People say that the future of work is decentralized, but ‘people’ also said that in 2021 we’d fly our car to work. Robots would make quality leisure time society’s biggest challenge, and you’d be able to do quick pinprick blood diagnostics in the bathroom while your prickly pear enzyme face mask is activated.
Between propaganda, confirmation bias, and the bureaucratic jargon that George ‘1984’ Orwell called ‘duckspeak,’ it’s difficult to get a clear signal.
Are Central Business Districts dead, zombified, or just resting between roles? Will home offices become the norm? Remote but digitally connected to everyone does seem super-Aquarian.
Remote But Digitally Connected To Everyone Is Super-Aquarian
In news that won’t surprise anyone who worked from home for years, it apparently improves productivity. Free from biologically unnatural conditions such as intensive proximity to people who may not be of similar temperament, artificial lighting, imposed corporate culture, commuting, dress obligations, real-time work politics, and the quality-killing expectation to ‘look busy’ or ‘show your working,’ employees have better focus.
Of course, if everyone decentralizes, new issues arise: Inadvertently pasting your hypochondriac googling results into work windows, not realizing the camera is on, overwrought surveillance, and rural towns in an uproar over the influx of urban ‘ex-pats.’
Inadvertently Uploading Your Hypochondriac Googling Results
It’s hard to tell if it’s going to be the reverse of the industrial revolution when broad chunks of the population left the regions to settle in cities or if it will snap back to a new-ish normal. The impending arrival of Uncle Pluto in Aquarius means that it won’t be whatever the pundits are predicting. Or it will be but with a surreal plot twist.
As the table below depicts, the weirdness (and ingenuity) that went down in the first six months of Uranus in Aquarius (1995) was off the chain. Yes, even by today’s standards. Imagine the level of tech-society disrupt/evolution when Pluto crosses those degrees in 2023?
Citing your Sun Sign or any relevant astrological data, where are you at? Are you (a) displaced and in flux, (b) delighted to be able to reinvent your work modality, (c) reading this from your secret hideout, or (d) longing for the day when you can power-strut back into the arena because work/business and home should be separate?
And what’s your call on all this?
Image: High Treason – 1929
Can’t really demonstrate much on the future of the workplace as I already ‘work’ at home. Either I do a bit of spiritual hypno from home or my main care giving role in the home. However we did blow that popsicle stand that is Victoria and sell our house, throw away most of our belongings and start a new life up north. So displaced somewhat, not really in a secret hideout, though it feels like it. Leo Sun, Gem Asc, my husband is Gem Sun, Aqua Asc. We both have home-loving water Moons in Scorp and Cancer respectively. Gem works from home now. We both like it. A parallel earth would be lovely to visit.
Hello Sphinx!! So glad you are enjoying your new home.
My water moon is Loving being at home now that the kitchen space is renovated and the Leo SO works very close by and has been thriving.
I prefer working in new space than my studio as it is uncluttered and open and very light. Have finally learnt to poach eggs! (generally diet has improved as it is a pleasure to prepare food in this space too). I sometimes find it hard to leave sometimes but very connected to rest of the world through the usual channels…
How lovely to hear from you Veronica! We don’t have a proper home to love yet, but I so love my new town. Yum, eggs, the guilt-free protein! Water moons need a lot of home, I think we can do it all, live, work, socialise etc. happily at home from the sound of us. Now we are searching for the right place, I think more than a house almost, the lay of the land is my real interest. Where it slopes, it’s proximity to green, what the house faces, general vibe. Sun in the 2nd afterall!
I think any place you ultimately choose will be heavenly Sphinx 🙂
I imagine light, music, children, cats, plants and much love xxx
Sag sun, Virgo moon, Libra rising. Working from home since last March and hate the lack of boundaries. Maybe if my workload was reasonable it would be OK, but I’m doing about 5x more work than one employee should be. My Virgo moon just keeps trying to finish the to-do list and it’s impossible, but before I know it I’ve worked 10 hours straight with hardly a break. My health crashed (again) a few months ago so I’ve decided to take time to recuperate. I hope my next job has better built-in structure to it because I’ve found it incredibly difficult to enforce on my own – though I feel like I used to be much better at that! Maybe it’s Neptune transiting my 6th that’s making it so hard.
C! My secret hideout IS at work. So great to be able to hang at Mystic Medusa during work hours haha. Sag sun / Libra moon / Aqua rising here. I’ve stayed “working” this entire time and haven’t done the WFH thing. I put “working” in quotes because it’s actually been a breeze for me since the pandemic & with less spazzy people.
B and C! Virgo sun/rising with Uranus finishing up being on my moon in Taurus in the 9th house. I recently created my own private office space NOT at home (where it previously was). I’m delighted at the productivity and increased inspiration and drive to study- astrology! I have control of the space and who enters it- that is the best part for me. And, being able to leave my work behind to enjoy home for relaxing and nourishing. When I worked at home, I could never turn that energy off and didn’t enjoy my free time.
I’m simultaneously in a) and d). libra sun, cancer rising. I so, so need to keep work and home separate. home is where I recharge and I need to be alone (jupiter in cancer in the 12th). have been on this wfh/gig economy/temp jobs wheel since 2003 and I’m sick of it, even though with time I’ve learnt how to deal with it, and even when I was living in my lovely flat with all the comforts you might want and more. stellium in mutable signs and houses and the north node in gemini in the 11th make me need to be around people. nowadays I will take just about any job (and any excuse) just to leave the house. I’ve never felt lonely, or had problems with self-discipline: it’s more that I just can’t stand still and need to have a chat with someone not through a screen. can’t fight my nature: I love/need the physical/3d world and am vaguely dreading the pluto in aquarius age, and alienation is much less likely after all these year, but basically always around the corner. so I’m still looking for d) jobs and not resigned to wfh forever/again.
I’m doing (a), (b) & (c).
Uranus squaring my loaded 10th House & Aqua rules my 4th: Que sera, sera….
What I’ve noticed is that during the last year we have all become much more savvy to vibe. Work is a touchy subject for me (severely injured on the job) but I literally don’t need to speak to people to vet them now.
When I innovate without letting my higher self lead I get burnt (12th house Sun/Venus) so it’ll be more… just… listenin’ to Spirit for me…my full-time job in this life anyway.
I’m a late adopter on real estate so I will only head out to those small urban centres when they have proper sushi and gender awareness.
Currently tucked up in the first chic urban centre apartment I’ve ever lived in after a life of dreaming for it. Landlords are virus deniers so enough said there. But I have an astrological sumthin-sumthin (North Node Gemini in 11th?) that says I love being in a chic little nook within 10 minutes of all the good UberEats. I’m fulfilled oddly.
With another reclusive podcast heading out to my starry tribe o’ nights as I dream of the Southern Cross…✨💫✨
OK so Aqua is my sixth house. Currently congregating around the water cooler in the staff room are transiting Saturn, Jupiter AND my progressed moon – the new hires muscling in alongside old-timers natal Venus/Pallas/Dsc. In the newsroom, Uranus is heading for my MC.
I am definitely (b) but suspect I’m also affected by (a) as my antiquated workplace undergoes a restructure. I cannot wait to reinvent and am working hard to do so. My Gem NN needs to be around people. Just nicer people than the vipers I currently have to deal with.
Oh, and currently enjoying my Gary return, for the win. I might take a six-pack of VB in with me on Friday for arvo drinks.
NN return – snap.
Oooh, Happy GR, Chrysalis! Have a good one, mate!
My Gaz is taking a back seat ATM, thank fuq, as he’s been a real handful recently (on my Asc) but is now chilling in Neptune’s haze near by.
However, in finding out where Gaz was, I accidentally pumped in the wrong number (4375) and got asteroid Kiyomori instead, a warlord of the late Heian period in Japan – which is ON my Lilith. Strangely enough, i have been leading a group of disgruntled employees fighting for our furlough which a college we were working at pre-plague, was illegally refusing to pay out. We only just won our case yesterday. All hail Lilith & Kiyomori!
Go you, Skarab! Well done. What a combo. I must check out my Kiyomori immediately.
I can’t imagine Gazza on my ascendant. I expect he would make a lot of tedious jokes about ‘rising’, lol.
Thanks C. Lol, your Gary sounds totally louche, the sort of bloke my Gaz looks up to.
Well i had no idea about Gary being on my Asc, but now realise why i bought a fleece-lined denim bomber jacket at the time – and had it not been for my firm & discerning new hairdresser, i would have ended up with a lioness haircut!
Rwoarrrr! xx
I am (a) but it is self directed not imposed. What has been was imposed and what is coming is a multi-move manifestation. I will soon be (c) but it is because of (b).
I think it’s too early to call it regarding how things will look and change is never that quick. We see these early markers that swing out and point to something and then a leveling back and on it goes until the change occurs and almost feels so sudden and organic that people forget it’s inception. Even when Pluto does move it’ll take a little while for things to become known – let’s face it Pluto doesn’t ‘air’ his agenda quickly or in straightforward language.
and it will be retro backwards and forwards over the 0 degree for ages too
I hadn’t looked beyond Pluto conjunct my (pretty much) everything this life.
Anything could happen there eh and will be interesting to see what transpires from a long 29° prop to the void of newness.
My work has always involved being with people. Hands on. Hmmmmmmm. I need aura connection to feel the individual and for me who has no boundary it’s quite tough and I am wondering how the hell I’ll make a living. Currently job hunting again due to my manager (pah) deciding that he needed to use his worker differently this year. Yeah right. He did this as he knew I could drop him in it big time. And the death threat of course! But hey ho. I’m now looking for a new post for no other reason than I did my job and I did it bloody well and made him look terrible. So I am wondering what on earth I can do next. Just putting it out there that I am ready for my next adventure. It will arrive.
🌞
How did you get an emoji ? Off to investigate…
Iphone or iPad probably.
iPhone.
I remember a work buddy bought a 256 kb USB for $350 in late 90’s can probably get 5TB for under $200 now. We handed it around like American chewing gum in Beijing in the 70s, looking at it but afraid to try it. Teaching art to kids from home? Pass but Aqua rising and Aqua natal Bacchus 0, Diana 1 and Circe at 3 degrees so maybe some extravagant, feminist, mad plant magic??? just did transits and my birthday chart is smoking. Pluto at 0 19rx and all Diana Vesta Pythia Isis Minerva Sappho NN conjunct something major and Jupiter pingin 1 degree off IC. Interesting again MM!
To Seven year ahead report post haste
I am (b): ‘delighted to be able to reinvent my work modality’. (Sun + Mercury in Pisces in 4H, Sagg rising.)
The centralised workplace & daily commute paradigm has simply served to make us all physically and mentally ill in some way.
But I also observe that, as we spend more time at home and in front of screens, we’ve been steadily losing our capacity to be present and engaged while we are around other people IRL. I see that as ultimately detrimental, as it pulls us away from our fundamental makeup, which requires connection, cooperation, and belonging with others. (And that’s not even touching on the malevolent mob mentality that social media encourages!)
I hope a new movement will emerge within our screen-focused reality tunnel to help foster authentic face-to-face social interactions, as I suspect this will be key to the survival of our species (and the earth itself)…
Scorp Sun/Aqua Rising/Aries Moon. Hermit personified – hell is most definitely other people. I mean that literally – I have an allergy to synthetic fragrance, and being in an office causes me physical pain (splitting headaches, nerve inflammation affecting my eyesight). Working from home has been one of the most productive periods of my life, but also the first time in my adult life that I haven’t had to trade work performance for self-care. I’m really hoping the trend continues cos I’ve just bought a house in the country where I plan to grow my own food, expand my rescue pet menagerie and continue working on tricky digital projects.
Your comment resonates with me. Virgo Sun/Scorp Rising/Pisces Moon
My entire adult life I dreamed of working from home and while my current job can be done remotely, my company required me to come to the office citing a previous employee who was fired for neglecting the work part of WFH.
At the onset of the pandemic, I came down with strep throat but did the full two-week self isolation as a precaution. At that point my company would have let me work from home indefinitely but to my complete surprise, I absolutely hated working from home during that two-week stretch!
I realized that as a Pisces Sun/Moon, home needs to be a sanctuary for me to retreat to, uncontaminated by work thoughts and protected against calls from the boss and work meetings. When I walk through my door, I shed the work persona and become a being of solitude, fantasy and esoteric thought with barely a toe-hold in the material world and I need to keep it that way.
Earth Sign (mutable) Virgo. And yes, work and home should be separate. I never left the workplace, chained myself to my desk in protest citing home wifi allergy.
I have natal Uranus trine both my midheaven (in Aquarius) and also my Gemini rising. It won’t be a flawless transition, but one I think I may be able to settle in quite well!
It’s been a blast today – seen everyone out en masse enraged by the libs in brisvegas was a true highlight 🙂
I’ve got my popcorn, Mystic. Embracing my long time hermit archetype for working at home and seeing which cliff the lemmings will pick.
Sun Aqua, Asc Virgo, Jupiter -Libra, Chiron 0 Aries, Scorpio Moon /Mars/Neptune- In process of building my new work premises in the inner city, I have wanted to do this for nearly 20 years. Completely VOC-free using products like Marmoleum which is carbon neutral and no VOC. Ventilation onto a secret courtyard so our dog can easily hang out at work. Natural light, disability accessible with artisan wallpapers and specialist feature lights to bring a calm glow and serenity. All within walking distance of my home. Feel like making a separate space with the benefits of home, including my preference for toxic free balance and serenity,
Saggo Sun/Libra Moon that has worked from home for 10+ years and avoided “jobs,” because … Well, Saggo Sun, but also a disdain for having to be in the office and feign productivity.
Funnily enough I had a major Uranus transit in Jan, and then voila have found myself with an actual job now. Still WFH of course, but extremely glad that we’ve opened up here in California again, so I can go to a co-working space and get the office vibe once or twice a week.
And … Last summer during “peak pandemic” I moved from a high rise in the heart of LA to a little town house situation about 45 mins outside of the city. Best decision ever. I wake up every day and look at trees, birds and wide open sky vs. concrete, cars and crime. Even when the city becomes “vibrant” again, I can’t see why I have to live right in the middle of so many people, with so much traffic.
Agree though that its too early to call anything “normal” yet.