Lunar Planning
On this week's blog, I’m looking at lunar planning, which is goal setting linked to the moon's phases. By working with the energetic flow of the moon, you can accomplish more by doing less. And who wouldn’t want that?
Syncing your life to the moon’s cycle isn’t a new thing. As far back as the ancient Sumerians of Mesopotamia, people have been setting spiritual ceremonies, planning agricultural seasons and setting religious festival dates based on the moon’s phases.
You can plan any aspect of your life with the moon’s cycles, and it is both intuitive and smart to do so. While it might be considered “woo-woo” nowadays to plan like this, when we lived more in tune with the Earth and the natural cycles all around us, this was the way it was done.
So what do you need to know to understand lunar planning? The project life cycle, Yin and Yang energy and of course, the phases of the moon. Lunar planning pulls all of these together so that we have periods of action and rest, based on the moon phases. The moon affects all of us, so if we can align our actions and rest with the natural flow then we will get better results using less energy.
Let’s start by looking at the project life cycle. This is broken down into the 5 steps needed to complete a project. They are Initiation, Planning, Execution, Monitoring and Closure. We begin by defining our goal (Initiation) and making a plan of action and the steps we need to take to achieve it (Planning). Then we take those steps (Execution), review our progress and make changes as needed (Monitoring), before finally, and hopefully, achieving our goal (Closure).
When we look at the phases of the moon we will also see where these steps fall in the moons cycle. One of the things that I love the most about lunar planning is how it easily incorporates other ways of planning that are considered more mainstream and practical.
The Yin and Yang symbol is something most of us are familiar with, the light and dark halves of a circle, the two halves working in harmony. In Eastern thought, they represent the two complementary forces that make up all of the aspects of life. As one increases, the other decreases, two sides of the same coin, maintaining balance in life and the universe.
Yin is the resting, feminine energy. It represents darkness, passivity and absorption. Yang is the action, masculine energy, representing light, activity and penetration. In the moon's cycle, the waning half and New Moon are Yin, while the waxing half and Full Moon are Yang. Applying both action and rest is equally important in achieving our goals. This is something that is reflected all around us in the natural cycles and seasons but is something we often fight against. When you work against the natural current of life it is exhausting. And when you work with the current it is a smooth and more enjoyable journey.
And now for my favourite topic, the phases of the moon!! The 8 phases are the New Moon, Waxing Crescent, First Quarter, Gibbous, Full Moon, Disseminating, Third Quarter and Balsamic.
While the Earth orbits the Sun, the Moon orbits the Earth reflecting the Sun’s rays to give us the 8 phases of the lunar cycle. Each phase lasts for around 3 and a half days, giving us a total lunar cycle of around 29 days. This is a Synodic month. A Sidereal month lasts for 27 days and is the time it takes the Moon to orbit the Earth.
A Synodic month starts and ends on the New Moon when the Sun and Moon are on the same side of the Earth. As the Moon moves away from the Sun, she appears to grow bigger during the waxing half of the cycle, peaking at the Full Moon when the Sun and Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth. As the Moon moves back towards the Sun, appearing to shrink, this is the waning half of the cycle.
At first, it might seem overwhelming to incorporate all 8 lunar phases into your life, but like anything cyclical, they all build upon each other. It is a natural energetic rise and fall that is repeated over and over and predictable. You could start with just acknowledging the New and Full Moons and slowly start bringing in the other phases as you build your practice.
There are many ways to keep track of the moon’s cycle through apps, diaries and calendars. I highly recommend Moon Phase Calendar or Time Passages to see the phases of the moon, or iLuna for the sign the moon is in as well. I have also started creating Lunar Calendars that you can download and import straight into your Google Calendar. I also recommend tracking your energy levels and emotions day to day when you start working with the moon so you can look out for patterns. Of course, the best time to start this is on a New Moon, the next one being on Friday 5th July.
Let’s go through the 8 phases and how they work with the Yin and Yang energies and the project life cycle.
As already mentioned, the New Moon is the start of a lunar cycle and has Yin energy. This is a time for new beginnings, for setting your intentions and planting the seeds of your dreams. This is not a time for action, as reflected by its Yin status. The New Moon isn’t visible which is why this is a time for planning, not action. This is both the Initiation and Planning phase, where we set our goals and make a plan for achieving them.
When working with the moon, we are working with our emotions. Set some time aside on a New Moon to connect with yourself and your heart and get clear on what it is that you really want. Write down your goals and allow yourself to dream about your life when you have achieved them. Brainstorm different ways of achieving them. Not just the things you will actually do, but other ways you could do it. The point of this exercise is to open yourself up to different possibilities rather than sticking to “this is the way it’s always been done” or “this is how other people do it”. Then highlight a few ideas and start making an action plan, to-do list, or whatever sort of plan works for you.
The Waxing Crescent phase is when the moon starts to become visible in the sky. This is the start of the waxing phase, the growth and Yang energy, half of the lunar cycle. This is when we start to take action, laying the foundation that will work from as we move in the direction of our dreams and goals. This is the Execution phase. We know what we want and we have a plan to get there, now we just have to do the things that will get us there.
The First Quarter Moon is around a week after the New Moon and is both the Execution and Monitoring phase. Because of the harsh angle between the Sun and the Moon at this time, we can feel like we are being tested. This is a good time to go back to the plan, to review how things have been going, and to adjust your plan as necessary.
As the moon swells towards fullness in the Gibbous Phase, energy and emotions heighten. This is the time for building momentum and keeping excitement around your goals high. This is again part of the Execution phase.
The Full Moon is around 2 weeks after the New Moon and is the high point of the lunar cycle. As Full Moons are about endings and culminations, this is the Closure phase, where hopefully you have achieved your goals. If not, don’t worry, some goals will take more than one lunar cycle to achieve.
If you haven’t achieved your goals, then this can also be a Monitoring phase. Look at why you haven’t achieved them, what challenges and obstacles have you faced along the way? Not only are Full Moons a celebration of what you have achieved, but they are also a time to release the things that are holding you back. Write it all down and (safely) burn it.
After the Full Moon, we enter the waning half of the cycle, which is the less productive, Yin energy. This is a period of reflection and clearing space in our lives. The Disseminating Moon phase is again a Monitoring phase. This is a time to accept where we are and to know that is where we are meant to be. To do things that lift our spirits if we are feeling a bit down.
Around a week after the Full Moon, we have the Third Quarter Moon which is the crossroads of the lunar cycle, This is when we look at where we were, where we are now, what we have learned along the way and where we want to go next. This is the big Monitoring phase. What are the things you have been doing that have worked really well and you wish to continue? What are the things that have not worked? Do they need adjusting or just abandoning? What will you take with you into the next cycle and what will you leave behind?
The final phase of the lunar cycle is the Balsamic Phase. Balsamic means healing or soothing and is a time to rest and look after yourself. After all our hard work during the action Yang energy of the cycle, followed by the reviewing and reflecting we have just done during the Yin energy of the cycle, it’s time to look after ourselves and make sure we are well rested before the start of the next cycle,
When we follow the lunar phases and align ourselves with their energy and rhythm, it gives us a focus and an anchor. We can create a sustainable working pattern that includes self-care rather than just powering through on the days when you have no energy. It gives us time to recuperate every month before we start again.
I hope you have found this week's blog helpful. If you would like start to your journey of lunar planning and track the moon on your Google Calendar, then purchase the upcoming lunar calendar using the button below.
