? It's in Libra. It's not, it's not, it's not super, it's not super well positioned to do its job well, but it is in the sixth house. So it does a lot of stuff, right?

Claire Gallagher (12:16.679)
Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (12:24.288)
okay.

Claire Gallagher (12:30.547)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (12:35.297)
But I'm thinking about that. I'm thinking about where my Mars is. But I also am interested in how how the planets that are in my seventh are going to kind of be activated in this year. Can you tell me can you tell us a little bit more about how that works from your like in your kind of method?

Claire Gallagher (12:56.519)
Yeah. Well, first I just want to point out for anyone listening that I found in practice that where your co-creator planet is located in the natal chart is often more vital. That house is more noticeable than the house of the year.

Sophia Pallas (13:21.643)
Right, okay. So just a hard tip. So this would be why my year is so busy, also, because Mars, located in my sixth, is always busy, always doing stuff. And it's the it's the planet of the year, the co-creator of the year. So so you think that that topic of the do you think that that means that the topic of the sixth gets more attention during

Claire Gallagher (13:24.233)
So just a hot tip.

Claire Gallagher (13:30.174)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (13:50.592)
this year or does it more mean the nature of the planet? Yeah. Tell me what you're thinking.

Claire Gallagher (13:58.482)
Yeah, it's hard to split hairs because it's it's both. It's like yes and. but time and again, like I I couldn't deny it. And you know, it's hard to take a stand and go, This is what I think in astrology when there's so much research. But just from my experience with clients and with all of my interviews, I noticed like, okay, so I I would ask them about their themes, like what's going on this year? And I would

Sophia Pallas (14:01.707)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (14:12.809)
Yes, yes. No, I love it.

Sophia Pallas (14:20.245)
Hmm.

Sophia Pallas (14:27.445)
Mm.

Claire Gallagher (14:27.913)
Correspond that with the house of the year. And a lot of times it didn't, it didn't relate, but it did relate to the house that the natal co-creator was located in. And so I've decided in my little brain of priorities, it's kind of gone up to number one for me. so for anyone listening who's like, okay, I'm in an eighth house year, but this doesn't resonate.

Sophia Pallas (14:38.329)
Right.

Sophia Pallas (14:45.46)
Right.

Claire Gallagher (14:53.095)
Check with where the planet that rules your eighth house is located and that might resonate a lot more. but to pink

Sophia Pallas (14:58.653)
Right. And what if the planet what what if the planet that rules the house is in the house that it rules?

Claire Gallagher (15:06.335)
then it's a a double scoop of ice cream, so it should resonate

Sophia Pallas (15:08.725)
Okay. Then you should find you should find that the themes of your of your house year are very prominent, right? Because it's getting that double, yeah, the double scoop effect. Yes. Okay, so so how would you interpret that for me? If I've got if I'm in a seventh house year, Mars is the ruler of my seventh and Mars is in the sixth. Tell me how you would see that going.

Claire Gallagher (15:16.253)
Yeah. Yeah. Theoretically. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (15:33.939)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (15:39.432)
Well, the first thing that came to mind was like the ancient concept of aversion where Mars can't see the house that it rules. And so we have Mars in Libra, which is a sign that it already it feels a little like maybe doesn't know what to choose, a slip-flopping direction, etc. and then it also can't see what it's

Sophia Pallas (15:45.387)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (15:49.353)
Yes, yes.

Claire Gallagher (16:08.115)
doing. It can't see what it's it's managing. And so I would imagine, and you tell me, that there may be, I would imagine that there may be a lot of sifting and sorting and trying to figure things out, but maybe not a lot of clarity right away. we could also imagine that when the sixth and the seventh are connected, that there might be a lot of shuffling around

Sophia Pallas (16:14.751)
Mm-hmm, I will.

Sophia Pallas (16:26.273)
Hm.

Claire Gallagher (16:37.669)
Around people you work with, whether that's clientele and deciding, do I like the way my one-to-one offers are structured? Do I like the way my groups are structured? Do I, does this feel good in my day-to-day routine? so I would think about how your house of the year and the natal house the co creator is located in, how they would layer on top of each other. So in this case, it would be.

Sophia Pallas (16:40.693)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (16:49.791)
Yes. Hmm.

Sophia Pallas (17:03.199)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (17:04.595)
How seven and sixth house themes layer and mesh together. So it really would be like work relationships, client relationships. but I also imagine there's some some difficulty, some frustration in maybe visualizing what's coming next or how how you want to move forward just because of the aversion there. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (17:12.961)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (17:32.162)
Yeah, absolutely. yeah, I think that that I think that I've there's been this sense of like trying to get organized. Like it's like it all year I've been like, Why is this so much harder this year? Like I just can't seem it's like it's really busy, but it's I'm always feeling like I'm I'm always feeling like I'm a little bit behind in

Claire Gallagher (17:42.491)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (17:55.54)
in a way of like like yes like I can't see what the process is like I have to actually really stop myself think through the process a lot more than I used than I usually do which even though I natal have Mars in you know in a version with the seventh I just find it e extra this year. Like it's extra. It's it's there's a lot of client stuff. I I feel you know like it's very full in terms of my

Claire Gallagher (18:05.606)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (18:17.341)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (18:21.129)
Okay.

Sophia Pallas (18:24.715)
my capacity is I maxed out capacity wise, which is lovely. Which is which is a lovely problem to have. But it's like, yes, there's that sense of like and that's where I feel the Mars. Like I'm like, okay, yes. It's it's a lot of there's a lot of work. Like when we have Mars, we have a Mars ruled year, or a co our co-creator is Mars, it's usually

Claire Gallagher (18:27.837)
Great. It's a good problem.

Sophia Pallas (18:47.617)
Busy in the sense of there's work to be done. Like because Mars is your planet of action, right? It's it's kind of give giving you it's giving you tasks to do all the time. So yeah, I definitely resonate with that that concept, like I can't like I can't quite see yeah, like the next step. Like I'm always kind of like trying to get to the next step or trying to visualize it. Yeah. Yes.

Claire Gallagher (18:59.219)
Mm, mm.

Claire Gallagher (19:10.841)
Yeah. Like it's you're in the forest and you can't see the overhead view 'cause you're so there's so much to do right here. Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (19:18.135)
There's so much to do. That's right. Yeah. And I'm constantly like trying to, yeah, reorganize my time. Yes, I'm finding that a lot. Like, yeah. Absolutely. So I definitely resonate. But yes, but so if if the planet that rules the year and sorry, where it's placed is is critical, like is the number one, right?

Claire Gallagher (19:26.385)
Yeah, so six house routine and schedules are coming up. Yeah. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (19:45.139)
Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (19:45.417)
then what happens to the planets that are in the house, in the in the the perfected house? What what

Claire Gallagher (19:49.694)
Yeah, they get turned on too. They get activated too. And the way I like to think of it is especially in in the realm of aspects. So if if those planets are in an aspect with another planet, that aspect gets highlighted. Where the rest of the aspects in your chart can maybe go to sleep for the year and not be as active.

Sophia Pallas (20:14.186)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (20:16.433)
And so I like to think of it as a part of your either personality comes forward in a different way, or a story narrative in your life that is depicted by that aspect comes forward for that year. So that's how I view the planets inside the house of the year. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (20:22.229)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (20:31.988)
Okay.

Sophia Pallas (20:37.375)
Okay. Awesome. And so I think this is a this is a question that has just come up for me this week because w we talked about I'm I'm doing a program which which in at the moment we're kind of diving deep into annual profections as well. And

I think sometimes with with the planets that are in the house, we try we try to think, what when will this be activated? Because we're thinking like profections are like transits, which they're not really, right? So the aspects that are happening in that in that part of your chart are kind of active the whole year. They're not just turned on at certain times of the year. Is that your your experience? So it's like that theme is like there for the whole time.

Claire Gallagher (21:19.475)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (21:25.453)
You can't just be like, that's gonna pass like you would for a transit. You'd like, that's gonna be there for a week or two weeks or a month. But no, this is this is a twelve month thing.

Claire Gallagher (21:34.067)
Yeah, it's a storyline for for the twelve months. Now, could you layer a transit on top of that? And if like transiting Mars came and kissed that aspect, would it become much more noticeable? Yes, of course. but it's definitely your narrative for the year and something to explore the whole year. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (21:37.663)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (21:41.099)
Hmm.

Sophia Pallas (21:45.356)
Yeah.

Hmm.

Hmm. Yeah. And so would you say that if you've got a lot of planets in your perfected house, it's going to be there's going to be a lot of kind of storylines or com potentially competing storylines for your year?

Claire Gallagher (22:05.309)
Yeah, for sure. I think it just mirrors the human experience where life is complicated and sometimes you have five different things going on in your life at once. you know, taking care of this relationship and then this thing is breaking down, but this thing is going really well. You know, that tends to happen when we have a lot of planets in in one place and they're in varying levels of health and happiness.

Sophia Pallas (22:09.421)
Mm.

Mm.

Sophia Pallas (22:15.913)
Yeah. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (22:23.585)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (22:33.159)
they will mirror varying levels of health and happiness in different areas of life.

Sophia Pallas (22:38.997)
Yeah. And so if you have n if you have no planets in a house, then would you think and I guess again it depends on the the co creator or the ruler of that house, would you think that then it will be kind of a less intense year or a less not less intense but a less

Like what's the word? Like a less complicated yeah in my mind. Like maybe. Depends on what the pl depends on what the co creator planet is doing, really.

Claire Gallagher (23:05.905)
Maybe. Maybe. It it depends on the co-creator's condition, which is complicated, but I break it down in the book with a mnemonic that's pretty easy to remember. And if the co-creator is kind of in neutral condition, the year will probably be kind of like, that was a year, you know, it it happened, it happened.

Sophia Pallas (23:13.9)
Hm.

Sophia Pallas (23:27.116)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (23:31.906)
was a year. It mm-hmm. It there wasn't anything that that super memorable about that. About that time. Like it was really it was kind of flowy. Like things just just kind of moved along. And then there'll be the years where you're like, that was crunchy. That was that was, you know, like remember that one. And so that I would encourage if you're listening to think back. Definitely think back 12 years ago. Like if you if you know your chart at all, look up your have a look.

Claire Gallagher (23:38.395)
Yeah and and yeah.

Claire Gallagher (23:44.828)
Yeah.

Yeah, I remember that.

Sophia Pallas (23:59.064)
Think about what perfection you you're in based on your age. And then go back 12 years and go, okay, what happened at this time? Because it's going to give you so much insight into the themes that might be coming up again. It doesn't mean the year will be the same, right? But it does give you that insight into, that's right. This thing was happening. And that's kind of an echo, or this is kind of an echo of what happened then. Because you're often dealing with the same.

the same stuff. You're working through the same types of issues or challenges potentially that you were in the previous time you were in that profection here.

Claire Gallagher (24:38.941)
Yeah. Yeah. And where they get different and is the solar return. And that's how you can start discerning subtleties between, you know, I'm in a sixth house year and I'm in another sixth house year and I have another sixth house year. They're all sixth house years, but they all have different solar returns. And that's where they get a little bit unique.

Sophia Pallas (24:45.663)
Yes.

Mm.

Sophia Pallas (24:56.087)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (24:59.66)
Hm.

Sophia Pallas (25:04.491)
Yeah. So I haven't really explained solar returns on the podcast before. So I'd love for you to give us just a little a little rundown on how they work and then how they might how they connect, intersect with with annual profections.

Claire Gallagher (25:13.523)
Sure.

Claire Gallagher (25:19.827)
Well, we're in luck because I use it in a very simple way. I don't do a whole lot with the solar return chart. I like to keep it simple. But solar solar return chart is essentially the moment the sun returns to the same degree it was at when you were born. So it could be on your birthday, it might be the day before, it might be the day after. but when we're using profections and we're layering in the solar return, the only thing I care about.

Sophia Pallas (25:27.327)
Awesome.

Claire Gallagher (25:49.498)
Is where the co-creator is in the solar return. And it's gonna be in a another sign and another house. And that's gonna give you another layer of information to tell you, what is going on this year? And how might this year be different than 12 years ago? You know, is my co-creator stronger this year than it was last time?

Sophia Pallas (25:52.298)
Mm, yes.

Sophia Pallas (26:03.607)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (26:12.212)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (26:17.661)
Mm.

Claire Gallagher (26:17.851)
Is it weaker? Is it more active? You know, and that will give you insight into what the year is able to deliver for you and if it's gonna stand out or kind of blur into the background.

Sophia Pallas (26:27.798)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (26:32.437)
Yeah, absolutely. So so when you say what condition, just to clarify for people, so obviously when when we're thinking about planets like because we are traditional astrologers, we think about the condition of the planet. If you're a modern astrologer, this might be a new concept for you, but but I think it's a really cool thing to understand is

Claire Gallagher (26:40.859)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (26:54.195)
If the the planet that rules your year or the you know this say we just take Mars because we've been talking about Mars. So in my chart, Mars is in Libra, and we know traditionally Mars likes to be in Aries, which is the opposite sign. It's in rulership in Aries and the and it's in it's in its detriment in Libra. It's considered to be in its detriment. So it doesn't have extra

support to do its job when it's in Libra. It's try like you explained before, like it's not able to do Mars things like it wants to. It has to do Mars things in a Libra way, which is kind of opposite to how it wants to work. So we have to understand that Mars is already operating in a cer in a in a different way to the way that it necessarily wants to or to the way that it's most effective. But in a solar return this year, I have Mars in Capricorn.

Claire Gallagher (27:31.913)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (27:49.94)
So in my solar return chart, Mars is in Capricorn, and Mars in Capricorn is what we call exalted, which is in its most powerful position potentially. It's it's you know it rules Aries and Scorpio, but in Capricorn it also has the follow-through because it's supported by that Saturnian that's a the Saturnian part of of Capricorn to kind of move through things. So you find people with Mars in Capricorn often have

Claire Gallagher (27:50.387)
Move.

Sophia Pallas (28:19.261)
very good drive to get things done because they have the the power of Mars in its exalted position in its i in its kind of yeah most able and effective position. So when I think about Mars in Capricorn in my solar return, it's also by Whole Sign Houses in the seventh house on my solar return. So it's it's also in it's got it's got the

The benefit of being in an angular house as well. So in in traditional astrology, we're also thinking about the placement of the planet, not just the sign that it's in, but also is it in a place where it can be effective? And the angles, or the first, the fourth, the seventh, and the tenth are the most effective places in the chart for a planet to be. So in that interpretation, do you have any other thoughts for me about my Mars, how my Mars might function?

this year or how my my year may go based on my Mars in my solar return being in a more prominent or more more effective potentially position than it is nataly. Cause I know that's a big part of the book too that you talk you talk about. How that can be helpful potentially.

Claire Gallagher (29:28.358)
Yeah.

Yeah. Well, what can it absolutely be helpful? I think the first thing that came to mind was something that you already mentioned is that like you're booked out and you're busy. And so I would imagine like an exalted Mars in the seventh house is like not only booked out and busy, but its reputation of being really good at what it does is probably very well known. So I would imagine a sort of a sort of like

Sophia Pallas (29:40.545)
Hmm. Mm.

Claire Gallagher (29:59.784)
Maybe there's a lot of busy work and maybe there's that lack of big perspective, but at the same time you're kind of like, I got this. You know, like I know how to do this. I'm confident with my client work. Like I'm I'm a badass at this, like, no problem. So it Yeah. And and so both can be true at the same time, you know? So that's kind of

Sophia Pallas (30:06.175)
Mm. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (30:12.354)
Hm.

Sophia Pallas (30:15.693)
That's a Mars and Capricorn thing, isn't it? It's like, I'm a badass. Yeah.

Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (30:27.709)
That's what comes up for me when you when you ask.

Sophia Pallas (30:30.603)
Yeah. So that is like that this idea of you know, understanding your solar return chart and where your co-created planet is can really help you if it's in a if it's in a helpful position. Like in for me, for instance, my Mars in my natal chart is is not in a in a great position to do Mars things. Just to do Mars things. Like it's not necessarily bad. It's just that it's not in a good place to to

do Mars things as effectively. It has to find other ways. Whereas in my solar return, Mars is really helpful. It's able to do what it needs to do. So that can be helpful to my year. But if we were to look at it in another way and our co-creator was in a less effective position, what that might mean for the year, that doesn't, I just want to say that doesn't mean you're going to have a shit year. I just want to say that up front.

But like what that might mean for people who are like, no, my solar return, I have V Venus is my ruler and Venus is in Aries this year or something, you know.

Claire Gallagher (31:37.862)
Mm-hmm. Yeah, I like to I like to spin it a little bit and think about planets that are in challenging positions are really good problem solvers. And a lot of times when a planet is in detriment, like Venus and Aries, for the example, Venus gets to become really scrappy and figure out how to do its job in this arid, hot environment.

Sophia Pallas (31:47.543)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (31:58.189)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (32:04.566)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (32:04.785)
And so a lot of times when people natally have planets in detriment and also in the solar return, they become really creative, out-of-the-box thinkers that come up with solutions that people with planets in domicile might not see. yeah. Yeah. And so I have in my solar return, my co creator is also Mars, and it is in Libra in detriment in my solar return. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (32:20.705)
Might not, yes.

Sophia Pallas (32:30.728)
there you go. Aren't you lucky, right? I love that.

Claire Gallagher (32:33.147)
And so this year has been, yes, I'm super lucky. And I just feel like I've been wandering in the wilderness for for eight months. And then suddenly I was like, I figured it out. Like the whole year was about figuring out this one particular problem. And I eventually got there, but it took that Libra indecision wavering situation.

Sophia Pallas (32:40.267)
Yeah. Hmm.

Sophia Pallas (32:45.985)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (32:49.972)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (32:53.747)
Hmm. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (32:58.269)
But yeah, all that to say, if you have a planet in your solar return chart that isn't in the best condition, I encourage you to think about it as something that can be overcome and that can be figured out. And instead of thinking of it as as a shit year.

Sophia Pallas (33:16.799)
Yes. That's it. But yeah, look, I and I do, I mean, I have an affinity for planets in detriment. I have a lot of them in my chart. And I think that that is what makes me a good problem solver, you know, like because we have to work that out. And I that and that's what I do enjoy about my Mars in Libra, that it is a very good problem solving planet. You know, it it can't rush in and do the things like Mars would. It has to think it through and find another way.

Claire Gallagher (33:26.537)
Great.

Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (33:34.91)
Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (33:38.345)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (33:44.37)
and often it comes down to partnerships and collaborations and who you can, because it's Libra, who you can bring in to support you or who you who you need to connect with is a powerful thing to do with when if if you have, you know, a co-creation, a co-creator planet that is Mars in Libra or in Libra in general, you're often going to be called to to connect with other people more than perhaps you usually would if it's not in your natal chart.

Claire Gallagher (33:44.658)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (34:13.921)
But let's just let's just touch on a couple of the other co-creators because I feel like we've given Mars a a good go. Mars has got a lot of airtime today. you know, for business, like we you and I briefly talked about before we we started recording, you know, Mercury is obvious obviously the planet of of trade and commerce and communication. So it's very important for us in online business. But in a Mercury-ruled year, or when Mercury is your co-creator.

It's often just a very busy year because Mercury is a very fast moving planet, right? That's kind of what we we discussed. It doesn't mean that there won't be a lot of themes around communication and and business coming up for you, but what else would you say is important to note about like a Mercury ruled or or a co-creator of Mercury for the year?

Claire Gallagher (35:03.943)
Yeah, for business particularly, I think about copywriting and messaging is what comes up right away and making sure that you are communicating your offers clearly and in a way that your people can receive.

Sophia Pallas (35:09.781)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (35:20.044)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (35:23.916)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (35:24.807)
And that they resonate with. And so a Mercury year would be a great time to take a copywriting course or learn messaging with Sophia or have a one-on-one. that would be a great way to spend a Mercury year intentionally is working on that aspect of your business, the words that sell.

Sophia Pallas (35:33.793)
Ha ha.

Sophia Pallas (35:40.991)
Hmm. Yes.

Sophia Pallas (35:46.228)
Yes. And also thinking about, you know, the fact that Mercury goes retrograde a c a few times a year, those retrograde periods are gonna be a lot more interesting for you if you're in a if you're in a Mercury ruled year, you're going to it doesn't mean they're gonna be bad periods, but it does mean that there's gonna be probably more things happening for you in the retrograde times or more things for you to reconsider in those times, perhaps than other years. Yes.

Claire Gallagher (35:53.559)
Mm.

Claire Gallagher (35:57.512)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (36:12.177)
Yeah. I would definitely respect the retrograde if if Mercury I don't usually respect the retrograde, but if Mercury were my co-creator, I would respect the retrograde a little bit more deeply.

Sophia Pallas (36:16.813)
Yeah.

Hmm. Yeah. And and that goes for any of the personal planets if they are going retrograde. Mars yeah. Respect the Mars retrograde. Venus, absolutely. So the outer planets, I think not as much because obviously they're they're pretty much retrograde half the year anyway. But but it's more those closer in planets that we've really got to be aware of when they're in those cycles. If it is a year, like for instance, Mars isn't retrograde every year.

Claire Gallagher (36:29.064)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (36:33.259)
Ha ha ha.

Claire Gallagher (36:45.105)
Exactly.

Sophia Pallas (36:51.839)
If it is a year that Mars is retrograde and you're in a Mars world year, it's gonna be potentially more eventful than other times. Yeah. It it might slow you down or it might change you your direction a little bit. so what about something like Saturn? What what do you think is gonna be the focus if if Saturn is your co-creation, co-creator planet for the year?

Claire Gallagher (36:59.921)
Yeah. You might not be moving as fast as you want to.

Claire Gallagher (37:07.954)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (37:12.115)
Mm.

Claire Gallagher (37:18.739)
Defin yeah, definitely think business structure, whether that's restructuring, which is something you mentioned but while we were chatting before, restructuring, adding new structures, really making sure like how your offers fit together well, like the whole ecosystem of your business, making sure the legal part of your business is sound. you have

Sophia Pallas (37:25.26)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (37:41.933)
Mm, yes.

Claire Gallagher (37:44.898)
standard operating procedures and systems for things. That's definitely what Saturn would have us focus on from a business perspective. And the way I like to work with Saturn is like when you're making decisions in your business about what to do next or what class to offer or what product to release, Saturn doesn't care how cute your new idea is. It's like

Sophia Pallas (37:49.207)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (37:54.933)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (38:07.837)
Yeah. No.

Claire Gallagher (38:10.087)
Well, where is this gonna be in five years? What about ten years from now? And so it's really about the long game and the big picture.

Sophia Pallas (38:12.798)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (38:17.677)
Absolutely. Yeah, you're much more focused on, yeah, what what is this building in my business as opposed to this feels nice, like it might be in a Venus year, where you might be like, I just feel like I want to do this project. This is fun. so yeah, so if you're in a Venus year, which would be if your perfection year is a Taurus or Libra year,

Claire Gallagher (38:27.453)
Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (38:32.765)
This is fun.

Sophia Pallas (38:47.595)
That would, and I should say if you're in a Saturn year, that would be traditionally that would be a Capricorn or Aquarius perfected house. So a Venus year would be Libra or Taurus. What would be the the focus of those when when Venus is your planet of the year, what's the focus of that? What's the key words for us?

Claire Gallagher (39:09.501)
Yeah. Yeah. I think having fun is definitely one of them, connecting with pleasure in your business and making sure that it feels good and that you s you want to continue doing what you're doing in the way you're doing it. that's a really important piece of Venus. Obviously, we could go with the visual aspects. So if you need to do any type of rebranding or branding for the first time, that would be great. If you need to get photographs taken, that

Sophia Pallas (39:18.314)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (39:23.873)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (39:33.207)
Branding.

Claire Gallagher (39:39.379)
That would be a great year to plan that out and save up for that. so any of the visual piece, but also for me it's always like, does this feel good? And do I wanna continue operating my business in this way?

Sophia Pallas (39:43.304)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (39:50.337)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (39:55.125)
Yeah, so interesting. I

Last year, so 20 2025 was my was a Venus ruled year for me. And literally right at the beginning of the year, I did a photo shoot and I rebranded. And I just think like it's funny how at the time I was thinking so much about Venus. Like I was really thinking about connecting with my Venus in Scorpio for my branding and all of those things. And like I'm born at the end of the year, so I literally just started that that Venus perfection year and went straight into it. it took me a long time to

Claire Gallagher (40:14.291)
Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (40:25.032)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (40:27.233)
actually put it out in the world even though that happened but it's like that my that whole year was really about branding for me in business you know it was really about thinking about about how I wanted to present myself and and how I wanted to change things and how I wanted things to feel in my business. So that's like I love when it's like it

Claire Gallagher (40:30.44)
Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (40:35.827)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (40:47.999)
I mean it it often is very literal, right? It's just sometimes you have to look back. Sometimes it's real that's why it's so helpful to look back on those years and be like, yeah, that's right. That was really a theme for me that whole year. yeah. And okay, so we can't forget we can't forget Jupiter. And we can't we probably just need to to we probably just need to go through the re the rest quickly. Sun, Moon, and I think we've covered Mars, Venus, Saturn.

Claire Gallagher (40:50.587)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (41:00.253)
Yeah. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (41:07.177)
Mm.

Yeah, I think we got Sun, Moon, Jupiter. Is that all who's left?

Sophia Pallas (41:16.597)
And Mercury. So yes. Three to go. So we're not in order. Sorry. Sorry guys. but okay. So let's go to Jupiter quickly. If you're in a Jupiter year, which is like next year for me, let's let's think about the good things. What year are you going into next year? What who's gonna be your Venus?

Claire Gallagher (41:18.481)
Okay, yeah. We're doing good. Cool.

Claire Gallagher (41:28.861)
Yeah, let's do it.

A Venus year. It'll be a s a sixth house year, Venus, Taurus year for me. Yeah. So we'll see.

Sophia Pallas (41:38.377)
Awesome. Yeah, see how that goes. See what what new brand ev evolves in that time. okay, so if it's a Jupiter year, what might we be thinking about or what might be the theme?

Claire Gallagher (41:42.812)
We'll see.

Claire Gallagher (41:48.873)
Mm.

Yeah, so a lot of times we think about Jupiter as growth, and that is definitely true. And so maybe building your reach or growing your reach in business would be something you want to explore. And I'll go ahead and say I think the sun rules that as well with visibility. but I would definitely like explore scaling up. That's also a Jupiter word in business would be to scale something. So

Sophia Pallas (42:01.612)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (42:09.707)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (42:15.221)
Hm.

Scale. Expand in some way. Yes.

Claire Gallagher (42:20.879)
Expand, yeah. make something bigger. And maybe even we don't necessarily think of Jupiter as social media, but it might be like expanding, like adding a channel that opening a YouTube channel, doing something that's a little bit stretchy for you, you know. that's another like Jupiter growing pains that are not painful, but like a stretch, yeah.

Sophia Pallas (42:26.165)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (42:36.237)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (42:40.885)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (42:47.005)
Yes. Not painful, but but nice. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Feeling that feeling the the growth on the opportunity in a in a new way, in a different way, perhaps to normal. And obviously looking at what Jupiter is doing in your solar return to give you a little bit more guidance as to, you know, where those opportunities might be coming from or how to work even better with those opportunities.

Claire Gallagher (42:50.897)
Yeah. So putting yourself out there.

Claire Gallagher (42:59.003)
Mm hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (43:13.905)
Yeah. And I would say like lean into saying yes more than saying no in a Jupiter year. For example, Jupiter years will often surprise you with opportunity that you weren't looking for. Like the last time I was in a Jupiter year was when I got the email asking me to write this book. And I was like, I didn't know another book was in my in the stars for me.

Sophia Pallas (43:18.957)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (43:24.885)
Hm. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (43:35.913)
Yeah. Well, of course. Of course it was.

Claire Gallagher (43:40.531)
So Jupiter surprised me with an opportunity.

Sophia Pallas (43:43.263)
Yeah, no, that's awesome. and so the moon, let's talk let's okay, sorry, let's talk about the sun first because it's aligned with you know, the with that whole concept of visibility and then we'll talk about the moon.

Claire Gallagher (43:49.416)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (43:57.052)
Yeah, I think this the sun has lots of layers. I mean, one we just mentioned is visibility and like processing being seen. And how much do you want to be seen in your business? Do you want to be the face or do you want to be behind the scenes? Cause there's no right or wrong. Like it's your business. I would think of it kind of like a celestial CEO as well.

Sophia Pallas (44:15.67)
Hm.

Claire Gallagher (44:21.691)
And so maybe there's some high level organizing going on, some vision casting going on for the many years ahead. and also we think of the sun as like a a wellness check or a vitality check. So just yeah, making sure that kind of like I said with Venus, like making sure that your business is is fueling you.

Sophia Pallas (44:30.495)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (44:35.403)
Vitality, absolutely.

Claire Gallagher (44:45.798)
and that you feel well in your business and that it's not draining your light or your vitality.

Sophia Pallas (44:46.539)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (44:53.131)
Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. And I think sun years can be also a bit of fun too, like because it's mm it I mean, obviously it depends on what your what your sun is doing in your chart and it's gonna be doing something similar in your solar return 'cause it's still gonna be in the same sign always. but yeah, it's like it it's like coming back to you. I feel like it's a it's a little bit of a a recharge sometimes as

Claire Gallagher (44:59.262)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (45:10.503)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (45:20.398)
a sun rolled yeah can feel like a little bit of a recharge of the batteries. yeah. So what about a moon yeah?

Claire Gallagher (45:20.498)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (45:26.259)
Yeah, that's lovely. Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (45:31.826)
Yeah, moon year. Moon year is not really like a go get business year usually. and that is okay. I I in moon years I often think about how we take care of ourselves on a daily basis.

Sophia Pallas (45:40.577)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (45:44.597)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (45:57.418)
How our business fits into our rhythm and also the rhythms of the business itself, you know, as the very rhythmic moon changes shape throughout the month. So, in some ways, the moon can be a sneaky systems planet. It can help you with rhythm. Yeah. but I I mostly think of the moon year as really needing to replenish.

Sophia Pallas (46:06.369)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (46:14.527)
Yeah. Absolutely.

Claire Gallagher (46:26.281)
And whether that's yourself or the business, learning how to regenerate your business. and also imagine taking care of the relationships inside the business, like nurturing those as well and making sure that everyone is cohesive and and happy in the business for sure. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (46:27.446)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (46:49.301)
Yeah, I definitely think that moon ruled years can be that

kind of more introspective time. Like it's a more of a you need to kind of reconnect. Because obviously the moon is our is our planet of our emotions and our subconscious processing and all of that stuff is going on. So so it's gonna come back to, you know, reconnect you with that with your own emotions, with your own natal moon and and what you need from to feel

Claire Gallagher (46:58.855)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (47:21.451)
To feel fulfilled in business and life. And so yeah, it's got and it's and it's gonna probably feel a little bit more it could feel a little bit more emotional or it could feel a little bit more changeable because the moon, as you say, is so like it's a it's it's so changeable, you know, whenever we're in

Claire Gallagher (47:36.561)
Yeah, exactly.

Sophia Pallas (47:42.966)
Whenever we notice the moon is strong in a chart or the the place that the moon is in, that that's often the the part of life that is the most kind of changeable and, you know, needs to you kind of need to get used to the rhythms or the or the process and the the adaptability of that part of your chart too. There's something there's a lesson for you there in in

Claire Gallagher (47:55.272)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (48:06.849)
the part of the your chart that's ruled by the moon because it has it needs you to become more adaptable or it needs you to flow more with life in some way. like if you think about if you think about your own natal chart and the house that is the cancer house, the the house that's ruled by the moon, you might notice that those are the themes that you find that you really do need to get much more in flow with. Like if I think about my own chart.

Claire Gallagher (48:10.333)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (48:33.447)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (48:35.915)
You know, that really resonates for me. I don't know about you. Like where you where's your moon? I remember.

Claire Gallagher (48:41.563)
My moon is located in the third, but it r it rules the eighth.

Sophia Pallas (48:43.935)
In the third, right? But it rules the eighth. Right. So you've got the double whammy there. If when you have an eighth house year, you have a lot of emotions, I imagine, with you know, it's it's kind of gonna bring up some stuff. So yeah, that that's a really but that's a really cool thing to know. Like it's really as you work with with techniques like annual profections and these other like kind of

Claire Gallagher (48:54.822)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (49:04.584)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (49:11.955)
more ancient timing techniques, they really help you reconnect with your own your own natal promise. Like what what actually is this all about? What is it that I'm trying to develop through this part of my chart? I think that's really it's a really helpful lens to look at every year and go, okay, like this year I'm working on this. Like for me, this year. So Mars is is challenging for me, Nadal. Well it's not challenging, but it's it's it's different.

Claire Gallagher (49:26.962)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (49:40.502)
So this year I'm working on my Mars. Like, how can I fortify my Mars this year? How can I, how can I kind of honor Mars this year? what is it that Mars needs from me? Because because you are co-creating this time period together. You know, that's what you can, and I I love how you write about that in the book. Like, how can you how can you connect with that?

Claire Gallagher (49:54.131)
Yeah, I love that question. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (50:08.503)
with the energy of that planet and help help help it to help you to move through the year. It wants it wants to help you. If we think about the the planets as being as being like, yeah, our assistant kind of or our, you know, our partner through the year, then how might it how might it assist us or how might we assist it to help us? Is a is a powerful thing to do.

Claire Gallagher (50:13.765)
Yeah, 'cause it wants to help you. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (50:23.793)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (50:37.345)
Do you have any tips for people about, you know, what they might be, what might help them to work with, particularly a planet like Mars or Saturn, I think, or even the moon maybe, but you know, we think of like Venus is generally a planet that's and Jupiter. We're there are benefic planets. There are kind of helpful planets. We can honor them, right? And we can still work with them, but like we don't need to kind of mitigate.

for challenges, generally speaking, with the benefics, because they're there and they're acting to in a supportive way, generally, is how we see them. But with the the the other planets that we consider to be a little bit more malefic or problematic or challenging, how might we then work with our co-created planet to to, you know, boost its

Claire Gallagher (51:06.227)
Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (51:13.991)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (51:30.317)
I hate to say this. Boost its performance. That sounds like optimize its performance. But no, I mean like like allow it to be more supportive for us.

Claire Gallagher (51:33.543)
Ha ha ha

Claire Gallagher (51:39.142)
Mm-hmm. Yeah, I think the first tip I would have is to get to know it. And when I say that, I don't mean intellectually. So I don't mean reading more about it or Googling it. I mean, and this might be a little out there, but I'm just gonna bring it in. I mean starting a conversation with it. Cause the other way I view planets are as parts of self. And

Sophia Pallas (51:49.204)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (52:02.525)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (52:06.891)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (52:08.883)
The malefic planets are parts of us that we often exile or put in the background or hush. and so when they become co-creators, it's an opportunity to welcome that part of self back in and to strike up a relationship with it. And the like I do it through journaling, that's how I get to know the planets.

Sophia Pallas (52:11.245)
Parts of us. Mm.

Sophia Pallas (52:35.381)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (52:39.067)
And you can literally talk to it like you would be meeting a new friend out for coffee. Hi, how are you doing today? How do you feel? What are you into? Like what lights you up? And I I reference this technique in the book and I call it planet channeling, but it's it's really just a stream of consciousness writing where you invoke a planet.

Sophia Pallas (52:44.426)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (52:47.873)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (52:56.074)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (53:05.265)
And you pose a question and then you trust that it will answer through you. And so I really encourage the listeners to, you know, especially if they have trepidation about a certain year coming up, to really remember that the planets they're they they love you. And I I believe that they want to help you. And so

Sophia Pallas (53:10.219)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (53:20.193)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (53:26.901)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (53:33.43)
Mm.

Claire Gallagher (53:34.33)
it's just a matter of getting to know each other and how each of you works. And so ask it, what do you need from me? how often would you like me to check on you? And the planet will say, I would love for you to check on me every week or every month, etc. And it's just like meeting a friend for coffee. so I know it might sound a little strange, but I encourage everyone to give it a go.

Sophia Pallas (53:38.636)
Yes.

Mm.

Sophia Pallas (53:45.9)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (53:52.67)
Yeah.

Yes.

Sophia Pallas (54:02.655)
Mm, no, I love that. And I did love that part of the book too. and I did mean to start a conversation with Mars and I didn't. So you've just reminded me that I need to do that. yeah, I do. I I, you know, I love that. And I, you know, I love the concept of of I guess planet magic in the terms of like the more that you can connect with the planet.

Claire Gallagher (54:09.085)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (54:28.705)
the more that it the more that it can help you, give you, the more that it can guide you in positive ways. And like you say, like rather than being afraid of the next year's tra you know, you see your solar return, you're like, my God, you know, Saturn is in Aries, which it is now. you know, and so you think, dear, what's this gonna mean? Instead of that, what if you thought about

Claire Gallagher (54:46.387)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (54:58.655)
Yeah, starting a conversation with Saturn and you know, finding out what Saturn likes and how you could honor Saturn in your day to day routines or every week. that's partly why I love planetary days as well. And I think about, you know, I don't do this every day and you know,

Claire Gallagher (55:14.641)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (55:18.525)
But I I want to get back to that point where I'm like, yes, today I'm honoring Jupiter and I'm connecting with that energy of Jupiter and how can I work with you today so that my day can feel more expansive, Jupiter. Or I particularly at the moment am loving Tuesdays where I'm working with Mars and I'm like, okay, Mars, let's go. You know, like getting getting into that energy of like, let's work together. Let's actually, you know, it sounds

Claire Gallagher (55:30.451)
Mm-hmm.

Sophia Pallas (55:47.328)
strange but I think it just gives you a little bit of an edge right it gives you like a superpower when you have a planet on your side. I mean who doesn't want a planet on their side really? Yes. Awesome. Is there anything else you want to touch on before we close out today's conversation? Because yes, I love this stuff. I could talk about it for forever.

Claire Gallagher (55:52.743)
Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (55:56.922)
Absolutely. Yeah.

Claire Gallagher (56:08.467)
Just wanted to say, I know, me too. I just wanted to ping back quickly to the moon year. For anyone in a moon year, something, a thought came through. It might be interesting for you to look at the phase the moon is in on your birthday or aka in your solar return. And that might give you a clue as to like the momentum, the motivation, and the

Sophia Pallas (56:16.865)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (56:23.947)
Yes. Yes.

Claire Gallagher (56:38.669)
level of brightness and vitality you might bring to the year. So that could be an a fun side project for you.

Sophia Pallas (56:43.328)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (56:47.221)
Yeah, that's awesome. So so would you look at your natal phase as well as your solar return phase? Or would you focus just yeah. Because because for instance, like, you know, if I was looking at mine, so my natal phase is like third quarter disseminating moon. So that if you're in a solar return phase where your moon is in that like final stretch of the dissemination before it's new,

Claire Gallagher (56:52.989)
Why not?

Claire Gallagher (57:02.441)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (57:12.211)
But your na sorry, your yeah, your solar return is in that. But your natal moon is a full moon. You might find that the the the year is actually a little bit more I don't know, would you say that would be a quicker time or a slower time? Like third quarter to me is sometimes quite

Fast and easy to change, urgent to change, right? Impatient, because it's that final like, yeah. Whereas, you know, if you're at a a balsamic or a new moon phase, it might like, it's quiet now. I need to get quiet.

Claire Gallagher (57:31.367)
Urgent.

Claire Gallagher (57:43.986)
Yeah, I kind of think of the third quarter or the last quarter, whichever way you like to say it, as like getting ready for winter. And so like you're running around like getting the house ready and storing up the food and and so there's like this anticipation for for quiet coming, but it's not here here yet. And you're hunkering down, as we say in the southern United States.

Sophia Pallas (57:48.599)
Hm.

Sophia Pallas (57:54.837)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (57:58.923)
Yes.

Sophia Pallas (58:05.953)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (58:11.712)
Yes.

Claire Gallagher (58:12.259)
for a storm or something. And so there's this preparatory, getting ready urgency that can kind of come with that third quarter phase.

Sophia Pallas (58:14.412)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (58:18.492)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (58:22.633)
Yes. Yeah. So obviously, yeah, depending on the phase that you're born gives you a different you got that different natal moon energy, whether it's, you know, that and those kind of first quarter, last quarter are probably both urgent in a way. Like first quarter is like, let's build something, let's do something, let's do plant all the seeds. And the last quarter is let's gather all the seeds before the winter. Like or g gather all the food before the winter. You know, so they've got that.

Claire Gallagher (58:39.912)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Claire Gallagher (58:49.554)
Yeah, exactly.

Sophia Pallas (58:50.781)
And obviously the full moon phase is more like, let's bask in the in the moonlight. Let's be let's be on show a little bit more. Let's maybe be more visible. Or maybe we're we're feeling the the you know, we're reaping the rewards of what we've been doing over the past few years. Like there's that energy and the slower energy would be very much the new moon phase, the balsamic and the new moon phase. Is that is that what you're thinking? Like that's the kind of the slowing down era.

Claire Gallagher (59:18.559)
yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. more inward, more introspective. You know, they'd be slightly different. You know, balsamic year might be more about that final release and letting go of something. And the new is like percolating, but not necessarily initiating just yet. so they're slightly different, but they're both dark and they're both quiet. Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (59:21.217)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (59:25.356)
Yeah.

Sophia Pallas (59:38.613)
Mm.

Sophia Pallas (59:43.135)
Yes. Yes. Absolutely. Yeah, no, that's a really good project to think about and to reflect on your past years. Especially if you are an astrologer and you're listening to this, go back and look at all your past charts, all the moon phases of your past pref you know, prof moon perfection years and see what see what if you notice the difference. I think that's an amazing thing to do. But yeah, if you're in business and you're listening.

Claire Gallagher (59:57.531)
Yeah. All your moon phases.

Sophia Pallas (01:00:11.521)
Go and figure out what your what your birthday year is, what pr what house you have perfected into this year. and let us know in the comments. Let us know how it's going. I would love to, I would love to hear how your year is going and if you resonate with what Claire and I have been talking about today. I am going to pop all the details for how people can access your beautiful book, Cosmic Year.

This is an amazing book. I really do love it. I have blurbed it, so I definitely love it. yeah, and I really think this is such a good foundation for understanding annual profections. I haven't had, I haven't, I haven't got a resource like this, and I wished there was one. So I'm very glad that you created it. because I think, yeah, it's just such a powerful.

Claire Gallagher (01:00:38.025)
Thank you.

Sophia Pallas (01:01:01.905)
Simple but powerful technique for us all to be able to work with every birthday. Like it really does help guide you and understand more about the planets in your chart, how they might be wanting to express and how they might be assisted by the year that you're in to express. Yeah, it's just it's very helpful. So thank you very much. Thank you for joining me today.

Claire Gallagher (01:01:25.811)
Thank you. Thanks for having me.

Sophia Pallas (01:01:27.418)
And yeah, go buy the book, people. It's awesome.