859 Kim Woods:

2024 is going to be edgy because Pluto is shifting back into that Aquarian, everything is new. It’s about the future. It’s about freedom, it’s about equality, it’s about independence, it’s about inclusion, it’s about democracy.

What are people looking at in the long-term? Are you looking for your freedoms? Are you looking for your capitalism? Are you looking for open markets? Are you looking for growth in the marketplace? Are you looking for confidence? Are you looking for being able to hire when and who and what you want? I think that most business owners would say yes to every single one of those questions.

What can the planets tell us about how best to navigate what master astrologer Kim Woods characterizes as an “edgy year”? Here in a very divided United States much is at stake in the 2024 elections; passions are running hot and Kim says it’s important to stay powerfully centered in your core being and swept up in all the fear and division. We’ll talk what’s in store for all the elements, what to expect from the Mercury Retrogrades, and the best time this year to launch new products.

MELINDA

Hi, I’m Melinda Wittstock and welcome to Wings of Inspired Business, where we share the inspiring entrepreneurial journeys, epiphanies, and practical advice from successful female founders … so you have everything you need at your fingertips to build the business and life of your dreams. This podcast is all about catalyzing an ecosystem where women entrepreneurs mentor, promote, buy from, and invest in each other …Because together we’re stronger, and we all soar higher when we fly together.

Today we meet a master astrologer, business strategist, and entrepreneur who helps business owners increase their wealth and impact. Kim Woods is the creator of Living Your Soul Mission, a mapping system that combines

ancient feminine wisdom, astrology and her 25+ years of C-Suite experience, and she combines “stars and strategy” to clear your pathway to success and fulfill your soul destiny. Kim has led more than 150 corporate executives and 425 high performing entrepreneurs, overseen $65 million in sales. Entrepreneur Magazine named her as one of the top female entrepreneurs disrupting the business world in 2022.

Kim will be here in a moment, and first,

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JP Morgan once said, “Millionaires don’t use astrology, billionaires do.”

So, what can we expect in 2024, and how can we best leverage astrology to succeed in what Kim Woods says will be an “edgy year”. Today with Kim we break down how Pluto’s move from Capricorn to Aquarius will impact everyone (hint, it will and it could be triggering), why the months of January, February, March, June and July are the best months to launch new products, push marketing initiatives, sign contracts, or hire, plus when it is best to lay low. We get into how 2024 will impact the star signs, plus what to do during the three Mercury Retrogrades of the year.

As Kim says, “buckle up” so let’s put on our wings with the inspiring Kim Woods and be sure to download the podcast app Podopolo so we can keep the conversation going after the episode.

Melinda Wittstock:

Kim, welcome back to Wings.

Kim Woods:

Thank you, Melinda. It’s so good to be here. I can’t wait to talk about 2024 with you.

Melinda Wittstock:

I know this is becoming a bit of a tradition. So 2024 is kind of like, buckle up, right?

Kim Woods:

Yeah, right. I mean, we’re on day X and we’re already feeling it, right? So single digit days of 2024 and we can already feel the push. It is a super edgy year.

Melinda Wittstock:

And so what does that mean in practice? I mean, we know all the external events going on. We live in this really divided society. There’s just all kinds of misinformation, disinformation, there’s the elections coming up, there’s just courtroom dramas, it’s just crazy. And you’re an entrepreneur, and being an entrepreneur is crazy enough. Right?

Kim Woods:

Exactly. No, I totally agree. I would love to be able to say that it’s not going to be a year that’s going to be fraught with lots of tension and things coming to the surface and us getting more, maybe not even clear, but more aware of things that were hidden before. But I can’t say that. I have to say that this year is going to be filled with pretty much more of the same of the last few years, but even edgier.

Melinda Wittstock:

So what does that mean in terms of how best to navigate it?

Kim Woods:

Yeah, so I’ve been saying to anybody who will listen basically is to get centered in yourself. The more unwavering you can be, the more standing in your power you can act, the more visible and clear you can be, the better for you and your business.

Melinda Wittstock:

So this is not a time for shrinking violets.

Kim Woods:

Exactly. It’s not a time for shrinking violets, but it’s also not a time to be super edgy yourself unless that’s your brand. So if you’re the sassy go-to, unstoppable, unapologetic, and that’s your brand, go for it. You be you. But if you are, and your product is somewhat moderate, somewhat temperate, or for me, I’m always getting you to the core of you. I’m unveiling you. So for me, standing in the middle, standing in the center, being unwavering is critical.

Melinda Wittstock:

Standing in the center is a really interesting thing because in a way, just if you look at the country, it’s almost like it’s lost its center. Everybody is at these extremes, it feels like. And that just might be influenced by social media and in actual fact, most people probably are in that center. And I mean center not only just politically, but I mean in just moderate. Regular people. But those center voices aren’t very loud, but it’s probably the majority.

Kim Woods:

And I totally agree with you. So it is really difficult to stay in the balance, in the moderation, in the space in between, in your unwavering, whatever your message is. It’s really difficult to do that, but it’s going to become more and more evident as we go through the year, 2025 is really fiery. So the more you can get solid, grounded, winnowed, optimized, streamlined, the better you’re going to be as you enter really the next phase of the next two decades.

Melinda Wittstock:

And so when we get into the actual astrology, what are the planets kind of saying? Let’s get into more specifics about what makes this so edgy this year.

Kim Woods:

So it’s Pluto. Pluto is at the center once again. Last year in 2023, Pluto came into for a very brief look into a new Zodiac sign of Aquarius that no one on earth has felt because it’s been about a 250 years since that planet’s been there. And so it was new. So between March of 2023 and June of 2023, we had a glimmer of what it was going to feel like for that energy for us to be wrangling, dealing, using it. So I know that some of my clients said, wow, that’s really great, because I actually got lots of ideas and I shifted. I heard from so many people that they shifted that weren’t in my world. In my world, I got people ready for it, obviously. But when we look back at 2023, Melinda, we can say, what was that second quarter like for us? Because it’s pretty much the second quarter, mid-March to June.

Melinda Wittstock:

It was tumultuous for me. There was just a lot going on, just a lot of challenges and I just found a lot of people were on edge in that particular period.

Kim Woods:

And that’s exactly why I’m saying 2024 is going to be edgy because Pluto, that little tiny glimmer that we got in 2023, we’re going to get a big glimpse in 2024, and then at the end of this year, it’s going to be for the next 20 years. So we’re in it now because Pluto is a planet that drags the energy in. But technically the shifting of signs from Capricorn, which is traditional and history and hierarchy and the power structures and the things that we have known and been comfortable with for maybe too long is shifting back into that Aquarian, everything is new. It’s about the future. It’s about freedom, it’s about equality, it’s about independence, it’s about inclusion, it’s about democracy. And so that is coming in January 21st. Pluto is going to be there until September 2nd, have another small little dip into Capricorn again from September 2nd to November 19th, and then as of November 19th, 2024 until March of 2043 is going to be in Aquarius.

Melinda Wittstock:

Okay, I can’t help but ask about the elections in that context.

Kim Woods:

Yeah, so I really wish the elections were going to be when Pluto was in Aquarius, but nope, the lesson to be learned here is that Pluto is going to be in Capricorn, and so we are going to see so much of everything coming to the surface. So we might wonder why didn’t we know of some of these hidden deals or power plays behind the scenes or of these secret things that were going on, regardless of whatever position you have politically, why didn’t we know about that before? We didn’t know about it because Pluto didn’t take the wrecking ball to it and say, oh, everybody’s going to see everything about all of the institutional structure in the world. We decided as souls that we were going to do it this time. So 2023, 2024, that’s when we decided, you know what? Whatever is not working, we are going to become aware of it. And then Pluto does give us the strength to change it, the tenacity, the commitment, the fortitude. But we still have free will and free choice. So we still have to choose to do it.

Melinda Wittstock:

Everything in life comes down to a choice. And what’s interesting to me right now in just terms of the dynamics, you see all these powerful, I guess the Pluto and Aquarius, you see a lot of positive things like people really becoming more conscious and growing and such on one hand. But then you also see a very powerful reaction against that. So you mentioned that that energy was about inclusion and democracy and these sorts of things. And in the workplace, you have an impetus for DEI, say, but then you have this incredible reaction against it. Or you have the people who really say value democracy or sort of a more democratic kind of workplace culture, for instance, but then a very powerful reaction against it. So it seems like a lot of stuff is coming to a head.

Kim Woods:

And again, the reason why it’s so “edgy” in 2024 is because there are Pluto, Neptune, Saturn, Jupiter, they’re all at the edges. Now Jupiter does it every year, but Jupiter makes everything bigger. these larger planets that are asking us to be brave, to stand up for what we believe in, to recognize the truth, to make choices and priorities, to be discerning, to really be true to who we are as individuals and to lead in our lives or our businesses in the ways that are really integrous to us, and because of the edginess of these signs that these planets are in, it just makes it more. It’s just more impactful. It just has more impetus. Well, it’s great because you have to have change. If we were super comfortable and everything was in stasis, we wouldn’t actually have the fortitude probably to change something. As we can see in evidence of the last 20 years or the last 50 years, things have been going on and we haven’t addressed them.

Melinda Wittstock:

A lot of stuff has come to the surface, Now that’s an uncomfortable place for a lot of people. Change generally is uncomfortable for people. Is this one of the reasons why we see some people just being more likely to kind of act out and take what they’re used to on social media, say attacking people and start to do that personally? I mean, because there’s an element of that in our society that’s actually a little bit scary. And then there’s other people who are just so evolved.

Kim Woods:

A hundred percent Melinda. So that’s exactly it. So it is going to be almost untenable to be able to stand unwavering in your own beliefs because there is going to be such a… I don’t even know what the word I want to want to use. I don’t know if it’s impulsive or dynamic or incredibly saturated messaging around everything. So whether you believe in it or not, whether it triggers you or not. And yes, there is with this edginess, people can get swept up and they’re looking for relief. So in the common humanity, people are looking to have a better life. They’re looking to make things easier. They’re looking to get through the day.

And when you look at it through that lens, you can see why if they see something that captures their emotion, which we know that messaging and AI and NLP and all the things, it’s so easy to capture your attention now. And then there’s this spooling that happens. Again, this is agitating those edges that happens that once you look at something, then there’s just the algorithm behind it that just drives more of what you were just looking at. So you can get seeped in it.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right.

Kim Woods:

Not being swept up in that is going to be critical. I will tell you, those leaders, business, political, scientific, philanthropic leaders that stand in the center and shine their truth are going to be heralded as heroes.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right. So you see examples of that, some people doing that, and then you see a lot of other people sort of shirking from it because they’re afraid. There’s a lot of `fear it feels like.

Kim Woods:

There is a lot of fear. Pluto makes every single thing uncomfortable. I like to show, we’re on a podcast, so I’ll just talk about what I’m doing right now. I literally put my hand right in front of my face to where I turn my head, the hand is there. That’s Pluto. Pluto is in your face right now. Pluto is not going to stop being in your face until about 2026.

Melinda Wittstock:

Oh my goodness.

Kim Woods:

Yeah. So the good news is though we hit the glimmer last year, so it was the first time we wrangled with the energy. So even though it’s coming back more energized itself this year, we’ve already done it.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right.

Kim Woods:

So there is some solace in the fact that our minds have already dealt with these kinds of thoughts. Our bodies have already dealt with this energy. Our hearts have already dealt with the emotions. We have dealt with it even already, even though we haven’t dealt with it for very long. We’re going to become experts in this energy in 2024.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right, so as an entrepreneur in this kind of crazy time where people seem pretty hardened on one level in beliefs, and you’re navigating this and you’re serving your customers and you’re realizing that your customers might be feeling this, and it just impacts everything you do in terms of how you present yourself.

Kim Woods:

It absolutely does. So let’s talk about some very specific for entrepreneurs, and let’s talk about some timing. I will tell you the first half of the year, there is really excellent energy as a backdrop to this Plutonian energy. So there is forward momentum, there is the ability to connect and to do outreach and to sell and to promote and to launch from now until March in massive quantities from now until March 25th.

And then we have a little bit of a softening from March 25th through the end of April. It’s an eclipse and a mercury retrograde. I could talk about that a little bit in a minute after I lay out these dates and then May it juices up again in a really nice way. I have to say the beginning of June is the pinnacle of excellent energy. So if you have a book or a podcast or a new course or a new product line and you want to promote it, those are the timing. The first half of the year, there is so much goodness in the energy that you will be able to make those connections. You will be able to nurture those leads. You will be able to convert into sales.

Melinda Wittstock:

Okay, that’s great. So now’s the time to move. And then what happens after June?

Kim Woods:

So July and August, there is information in the stars that say we could have some unexpected and unpleasant [inaudible 00:16:08] in those two months, but we have free will. So I’m hopeful that we have this beautiful healing energy the teen week of February that I’m hopeful that as a collective we can find solution and we can come together in ways that will benefit each one of us. If we do that in February, then I feel as if that July and August fraughtness goes away. If not, and we have tremendous tension that comes up and we have more extreme views, then the bubbling up in July and August is not going to be easy to steer through, but it will be steerable. This is nothing like 2020 at all, not even a little bit. It’s just the blip of this year. And so the thing that I’ve been telling everybody is, is it in your lane to get swept up in these things? If it is part of your brand, if it’s part of your products, if it impacts your supply line, of course.

Everybody can say, well, when there’s faultiness out there in the markets or with money or with just extreme views, that consumer confidence and business confidence goes down. But yet what percentage of the marketplace are we really looking for as entrepreneurs? Even if we’re a nine figure business, we are looking for an infinitesimal amount. So as much as we can get super, super clear, as much as we can be consistent and repeating and personalized and really luscious in our connection with our audience and with our followers that turn into prospects that turn into clients, we’ve got it. We will absolutely thrive in 2024.

Melinda Wittstock:

So it’s just all about just not getting swept up, just staying in your center, staying in your truth, it sounds like.

Kim Woods:

Yes, absolutely. And again, whatever that truth is, and if you are speaking it, so if we can talk about messaging and being visible, when you are visible and you are speaking to the connection with your prospects, with the ideals of your clients and you’re inspiring them or you are relieving them or you’re solving problems for them, they’re going to respond because they are looking for answers, they’re looking for solutions. And as long as you are visible, as long as you are consistent, and as long as you are clear, you’re going to be fine.

Melinda Wittstock:

So it sounds like this first part of the year is a really great time to be, if you haven’t established that already, to really be setting that up and really go for it in that sense, and then stay consistent. And then after August, you said July and August, are kind of expect the unexpected, maybe something unpleasant, but then for the latter part of the year, September, the fall.

Kim Woods:

So we have a little bit, a tiny bit of a wobble. It’s like a softening, just like in April, there’s a softening. There’s a softening in September. No worries though, that first week of November, I’ll talk about that in a little bit. But really what I’m telling people for that last quarter of the year, if you will, anything that you have from a conference perspective, a trade show, a retreat, like a repeated limited series that you want to do, you have a podcast, you could do a beautiful limited series, anything you want to position solidly for the top of 2025 start in Q4, it’s going to be the tying in of some things that you’ve set in place in the first half of the year, the following up, the finishing through. It’s going to be a really great time to solidify, anchor, complete.

Melinda Wittstock:

So everybody’s eyes are going to be focused on this election. It has so many implications for what the United States is, and that in turn has many implications for business. So it’s hard not to think about, okay, so got some big choices as a society. Do we want to keep a democracy? Do we not?

Kim Woods:

No, I agree with you. I mean, no, and again, for business, it is huge. So anybody who’s thinking that autocracy is going to give them a gain, it’s going to be extraordinarily short-lived.

Melinda Wittstock:

Extraordinarily. Because business don’t thrive in that. [inaudible 00:20:59].

Kim Woods:

Absolutely.

Melinda Wittstock:

…made American business so strong.

Kim Woods:

Absolutely.

Melinda Wittstock:

And the economy so strong, it’s very tied to democracy and such.

Kim Woods:

I refuse to say the outcome of the election. I just do, because we do have free will. And honestly, the stars predicted a different winner in 2016 because the popular vote supported the other candidate. So ever since that astrologers really, I don’t know if they refuse, but most of us will stay behind that who will actually be elected. What I will say is what you were saying is absolutely true. What are people looking at in the long-term? Are you looking for your freedoms? Are you looking for your capitalism? Are you looking for open markets? Are you looking for growth in the marketplace? Are you looking for confidence? Are you looking for being able to hire when and who and what you want? I think that most business owners would say yes to every single one of those questions.

And then you’d have to decide internally then what is your role in this? Because yes, you can be a business leader and you can say, you know what? My public relations or my media consultants said absolutely not to come out and to have one side or another, and I can completely respect that. And yet from a quiet personal side, what is it that you want to ensure? So my two are in college and any one of their friends that comes over, I literally make them register to vote when they walk into my house if they aren’t registered.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right? That’s great.

Kim Woods:

That’s all I can do. And I can talk about the importance of voting. I’m not going to tell them who to vote for, but I’m going to tell them when it happens. I’m going to tell them how it happens. I’m going to tell them how easy it is. I’m going to tell them how important it is. I’m going to have those conversations about voting because I feel that that is completely what I stand for. The other thing, from a brand perspective, I am bringing business owners back to themselves and putting them in alignment with their sole mission. What does that result in? They can then be more visible and they can claim their power, and they’re going to have more regenerative messaging out in their audiences and with their teams. So that’s helpful in that way. So my work can directly affect this and my personal life can indirectly affect it.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right? Exactly. This is so true. I mean, I think it’s interesting in the context of we’ve taken so many things for granted. It’s always going to be this, there’s a lot of people who can’t even imagine what could go wrong almost. And I go back to my degree, I really studied the rise of authoritarian [inaudible 00:23:57].

Kim Woods:

Oh my God, I love that.

Melinda Wittstock:

So this was my degree a long time ago, and this is textbook. To what extent are people aware? And it’s difficult as a business owner, you’re right, to navigate that. You don’t want to alienate a good portion of the country, but at the same time, at the end of the day, what kind of society do you want to live in? So how to balance and navigate that. I mean, this is something that I personally think about.

Kim Woods:

And it is, honestly, I’ve been on a soapbox about this since before 2016, so I am well versed in all of this. Here’s the truth of the matter. As souls, we selected to be here at this time doing these things with these people in this place. And so with that, everything’s a choice. I love how you said that earlier in the podcast, where we get to choose. And so we get to choose how we show up. And I will tell you, we are not able to abdicate leadership and authority to anybody else any longer. We are the leaders we have been waiting for. So we are the ones, so we get to choose what we want to do.

Melinda Wittstock:

And so what other advice, when you kind of look at what’s going on, is there anything related to anybody’s kind of sun signs or rising signs? Is there anything like that that people should be kind of aware of?

Kim Woods:

They’re twofold. One is, I do want to talk about Mercury retrograde because he is the harbinger of what’s coming up. And so when Mercury grows retrograde, and rightly so, we get impatient because we have technological snafus and we’ve got travel delays and miscommunication, and we just get aggravated. And yes, absolutely, we’re human. That’s going to happen. But when we know when it’s coming up and we know what the goodness is in it, that can be super helpful because you can plan and navigate through it. So for 2024, we have three Mercury retrogrades. They’re all in fire signs, and that’s the theme. Every year, it’s a certain element. In 2023, it was earth. This year it’s fire. So if you are an Aries, if you are a Leo, or if you are a Sagittarius, you’re going to be more impacted by these Mercury retrogrades.

So it doesn’t mean everybody isn’t those, but you’re also going to be able to get more out of it, as can everybody else. So from April 1st to April 25th, Mercury goes retrograde in the sign of Aries. What he’s asking you is he’s asking you how you’re passionate about things, how you want to inspire others, or if you’re an awakener, how you want to spark people’s interest into something new, how you want to disrupt the static quo. Like yours, your teams, your company’s, maybe your clients. He’s asking you what’s in your heart and what I like to say, what you can’t shut up about. So those three weeks in April, yes, we can be aggravated as anything about the things that aren’t working out, or we could take those three weeks and really be observant and really take some notes about how you’re feeling, because fire is about feeling, how you’re feeling and how you’re creating.

And so that would be super helpful. So I will tell you, let me go through the dates first and I’ll tell you how to navigate. Sometimes you have to have a launch or promotion during these Mercury retrogrades, even though the advice is not to do that. Sometimes you just have to. So let me just go through the other two and then I’ll give the advice about that. So the next one happens from August 4th to August 28th. It’s in a sign of Leo and Virgo. So what is that combination asking you? The Virgo side is saying, you know what? It’s a great time to optimize, streamline. It’s a great time to winnow down. It’s a great time to review what’s worked through the year and what hasn’t worked through the year. That’s what that side of that Mercury retrograde is asking you. The Leo side is asking, how do you want to show up?

What stage do you want to be on? Where do you want to be speaking? How do you want to be speaking? How do you want people to relate to you? How do you want to make yourself be more approachable to your audience? That’s a really great time to be assessing that, and then to be creating that through the fourth quarter, because then when we get to the retrograde on November 25th through December 15th, that’s in Sagittarius. Sagittarius is the experience, the larger stage, the philosophy of life. It’s what your image is in the world. And so after you come out of that August one, you could say, let me then take the litmus test in that late November, early December timeframe and set myself up for 2025 because here’s where Mercury is beautiful. Mercury is the harbinger of what’s to come. So this fiery energy that we’re going to get for those nine weeks sprinkled throughout 2024 is going to be a really great indicator in how you’re going to feel in 2025 and how you can set yourself up for success in 2025.

Melinda Wittstock:

So let’s get into the advice. So let’s go back to the April 1st to the 15th in Aries?

Kim Woods:

The first to the 25th. So here’s the thing, anytime there’s a Mercury retrograde, so I just said the April dates and the August dates and the late November and the early December dates, anytime you have those, it is not a great time to launch anything that you want to have ripple out to the marketplace and make a big bang on. It’s not a great time to sign a big contractor or to hire someone in a big promotion that you’ve just met or to buy a house. I mean, there’s some things that are like, you’re like, well, holy crap, Kim, there’s nine weeks out of the year. How could I possibly not do any of those things? Sometimes it can’t be avoided. If you can and you can buckle it before, tie it off before and or push it to the outer side of that, then do that.

But you can’t, for me, for example, just this last month, Mercury is in retrograde in December. I am an astrologer. I am going to absolutely launch the forecast during the Mercury retrograde. So what is the best advice? The best advice is to have a longer lead in and a longer tail. So what that means is you’re going to plant seeds earlier before that retrograde, you’re going to stir the buzz. You’re going to do kind of a softish launch, and you’re going to talk about it. And during that retrograde, you’re going to repeat, it’s like rinse and repeat. And if you say something once, say it a thousand times because people are not going to be able to hear it just because Mercury muffles it. So just know it, just plan on it. Just have, if you normally do three emails, do five. If you normally do, I did 14 live events for the forecast. I don’t normally do that many.

But I did because Mercury is retrograde. So the other thing is the longer tail. So for me, I’ve done a different type of closing process for my offering that I usually launch at the top of the year, because I knew that it was going to take a little bit longer. I was going to have to spin the message for just a few more weeks. So I’ve got group calls that I’m doing, I’ve got an open house I’m doing, I’m just doing it a little bit differently so I can revisit things with people. Because what tends to happen when you communicate 1, 2, 3 to somebody during Mercury retrograde, they hear 1, 5, 7, and you’re like, how could you have heard 1, 5, 7? I very clearly said, 1, 2, 3, I wrote down 1, 2, 3. So it’s not awesome because a lot of times you’ll be revisiting things with clients or be revisiting things with that new hire because you’ve got to clean up and clear up that communication. So just be mindful of that during those times.

Melinda Wittstock:

And that would apply to all of those retrogrades.

Kim Woods:

All of those dates, yep. Equally.

Melinda Wittstock:

And so we’ve talked about the Mercury retrograde and in other parts of the year, and also during that, does your kind of rising sign have any kind of impact? Is there any specific advice for different sorts of signs, fire, water, we can break them down that way?

Kim Woods:

Yeah, so I’ll absolutely do it by element, because I don’t really do things by your zodiac sign and I do things by your intuitive success signature at which anybody can take that quiz. It’s yourstarmaptosuccess.com. It will give you your energetics on how you enter your day, how you make decisions, how you, it’s basically measuring how you know, like, and trust yourself, because think about standing in your core. That’s the penultimate of standing in your core. So I want to give people their roadmap to be able to do that. And then the other reason why I do this, Melinda, versus the Zodiac sign is because I’m a Capricorn, for example.

And Capricorn’s are typically very work focused. They’re very goal oriented. They’re pretty aloof. They’re very deliberate. They’re pretty cold and quiet, and yet that’s not how I enter the world. It gives me great fortitude, and yes, I can absolutely achieve something with tenacity and commitment, but yet I come across as a Gemini, right? So because of that, I was asking myself, how can I assess how somebody enters the world? Because yes, the stars are written in the sky, but we have free will. And so it’s really the combination of those two things. Now, your listeners have not taken this quiz most likely, so I will definitely go ahead from an elemental perspective and look at the vibe of the Zodiac signs, because that will be super helpful. But if you have a chance to take the quiz, I definitely would do it because the combination of-

Melinda Wittstock:

Yeah, I’ll make sure that that’s in the show notes and encourage [inaudible 00:34:24].

Kim Woods:

So let’s go through fire first because we started talking about that with that Mercury retrograde. So if you’re an Aries or you’re a Leo or you’re a Sagittarius, this year is going to feel like a very creative year for you. So that’s going to feel delicious. You’re going to feel like, oh, wow, I’ve been wrangling with the solution for this, and now it’s come through, or I’ve been thinking about writing a book, or I’ve been thinking about launching a certain course or coming up with a new product or something. And there’s going to be a lot of energy for you to create.

Your challenge is going to be finding the time to do it, because you’re going to be swept up. You’re more apt to be swept up in the chaos because you’re in that vibe of, especially during those mercury retrogrades, right? You’re just in that vibe of the edge because creativity comes with change, and it comes with sometimes you’re being fraught and sometimes there’s chaos. And so for you to stay centered and for you to literally carve out pockets of time every single month would be imperative.

Melinda Wittstock:

So literally in your calendar, just making sure that you have a discipline around that.

Kim Woods:

Absolutely, because it will be excellent for you. I mean, you’re going to be able to just pluck creativity right from the sky, but you can’t do it if you’re too busy. So let’s go to the earthly signs next. So those earthly signs. Okay, so we’ve got Virgo, we have Taurus, we have Virgo, and we have Capricorn. You are going to be probably triggered this first half of the year because even though it is very forward moving and things are going to come together, the pace is a little bit too fast for you. So even though the second, the back half of the year is a little bit slower and other signs aren’t going to like it, you are going to like it because you’re going to find your footing again.

So my best advice for you right now is to go at your own pace. Just because the energy is moving faster doesn’t mean that you have to run with it all the time. You can do a sprint and then you can rest, or you can pace yourself. So I’ve been telling all of my people that I know that are heavy in the earthly element to just take their time. And I always love to know, just kind of do this.

That’s your pace. That’s where you get your energy. That’s where you can stay in your center, that’s what’s true to you. So when you do that, that will be so beneficial to you. The other thing I will prompt you to do though is to be visible, because it’s not your favorite thing.

Melinda Wittstock:

Okay.

Kim Woods:

Yeah. Okay. So for those air signs, we have got Gemini, we have got Libra, and we have got Aquarius. So Aquarius, you’re the one that is being most impacted by Pluto. What I’d love for you to remember is that you are the forerunner, you are the way shower, and you are the soul that has said yes to this even more than everybody else, because just in the way you approach life, even though it feels a little bit different than everybody else, everybody else is catching up to you. So it’s your time, which feels really, really delicious, but it’s not going to feel like your time in 2024. It’s going to feel like a spinning top.

So the air signs, I will tell you, innovations, ideation, brainstorming, strategy, coming up with solutions, problem solving, that to you is going to be mana from heaven because you are going to find so solutions and strategies that you didn’t even know existed and that weren’t even in your sphere yet. So that’s going to feel wonderful and they’re going to drop at your feet. You don’t have to go looking for it. Even if you don’t set time apart, it’s going to be fine at the front end. It’s at the back end. So you get that idea and it’s like, holy crap, that is amazing. The key is going to be then to work with others that have the strengths that you’re missing in order to be able to bring them into fruition. This isn’t just an idea generation time, this is an idea, making a solution concrete time.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right, okay.

Kim Woods:

So now for water. So we have cancer, we have Scorpio, and we have Pisces. So it’s going to be interesting because you are going to be feeling the impact of what’s going on out in the world more than others because you’re water signs, so you just open heart, open feeling, open energies. So for you to be able to do two things, one is really, really buckle in your energy every morning. Get into a routine now, you hopefully already have one, but even if you already have one, I would amp that up and I would do a beautiful energy. All you have to do is when you’re taking a shower in the morning or you’re walking the dog or you’re getting a cup of coffee, just literally envision your favorite color all around you. That’s the easiest way to do it. And you just do that and you’re like, okay.

It gives a little bit of a muffling, actually, everybody can do this, but water signs especially, gives a little bit of a muffling to all the noise out there and all the energies that are super sparky, because they’re going to get more sparky before they tamp down in a few years. So getting into that habit every morning and then at night do the same thing in reverse. Just do an energy wash and be like, okay, what’s not mine? And just kind of expel it so that you don’t take it into your sleep. That would be really helpful to you. The other thing that would be really helpful to you is at least monthly, if not weekly, maybe monthly, do like a few hours a month, but every week take at least a half an hour and completely unplug. I mean, it should be more, but I’m just going to give you the bare bones, right? Because what tends to happen is not only does your mind get involved with what’s going on, your energy gets swept in immediately. Right?

Melinda Wittstock:

It’s funny, I’m listening to this and I am a cusp between Cancer and Leo, and most people see me as a Leo, but I’m so Cancer, I’m just so in between. It’s really weird.

Kim Woods:

Yeah, no, and so for you, you’re listening and you’re saying yes, and so you are super cuspy. So what I was just saying about things being even more amplified, so it’s even more amplified for you. So you’d want to take at least 15 minutes a day if you can.

Melinda Wittstock:

I’ve found Kim that the longer I’ve been an entrepreneur, if I don’t do that this year or not, I have to unplug. And I’ve gotten much better at that kind of thing of doing that because I’m just much more effective in bursts. But I need, and I’m such an introvert too, that I need to do that anyway, just because I’m an introvert,

Kim Woods:

And that’s the thing, you came into this life as super sensitive, and there’s probably sole level reasons for that, but it doesn’t make the days any easier to get through. So for anybody in those water signs, really put yourself first often and take care and get solace and gain solitude. And that helps you be more consistent. It helps you feel more relief, feel more uplifted. And honestly, it’s going to help your clients too, because you’re going to be able to show up in that beautiful, gorgeous, deep way that you have to show up that people have come to depend on.

So you don’t want to get to April or to June or to August and say, oh no, I’m finished for the year. You know what I mean? I’m just got to take time off for the next X amount of time. You’d want to be able to pace yourself with that, because this is a year that there’s going to be big highs. It’s edgy, so there’s going to be big highs, there’s going to be big lows. And for those water signs, you feel all the feels. Actually, one of the best pieces of advice that I’ve read and that I’ve used, it’s with Access Consciousness and it’s on their website. So I feel totally fine saying this in a public forum, and that is anytime you’re feeling just a little bit triggered off, just a little bit out of sorts, this is for everybody. Ask, is it mine? And if it’s not, it’s just going to lift off and then you don’t carry it and it doesn’t become yours.

Melinda Wittstock:

This is something that I’ve really over the years, have had to learn to do because it’s so easy. If you have this open heart and you’re empathetic to take other people’s stuff on and it’s not even yours and it weighs you down, you end up with back pain. You know what I mean?

Kim Woods:

Yes. Oh, for real.

Melinda Wittstock:

Hopefully, if you’re a leader and you have a team and you’re concerned about your team and your team are all these different earth, fire, water and they’re all going on. So I’m just really focused on what can I do to just raise my frequency so that I’m in a conscious awareness so I’m aware of what’s mine, what’s not, and what do I want to attract into my life? And really thinking about that. And to do that, you really do need quiet time.

Kim Woods:

And luscious quiet time. Air signs could get away with like, oh, I’m going to go take a walk and it would be fine, but for you and the water signs, yes, you can do that, but that’s not going to fill you enough. It needs to be something that you just adore.

Melinda Wittstock:

Right? Yeah. Yeah. The kind of thing where time disappears.

Kim Woods:

Yep, that would be best.

Melinda Wittstock:

This is just so helpful. And I think when you go into a year understanding what are some of the things and you can see it, then you kind of know. It’s almost like you have a consciousness like, oh, right, I’m being triggered right now. Interesting. I can let that go. That’s not mine. I don’t need it. Thank you. Next.

Kim Woods:

Exactly. And honestly knowing it just creates certainty and then your mind can start becoming calm about it. So then when it does happen, you’re like, oh yeah, no, wait, I knew that. And you can just move right through it much more quickly than if you didn’t know it.

Melinda Wittstock:

Exactly, exactly. So you have, right now, you have a special offer for our listeners, and this is the forecast workshop. So tell us a little bit more about that. We have that in the show notes.

Kim Woods:

Yeah, I do. So 2024 is a lot. It’s super edgy and quite frankly, if this were on the heels of like 2004 or something, I’d say, oh, we’re fine. You don’t actually need support this year maybe, right? Maybe you’re all set. But because it’s on the heels of the last four or five years, I’m saying to people, oh, good lord, let’s get support out there. So this is the first time I’ve ever offered a one and done like this. It’s an 80-page guide that walks you through so much information to help you navigate. In past years, I’ve just done it in a much different way, and it’s been part of program, and my clients have showed me dogeared with notes all over it at the end of the year saying that this was my Bible for the year, and it’s a two and a half hour workshop that’s on demand.

And so I go through being unwavering, I go through how to be more visible, I go through how to collaborate because that’s a very Aquarian energy. I go through the best tips that you can have for your business, and I do it all by your intuitive success signature because that’s your energetics and how you’re entering your day and your week and your month. That is on a special offer. And if it’s in the show notes it is still available at a discounted price for your listeners, Melinda, and people who have gone through it have just said, holy cow. Now I feel as if I am set for the year.

Melinda Wittstock:

And you mentioned earlier in our conversation the star map to success. How can people access that?

Kim Woods:

Literally, you can go to yourstarmaptosuccess.com or I’m sure we’ll have them in these show notes, and you can take the 12 question quiz that over 21,000 people have taken. It’s going to assess how you know, like, and trust yourself, which is how you stand in your own power and how you can learn how to make better decisions and stick to them. You can learn to attract the right people and to be able to say yes to opportunities and support. And the trust is the money shot, right? You want consistent top and bottom lines, and I have tips for you based on your own energy, so it’s been really helpful for folks. It’s free. I do a beautiful gifting of another five set of information through the funnel. I’ve just been getting feedback for how wonderful that is, and it gives you an orientation on how you approach your days and your decisions and your business that you may not be aware of yet.

Melinda Wittstock:

Well, I’m going to make sure that all that information on how to find your books and how to find everything, your Oracle cards, all the different things that you offer, Kim, which is just so helpful to people. I encourage everybody to check those out in the show notes. And thank you so much for putting on your wings and flying with us at the beginning of this crazy new year.

Kim Woods:

Thanks so much for having me, Melinda. And once again, it’s been wonderful to talk to you.