Leo types have a deep ambivalence about their public reputation and audience response to their creativity. They crave audience response—their creativity thrives on it—but this gives them a corresponding extreme sensitivity to the audience. A Leo will vacillate between extreme self-consciousness and a self-imposed blindness to audience reaction, just to cope on their journey to self-expression and individuation.
Leo’s Time In The Sun
Leos need to bring what’s inside them outside & share it with the world as liberally as the sun shares sunshine. Their process of expressing their creativity requires the mirroring of an audience. They are engaged in self-discovery by way of performance. Audience response helps them to see themselves more clearly and adjust their performance.
While this is a fine mode of self-discovery and individuation, sometimes a Leo type
needs to shift his focus from audience reaction (how am I doing?) to self-expression (am I saying what I want to be saying?). That’s where true confidence comes from. If you’ve said what you really wanted to say, if you really got it out there into the world, then if some people didn’t get it, that’s their problem, not yours.
How sad it is when a Leo has a morbid self-consciousness that prevents them from taking center stage. Sometimes a Leo type has a distaste for looking like other Leos, who can be attention hounds, showoffs and exhibitionists in the extreme. Leos are drawn to the limelight because Leos crave to move beyond showing off into true creative expression. Encourage your Leo friends who take up too much stage time to scale it back a little, and encourage your Leo shrinking violets to get a little bigger and louder.
Every Creator Needs An Editor—Accept Criticism With Grace
Like all fire signs, Leo can be brash on the outside, but easily deflated. Leo has a fragile ego, easily crushed, but also capable of quick recovery and bouncing back just as strong or stronger. Fire is the element of inspiration and hope—and all 3 fire signs have these qualities in abundance, giving them tremendous resilience in the face of defeat. But sometimes this ability to bounce back comes at the cost of self-awareness. Sometimes a Leo type simply ignores the audience’s reaction and goes on looking for praise and encouragement when what the audience actually has to offer is a reality check. When the gong sounds, it’s best to get offstage quickly, rather than trying to improve a truly bad performance. The Leo type who can accept criticism in a balanced way, rather than being either crushed (like a shrinking violet) or explosive (like an entitled diva), will grow much faster as a performer and a person.
Learning to accept criticism with grace also eliminates another Leo flaw, which is susceptibility to flattery. When a Leo craves praise too much, she opens herself up to manipulation by anyone who will praise her, whether she’s producing quality or not. This has the effect of preventing any useful reality checks that would allow the Leo to improve herself. And, as any Scorpio or Capricorn type will tell you, when someone praises you too much, they probably want something.
This Leo Is Under Construction
So the next time your friendly neighborhood Leo grabs center stage, remember what they are really doing. It’s not just a bid for attention, it’s individuation happening, right before your eyes. And if that involves a teeny bit of ego-grooming along the way, so what? Leos need to show-not-tell, and are willing to be seen making their mistakes. They are role models for whatever aspect of life they are working on. Hiding is not in their nature and their transparency is their gift.
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