New Year’s resolutions are often recipes for burnout and disappointment. As the year marches on, motivation wanes. Eventually, we’re left waiting for the chance of a do-over next January.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to sticking to a resolution. Indeed, these goals, plans, and methods are unique to each person who makes them. So, for a better chance of keeping your resolution past February, you have to factor in your personality, motivations, and preferences.
Our zodiac sign offers much of that information. What does yours say about your New Year’s resolution?
Aries
March 20 – April 19
Your resolution: practice softness and vulnerability.
You navigate life as an impressive, fiery pillar of light, passion, and courage. But you’re also prone to burning bridges along the way. Rebellious Eris, a dwarf planet currently flying under your sign, intensified this defiant streak when it went retrograde in October.
Blazing trails over everything and everyone didn’t solve your problems last year. Rebellion is simply a defense mechanism, a means of protecting ourselves against past and potential hurt. But the power you seek lies within the dark, shadowy parts of yourself.
Pretending you’re not in pain doesn’t make it go away. It only makes it easier to inflict on others.
Taurus
April 19 – May 20
Your resolution: get out of your comfort zone by comforting others.
Uranus has been sitting in retrograde under your sign since August. Consequently, you’ve been hyper-aware of your need for independence, freedom, and truth. You’ve been hungry for something to feed your soul—a life purpose, mission, or goal.
Uranus goes direct mid-January, paving the way for a productive new year. While you’re usually a bit of a homebody, your community needs you in the middle of the action. Moreover, you won’t find the fresh perspectives you seek within your same old routine.
Creature comforts are your specialty. Use this know-how to help others get theirs.
Gemini
May 20 – June 21
Your resolution: build your foundation, not theirs.
As a social butterfly and people pleaser, you spend a lot of time worrying about other people’s thoughts and feelings. Thus, your foundation’s stability depends on those around you. This has left you feeling insecure, anxious, and unsure of yourself.
In the new year, prioritize yourself. Your ruling planet, Mercury, goes into retrograde in mid-January under Aquarius. This fixed air sign brings much-needed solidity to your flexible, mutable sign. If you must overextend yourself in 2022, do so for your benefit.
There’s no point in worrying about pleasing others if you can’t even please yourself.
Cancer
June 21 – July 22
Your resolution: approach your emotions pragmatically.
The Moon influences our deepest emotional self—the shadow self. You’re ruled by the Moon, thus making you the most susceptible to intense melancholy and soaring highs. But two lunar eclipses in 2022 will encourage you not just to feel your emotions but to act on them logically.
The first lunar eclipse in Scorpio pushes you to perceive those around you as they really are, not who you wish them to be. Then the next eclipse in Taurus will force you to take stock on who is worth keeping around—and most importantly, who isn’t.
It can be hard to see the forest (yourself) through the trees (your emotions). But 2022 is the year to try.
Leo
July 22 – August 22
Your resolution: think outside of the stage (er, box).
Saturn, the planet of challenge, discipline, and tough love, sits opposite you throughout the following year. This in and of itself can be burdensome. But add in a Saturn retrograde in midsummer and you’ll be forced to confront your problems nose to nose.
Additionally, several solar and lunar eclipses square your sign in 2022. Eclipses indicate new or closing chapters in life. Their position to your sign suggests these transitions won’t be easy for you. 2022 might not be your best year yet, but that doesn’t mean you have to brace for disaster.
Aquarius will influence you to think outside of the box—whether creatively or simply from outside your own perspective and ego.
Virgo
August 22 – September 22
Your resolution: loosen up a little.
You love setting goals, so New Year’s resolutions are always exciting for you. Never one to back down from a challenge, you live for the satisfaction of planning, doing, and succeeding. But your quest to constantly achieve can alienate you from your own emotions.
Next year, you’ll sit opposite Neptune under Pisces. Neptune is a tricky planet. While it can put a rose-colored veil over our eyes, it can also influence our spiritual healings and awakenings. Neptune also controls our inner tranquility, something with which you’re not familiar.
2022 is the year for living a little. Revel in your emotions, let others take the lead, and don’t be afraid to feel and relax.
Libra
September 22 – October 23
Your resolution: clean out your metaphorical closet.
In your attempt to be the peace-maker, you’ve collected an impressive pile of skeletons in your closet. In fact, you placed them there with unchecked boundaries, constant people-pleasing, and unspoken, festering resentment. Your constant amiability has officially backfired.
Much of this drama came to the surface at the end of 2021. And unfortunately, it doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere—at least, not until you address it. Ditch the passive-aggressive people-pleasing routine in 2022, and start standing up for yourself.
Remember, Libra: you can be fair to others while also being fair to yourself.
Scorpio
October 23 – November 22
Your resolution: work on trusting others.
Despite your icy exterior, you’re a softie. It’s not that you don’t like being around other people. Instead, you just prefer to observe. This defense mechanism protects you from the dangers of vulnerability, something that has never been your strong suit.
In 2022, Haumea–a dwarf planet–flies just outside of your sign, pushing you to trust your intuition. You might feel more comfortable on the outside looking in, but do you feel happier? Listen to your heart for the answer. Use the new year to practice trusting, relying on, and becoming vulnerable with others.
Doing so isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s one of the most fundamental displays of strength.
Sagittarius
November 22 – December 21
Your resolution: go for it.
Mars flies under your sign as we enter 2022. As a result, you’re ringing in the new year feeling more fired up than ever. The peaks and valleys of 2021 have inspired you to develop an even better game plan this year. 2022 is your time for action.
In June, the first supermoon of 2022 will take place under your sign. This will bring about great emotional shifts and spontaneity. Then, in September, your ruling planet Jupiter enters opposition with Earth. During this time, we must confront what has been holding us back from personal growth.
The stars are in your favor to make your dreams a reality this year, Sag. Will you do it?
Capricorn
December 21 – January 20
Your resolution: treat yourself.
As 2021 came to a close, you were (un)lucky enough to have Venus retrograde under your sign. Consequently, you found yourself neck-deep in self-esteem, relationship, and/or money woes. Paired with Pluto’s powerful presence, this retrograde proved to be even more transformative.
You learned a lot of lessons in 2021. 2022 is the time to implement them. There is no doubt you work tirelessly for others. However, you rarely, if ever, extend this same courtesy to yourself. In the new year, your best resolution would be to learn how to treat yourself.
Once you start devoting time to take care of and pamper yourself, the rest of the pieces will fall into place.
Aquarius
January 20 – February 18
Your resolution: learn to appreciate the crowd.
You and Leo are both riding the struggle bus into 2022, Aquarius. Like your celestial opposite, you’ll be feeling the brunt of Saturn’s retrograde and the Sun and Moon’s eclipses. 2022 will be a year of transition. Despite your revolutionary nature, you might find yourself struggling in between phases.
Turn to your community for support during the hard times. You’ve always taken immense pride in your ability to stand out from the crowd, but we’re a species built on community. Sometimes, we have to learn to enjoy going with the flow, and you are no exception.
Learning to fit in won’t erase your individuality; it will only make you appreciate it more.
Pisces
February 18 – March 20
Your resolution: expand your mind.
You have always naturally turned inward, Pisces. You are hyper-aware of your emotions almost to a fault. Consequently, you have difficulty living in the moment and progressing into the future. Instead, you marinate in a constant cycle of memories and future fantasies.
Jupiter’s positive, expansive influence will enter your sign in the Sixth House of Health early in the year. Use its happy-go-lucky energy to find new waters to explore. For example, apply for a new job in a field that has always interested you. Take a new class you’ve wanted to try.
Wading through emotional waters can be thrilling. But in the new year, it’s time for you to find solid ground.