How to Feel Comfortable Being Seen Online (An Astrological Approach)
Does the idea of showing up online make you want to hide under your weighted blanket? I get it. But as an online entrepreneur, being visible is important if you want prospective clients to know you exist.
But here’s the thing: You don’t have to do what everyone else is doing in order to be seen. In this post, I reframe the concept of visibility and show you how to assess your own “visibility capacity” using your astrology chart. I also share my personal visibility story and my top tips for getting more comfortable being seen online.
What’s Visibility Anyway?
Visibility seems to be a bit of a buzzword right now, so let me explain what I mean by it before we go any deeper. In this post, when I refer to visibility, I’m referring to anything that gets you in front of other people, especially prospective clients.
These are typically high-energy, outward-facing tasks that require your live attention, require you to show your face, or require you to share personal information.
This might be launching a new product or service, showing up on social media frequently, or doing any type of live communication, whether that’s teaching a webinar or simply hosting a client Zoom call.
Why Making Friends with Visibility Is Important
Personally, I’d love to see you get more comfortable with being seen online. Why? Because it’s how you build trust with prospective clientele. You do life-changing work. I have no doubt about that whatsoever. But without some measure of visibility, people won’t know that your amazing work exists.
Another reason why expanding your capacity for being seen is important? So that your business feels cozy and supportive instead of like a constant series of nervous system triggers. Figuring out a way to be visible that's sustainable for you, and gradually expanding your comfort zone in that area, will help you build a business that feels like home instead of like hell.
Astrology and Online Visibility
But here’s the thing: You don’t have to do what everyone else is doing in order to be noticed. We’re not all meant to show up on Instagram every day, or YouTube, or Threads. Visibility means something different for everybody. Your astrology chart has clues about what channels and frequency of visibility are right for you.
In astrology, we can equate online visibility with the concept of brightness. Your astrology chart has a unique “brightness level” determined by a few factors that I’ll unpack below. This brightness level describes your innate capacity, or tolerance, for being seen. If you have a lower brightness level, you may have to work a little harder at your capacity for online visibility compared to someone with a higher brightness level.
The point of this post is not to push you to turn up your brightness level to 100%. Again, we’re not all meant to be in the spotlight all the time. The point of this post is to help you identify your natal brightness level so that you can accept it and begin to live within it.
I believe that if you live within your own brightness level, you will be noticed by the people who are attuned to that level of light.
It's like when your eyes adjust to the dark. Living within your own brightness level will not only help you create a business that supports you physically and emotionally, but it’ll call in the right people too.
Assessing Your Natal Brightness Level
Let’s determine the visibility capacity you were born with by assessing a few pieces of your astrology chart. When I say visibility capacity, I mean the amount of visibility you’re naturally comfortable with—the amount that you can sustain without feeling like you’re going to jump out of your skin.
Your Chart Ruler’s House Placement
Your chart ruler is the planet that rules your ascendant (aka rising) sign. For example, if you're an Aries Rising, your chart ruler is Mars. If you're an Aquarius rising, in traditional astrology, your chart ruler is Saturn. If you're a Taurus rising, your chart ruler is Libra.
This planet is super important for a lot of reasons, but in this context, it’s the one planet that represents you in the chart. The other planets represent other people, other aspects of life, and in some forms of astrology, different facets of your personality. But in traditional astrology, the one planet that really represents you, your path, your body, your vitality, and your visibility, is your chart ruler.
First notice which of the twelve houses your chart ruler is in. Each house has a different level of visibility. Some houses are “shady” and some houses are bright.
Think of your rising sign or first house as the place where the Sun rises each day. The rays of this rising Sun spread out and reach certain houses, but don’t reach others. Some houses (2, 6, 8, 12) stay in the shadows.
If your chart ruler happens to be in the second, sixth, eighth, or twelfth house, you might have a lower capacity for visibility, and may need to work consciously on expanding your comfort level with it.
If your chart ruler is in an angular house (1, 4, 7, 10), that’s a checkmark for a pretty high brightness level. And if your chart ruler is in the third, fifth, ninth, or eleventh house, it’s pretty middle of the road.
Your Chart Ruler’s Actual Visibility
Another way to assess your natal capacity for visibility is to determine if your chart ruling planet is actually visible or invisible. Proximity to the Sun determines if a planet can be seen or not.
There are two ways a planet can be invisible due to proximity to the Sun. The first one is being really close to the Sun, verging on a conjunction. If your chart ruler is within fifteen degrees of the Sun on either side, it’s invisible. Keep in mind, these fifteen degrees can pass zodiac sign boundaries.
The second way to determine if a planet is invisible is something called curtailed passage. This only applies to Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. If your chart ruler is Mars, Jupiter, or Saturn and it’s directly opposite the Sun within 7.5 degrees on either side, it’s invisible.
What Your Chart Ruler Feels Comfortable Sharing About
Your chart ruler has a specific personality and specific topics that it may feel more comfortable sharing about as compared to others. For example, some of us are really comfortable sharing personal stories, while others would rather share something educational. Aligning the subject matter of what you share with your chart ruler’s natural topics is one way to increase your comfort level being seen online.
Sun (Leo Rising)
A solar person is naturally magnetic, and whether you like it or not, people kind of flock to you. Sun energy is a little bit like influencer energy. I encourage you to share more of your personality and personal process with your audience. You’re a natural leader and have more sway than you realize.
Moon (Cancer Rising)
The Moon is a very intimate planet. It's more of a homebody and very interested in taking care of self and other. If you're a Cancer rising, visibility might feel more accessible to you if you're sharing about lunar stuff. That might look like sharing your emotional side, how you feel about something, and/or sharing about your self-care routine.
Mercury (Gemini and Virgo Rising) and Jupiter (Sagittarius and Pisces Rising)
I’ve bundled Mercury and Jupiter together because they're quite similar when it comes to what they like to share. These two planets are most comfortable being visible when they're sharing knowledge. These planets are natural educators.
This is me. I’m a Sagittarius rising with Jupiter in Aquarius. If you were to assess my content, you’d notice that it’s mostly how-to content and very educational. I don’t share a ton about my personal life. I’m most comfortable sharing information and wisdom.
Venus (Taurus and Libra Rising)
If Venus is your chart ruler, you might feel most comfortable showing up online through images. Perhaps you feel confident when you share a beautiful thing you saw on a walk or a gorgeous piece of art. Venus is also a lifestyle planet and may feel inspired to share about how it’s weaving beauty and balance into everyday life.
Mars (Aries and Scorpio Rising)
Mars tends to love to talk about hot topics. It’s the planet that's not afraid to ruffle feathers or rock the boat. If Mars is your chart ruler and it's strong and visible, you might have capacity to talk about difficult things in public spaces. Mars also loves to share inspirational content that encourages action.
Saturn (Capricorn and Aquarius Rising)
Saturn-ruled individuals may feel most comfortable sharing about systems and structures. This might look like pulling back the curtain of your business and sharing how you built it, how you organize it, how you time things, and how you structure stuff.
Your Sect Light
Another planet that represents your capacity for being seen online is your sect light. The sect light is the luminary (Sun or Moon) that was in charge when you were born. If you were born at night, your sect light is the Moon. And if you were born during the day (between sunrise and sunset), your sect light is the Sun.
If your sect light is in a bright house (1, 4, 7, 10) or a semi-bright house (3, 5, 9, 11), that’s a checkmark for a higher comfort level with visibility. But if your sect light is in a shady house (2, 6, 8, 12), online visibility may be something you have to work a little harder at.
Your Natal Moon Phase
The final planet I want you to assess for your natural visibility capacity is your natal Moon, specifically the phase the Moon was in on the day you were born. The easiest way to figure this out is to search for an online Moon phase calculator.
If the Moon was in a dark phase on your birthday (New, Waxing Crescent, Last Quarter, Balsamic), you may feel less comfortable with online visibility. If the Moon was in a bright phase on your birthday (First Quarter, Waxing Gibbous, Full, Disseminating), showing up online may feel less labor-intensive for you.
How I Increased My Comfort Level Being Seen Online
Below I share my top tips for increasing your capacity for online visibility. For context, my chart “scores” pretty high when it comes to natural capacity for being visible, but I’ve still had my struggles.
My sect light is in the tenth house, my chart ruler is visible, and my natal Moon is bright.
Tip 1: Start with the Most Comfortable Things
I started marketing myself online with the action that was the most accessible for me: making a website. At first, I didn't have any social media presence, I was only interested in having a web presence.
I also focused on building my newsletter subscribers, and the way I did that at first was by writing guest articles about astrology for larger blogs and online magazines. I always included a link to a lead magnet (i.e. opt-in or freebie) in this guest blog so that I could lead readers back to my own website. This worked really well for me, and I highly encourage it.
I also privately hosted videos on my own blog instead of going straight to YouTube. I was comfortable showing my face online, but dealing with likes, dislikes, and comments on YouTube felt like too much at the time. So, I didn’t deal with it at all. Instead, I hosted my videos privately on Vimeo and embedded them into my blogs.
Tip 2: Don’t Chase Followers
I've never chased followers or subscribers. I've never bought any, I've never borrowed any, and this has served me really well. The truth is, I don't want anybody and everybody in my digital world. I only want people who want to be in my world to be in my world. I’m not for everybody and owning that is really freeing.
The few times I’ve been put in front of somebody else's audience (for example, during my book launches), I’ve noticed that it mostly attracted people who weren’t perfect fits for me. And so, I've decided that it's not really worth it in in the long run. Will I welcome a random shoutout? Sure. But I don’t go begging for one.
Trying to increase my follower or subscriber count by any means necessary just doesn’t compute to me. It's not about the quantity of the people following you, it’s about the quality.
Tip 3: Stay in Your Lane
Another way I stay comfortable being visible online is by staying firmly in my own lane. I only share about things that are in my areas of expertise. This keeps me feeling confident and eliminates anxiety. It also equips me to answer any questions that may come up with authority.
Tip 4: Make It About Them
Shifting the focus off of yourself is a quick way to get more comfortable being seen. When you stop focusing on you and start focusing on them, magic happens. Suddenly, showing up is about service, not about being perceived or judged.
If you come at your social media presence, your newsletter, your blog, your podcast, or your YouTube from the perspective of, How can I help someone today?, it really shifts the anxiety. And bonus, it’s a great prompt for content ideas too.
Tip 5: Let Your Body Lead
And last, but definitely not least, what’s made showing up online sustainable for me is letting my body lead. In other words, when I feel full, I show up in a full way. And when I feel empty, I don't show up at all. (But I have systems in place that make it look like I'm showing up all the time.)
One of those systems is batching content when I’m feeling energized. When I record YouTube videos or podcasts, I record three or four at a time and then slowly drip them out over a period of four to six weeks. This is how I take care of my future self. I know that at a later date when I’m feeling depleted, my visibility checkbox is checked. What a relief!
Going Deeper
If you're really interested in this idea of astrological visibility and you want to create a marketing plan that not only matches your natal visibility, but that complements the current season of visibility you're in (because, spoiler alert, they change) come work with me in the Cosmic Marketing Plan. In it, we create a marketing plan to match not only your natal chart, but the cycle of visibility you're in right now, so that marketing feels both comfortable and sustainable. Learn more about the Cosmic Marketing Plan here.