Plan Your Year Ahead: How to Map Your Goals with Astrology

I'm all about making astrology easy and accessible to use in our day-to-day lives, which is why I love annual profections so much. This is a very effective time lord system that's been used since at least Hellenistic times in the ancient Mediterranean.

Annual profections connects each year of your life with a house in your birth chart, showing you which life topics are most active for you at different points in time. If you're unfamiliar with how houses in astrology work, check out these 2 other blog posts:

• What do the Houses Mean in Astrology?

• How to Work with the Ruler of a House in Astrology

According to the theory of annual profections, each year of our lives connects to a specific house in our birth chart. This changes every year on our birthday and is a universal pattern that applies to all of us.

For example, everyone who is 27 is experiencing a 4th house profection year where topics of home, foundation and family may be more activated than normal. There is personalized nuance that we can bring in to assess how everyone's 4th house is different and how a 4th house year may feel for them personally, but the broader map of which house is activated in each year of our lives is the same for all of us.

Here's an overview of which houses and life topics are highlighted each year:

How Astrological Timing Can Support Your Wellbeing

Knowing what life topics are spotlighted in each year of your life can help you focus your energy on what really matters. This is one of the many ways that we can work with astrology to provide context for the conditions in our lives and to help us make more informed and intentional choices.

Here's some example of how this could look practically:

• In a 12th house year, it might be good to give yourself more time for rest and self-care;

• When your 10th house is activated, it's a great time to prioritize career goals;

• In a 6th house year you might want to plan for how to best care for your body;

• Consider picking up a new hobby or creative project when your 5th house is activated;

• An 11th house year is a WONDERFUL time to enjoy more time with friends!

These are just a few examples to help inspire you to get the most out of each of your profected years. If you want to dig into the nuance of how this looks in your birth chart specifically, then you'll love the pre-recorded Personal Astrology Mapping Workshop.

Digging into the Nuance

When working with annual profections, there are so many layers of nuance that you can consider:

• Which planet rules your annual profected house? What is the condition of this planet in your natal chart?

• What zodiac sign is on the cusp of your annual profected house?

• Are there any planets located in your annual profected house?

Going even deeper, profections can be used for any time period. I love annual profections because they're so simple, but you can also work with monthly, weekly, daily and even hourly profections if you want to get really granular about it. I personally have found a lot of resonance when I track my monthly profections, it even helped me make sense out of a major knee injury I got while skiing in 2024.

If you want to learn more about working with annual profections, then check out my pre-recorded Personal Astrology Mapping Workshop. You'll learn how to apply this technique to your birth chart in personalized and nuanced ways to get the most out of the coming year.

About the Author

Alicia Cielle Heiser is an herbal astrologer who helps folks navigate their lives with the wisdom of the stars and plants. She offers astrology consultations, teaches workshops, and has a podcast called Conversations with the Planets. Alicia's practice is focused on facilitating a greater understanding of life's cycles through encouraging empowerment, safety, and helping folks deepen their relationship with themselves and the more-than-human world.