Mars, the life coach

by Yolanda McAdam

We think of Mars as a dynamic force. But its cycle can also be used to guide us on how and where to direct constructive energies.

Mars

In my previous life as a training consultant, I ran a customised workshop for organisations called Walk Your Talk. This workshop was designed to facilitate communication, increase self-awareness, and enhance execution so that business goals would be met or exceeded. The main attendees were buttoned-up managers and senior executives. Back then, I didn’t associate integrity and putting words into action with Mars but then Mars likes surprising me.

Many astrologers favour the cycles of the social and outer planets when it comes to counselling their clients and tend to ignore Mars’ 2-to 2.5-year cycle. I hope to demonstrate in this article that Mars has much to offer when it comes to short-term guidance.

Mars is the principle of action, the force. To quote Erin Sullivan, it’s the planet that “gets us out of bed” and as such is the cosmic coach that guides our personal development as he orbits our personal Sun.

To understand how Mars does this, start out by familiarising yourself with your natal Mars. The sign in which you find Mars describes his primary motivation. If you wish to succeed at anything, your goals must align with this primary motivation.

For example, Mars in Leo seeks to express the Sun’s desire for a stage. This often translates into a role that finds you on a stage as a speaker, actor, teacher or presenter.

Next get to know how you respond to external and internal stimuli. If for example, your natal Mars is in Pisces, you are someone who needs more time for rest and reflection than say someone with an Aries Mars. Life coach Mars would ask you to schedule in regular breaks.

Once you are aligned with Mars’ desires you will want to identify the modality of the sign in which you find your natal Mars. This is very important because modalities are how each sign expresses its energy.

When Mars returns to his natal position, Mars will amplify that sign’s energy. So, if your Mars is in Cancer, a cardinal sign, Mars will make available to you the energy required to create and initiate things.

In my experience, noting and working with the modality of the sign in which you find your natal Mars is more important than the sign’s house. This is how Mars’ coaching works. Mars will encourage you to initiate a project or cultivate relationships during his transits through cardinal signs. During his transits through fixed signs, he asks you to complete your project, add responsibility and uphold a tradition or belief. In mutable signs he encourages the dissemination of your ideas (marketing your products, for example) and he also brings new learning.

Of course, the sign’s house will help focus your efforts: a 7th-house Mars transit will highlight relationships and that should be a priority but not your only priority as you will want to work with the sign’s modality.

The cycle

The Mars Cycle
Source: provided by the author

I work with a 10º orb as recommended by Betsy Lundsted in her book Planetary Cycles. If your natal Mars is at 15º Aries for example, the conjunction begins at 5º Aries. The conjunction is a two-week period and during this time you are encouraged to set goals and plan for what you hope to achieve by the end of one complete Mars cycle.

The question that needs answering is: Where do I see myself two years from now?

Remember that you are working with Mars here and Mars represents your drive which includes your sex drive. In setting goals with Mars, you will want to focus on career, physical activities and your intimate relationships.

Use this conjunction period to outline an action plan and make sure that the goals align with Mars’ primary motivation.

To go back to the Mars in Leo example, your primary goal would read something like this if you were wanting to launch a speaking career: My TED talk on X, in which I outline the benefits of Y and Z, will be viewed by over two million people by 2025.

At this point I want to offer a quick lesson on external and internal motivation. Motivation means having the passion to take action. There are two types of motivation:

Internal (intrinsic) and External (extrinsic) motivation.

• Internal motivation is when you are motivated to accomplish something just because it feels good and not because you are expecting an external reward like a promotion.
• External motivation is doing things for external reasons like impressing your boss or teachers with good grades.

Mars always acts out your Sun energy which is the essence of who you are. In other words, Mars wants you to align with your heart’s truth. If you plan according to someone else’s agenda for your life or you lack self-awareness, Mars brings about a course correction during the first square.

The square aspect is said to be of the nature of Mars which means they are aspects associated with tension or friction. We pay attention to these because they are aspects associated with Mars.

When transiting Mars moves to the first square you will learn if your plan is in motion and working for you or if you need to make alterations. Sometimes other major planetary transits like a Saturn return will demand your full attention and your Mars plans will have to be shelved until the next Mars cycle.

Mars in opposition usually brings rewards if you took the steps outlined in your action plan and your plan was aligned with your values. It goes without saying that if you did not take any steps towards realising your goals, there is no sweet reward or sense of victory when Mars opposes your natal Mars.

The final square can and often does ask for an ending or the removal of some person or trait that no longer supports what has emerged during your Mars cycle. This final square does not support new beginnings. Wait for the conjunction to start something.

At each point in Mars’ cycle you are invited to answer the question:

What energy must I embody at this time? Or alternatively, how must I move through the world in order to achieve my goals? You will find that the answers to this question are almost always Martian (but do check for planetary aspects for further guidance).

For example: You may need to come across as confident, deliberate and/or fierce.

Now let’s add planets to this cycle interpretation.

Planets in any of these four points in the natal chart help describe specific challenges and opportunities for change and self-development.

The Moon is an indication that your actions go against your emotional nature or that you ‘harm’ your body by not engaging your Mars in a positive manner (for example, not exercising or eating fast food is an undesirable manifestation of this conjunction). Life coach Mars would recommend joining a gym and learning to cook. Saturn would signify trouble with elders or authority figures. If you see that you are coming up to this conjunction or square, life coach Mars would recommend preparing by learning to listen and learning to be less defensive (there is a lot more to this issue, but these are quick tips). A Venus conjunction would bring the possibility of working with a woman or meeting a new love interest. And a square can indicate potential trouble in relationships. Mars-Pluto contacts, especially the square, would offer an opportunity to work through anger issues.

Mars is the planet that puts you to work, and in the process, helps you become more self-aware. Mars is the encourager that assists you in charting your course and then offers constructive advice on how to achieve your goals.

I hope you will consider adding Mars’ cycle to your toolbox!

Published by: The Astrological Journal, May/Jun 2024

Author:
Yolanda McAdam has been a consulting astrologer since the late 1990s. Her approach is primarily humanistic and archetypal. A lifelong student of occult philosophy, mythology, fairy tales, and depth psychology, she’s a dedicated teacher of the Sacred Feminine. Her articles have appeared in magazines such as Elephant Journal and Spirituality & Health. She can be found at her website: yolandamcadam.com.

© Yolanda McAdam, Astrological Journal, 2024

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