December 31, 2003, Notebook

Why do we ask the question, “What do you do for a living?” Why, when we make introductions of one person to another, do we identify the person by the work they do, from “Don is the surgeon who saved my mother’s life” to “Frank can help you get any loan through any bank in the world!”

What if we said, “Hi, let me introduce Jessica to you. She’s got a heart of gold and loves to listen to good music”? --Doesn’t go very far, does it! We need more; we’re uneasy until we learn what Jessica does for a living.

There is a social reliance upon our job, our profession, to define who we are. We spend more time working at our job than we do at any other activity in our life. Our job conditions our education, our vocabulary, how we dress, our social circle, even where we live. –And all of this imagery gets into the marriage process as it works as a means for social mobilization.

Stereotypes are established for jobs and professions. “I’m a welder” says one thing; “I’m a sculptor, welding metals” says something different. ‘I’m a faith healer” says one thing; “I’m a neurosurgeon in the Peace Corps” says another. “I sell cars.” Or “I sell homes.” Or, “I’m an astrologer.” –Our minds race to make a profile of what kind of behavior to expect, what kind of values there will be within the social interaction to challenge or enrich us. We need to understand how we will fit into even the most fleeting moment of relationship with the other person. And the job defines so much to guide us in this understanding.

Underneath all of this is the confrontation between our 2nd House and the 8th House, the second House of the other person (second of the 7th). When two people meet, their self-worth profiles are eye-to eye. The question being asked really is “what can you do for me and what can I do (am I expected to do) for you?” This is the reciprocity potential of need profiles and values in action, jockeying for fulfillment, at tiny levels and grand ones. This process makes for the social mix that keeps integrated living going.

This is why the points of profession and status are in the same place –the Midheaven—in our horoscope model. In the eyes of others, of our world, we are what we do.

Throughout so much of history, it used to be that we were who our father was ... and again we see in the classic horoscopic archetype the continued focus upon the Midheaven, the 10th cusp.

In Vocational Guidance, the Moon symbology is all-important. As the focused symbol of the reigning need that propels each individual life, the Moon in its sign speaks within a House position, and interacts with other behavioral energies (subsidiary needs) to establish identity. This identity becomes channeled into our environment, our worldthrough “what we do for a living.”

In modern times, jobs have profiles too! --How many people are told, “Well, you don’t fit what we need here” or “You’re over-qualified for this job!” How many people leave a job and say, “Well that job wasn’t doing anything for me!” --What are we supposed to do for our job? What is our job supposed to do for us? For things to work out well, we must need each other: the job and our individuality.

The job profile and our individual need profile must meet. That’s ultimately the fulfillment for our being employed and that’s fulfillment for us in doing our best on the job.

Level It stands to reason then, that being introduced to a new horoscope, it is extraordinarily important to know what the person does for a living. This determines what we call Level in astrology, that which we can’t measure in the horoscope but that which seasons everything about the individual.

The ultimate step is for the astrologer to assess guideline measurements and infer the Level of the individual in terms of early home development, education or its interruption, the geographic and time milieux in which major development took place, etc. Then the astrologer should eventually be able to distil the best job/profession outlet for the individual. If this surmise differs markedly from the reality experience of the person, there is a major set of considerations to be evaluated. –Does the person feel they have been in the wrong job for a long, long time? This would mean, then, that they were not being the person they really are!

Provocative Considerations: How can this be corrected? Should it be corrected? What would happen if it were corrected? Is there time and talent actually to make a change?

And this brings us to the enormously challenging skill in astrology: Vocational Analysis, Vocational Guidance. In time, with study and experience, the astrologer must cultivate this skill to complete his or her service to others. –And to this end, I have written “The Modern Technique and Process for Vocational analysis”, a condensed booklet guide to the skill. It is listed under “Books” through the MENU of this website.

Next Update: January 30, 2004