Leo Astrology Career Profile

Top Careers

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Leo

July 23 - August 22

By Jane Hodges

Ruled by the sun, Leos crave love and attention, opportunities to make a contribution, and a community that applauds their talents.

Top Career Programs for Leos

What Motivates Leo

Leos are constant entertainers. Their show-biz streak can take widely varying forms, but these folks—whether secretaries or ad executives, designers or virtuosos—all need to feel that their role in any enterprise is indispensable and that the folks around them, be they business partners or bar patrons, appreciate the style and energy they display.

The Leo ego is legendary—and even they are both aware and proud of their own pride. They call it "high standards." Dictators Napoleon and Mussolini and divas such as Madonna and Jennifer Lopez are Leos. But this sign's bald need for attention is also what makes them quite lovable—or forgivable. Who doesn't secretly yearn for a gold star, an Emmy Award, their own empire?

The Leo's Secret? Create Your Own Audience

The Leo's downfall as the zodiac's celebrity is that Leos are better at working with an audience than without one. They'll do dramatic things to create an audience, ranging from dating a meek partner to enlisting a shallow entourage. To impress, they may spend money they don't have, or to seem "classy," they may assume airs that aren't really their own. They tend to have distinctive hairstyles and to wear highly stylized or one-of-a-kind clothing.

Most Leos who reach the top acquire a spiritual nature: Through their very human need to be individually important, they come to realize that sharing their talents or helping others creatively is a form of love, too. When operating at the height of their powers, Leos draw the attention they themselves need, then mirror it back to others to enjoy, like their ruling planet the sun. Leos who don't get this far feel simply entitled to an attention they don't really earn, or they might choose external possessions—a showy house or car, a trophy spouse—as markers of success.

Leos: Their Own Best PR Firms

At work, Leos create a party environment. If they're appreciated, they will stay—and stay and stay—in the same company for a long time, provided occasional promotions happen and they get a little special treatment. Leos are marketers both for themselves and for their organization: Sure, Leo is great on the job—but they also happen to work in the best department of the best company in their industry.

These folks will talk things out with the boss frequently—both to make sure the boss loves them, and to make sure they get plenty of face-time with the powers that be. After all, Leos secretly assume they're cut from the same cloth as the folks in the C-Suite. (Hint: Don't ever tell them otherwise. They need their dreams.) Indeed, eventually many of them land there.

How to Spot a Leo at Work:

Leo career manual: The Brand Called You
Colors: Gold, orange, or other warm colors
Leo success symbol: Autographed photo or signed letter from celebrity, displayed in a prominent place
Spare time pursuits: Acting, updating their Facebook page, traveling to "it" destinations

Leo in Action

Leo Steve Carell exemplifies his sign's professional persona. As an actor, he has played a broad variety of goofy roles to develop his career—from a depressed failure in "Little Miss Sunshine" to an awkward dater in "Dan in Real Life" and "40-Year Old Virgin" to a weird savior in "Evan Almighty." His willingness to play discomforting roles keeps people watching him—and shows how far a Leo is willing to go to please.

Carell really shines, though, in his role as fumbling boss Michael Scott on comedy show The Office. Carell's Scott runs a division of a small paper products company. The industry is shrinking, his underlings spend more time on romance and pranks than on work, and his love life is foundering, but Scott is undaunted. He remains irritatingly proud, embarrassingly self-conscious about others' perception of him, and bafflingly loyal to the company that gave him his job. He is fooled by flattery, confident that he successfully leads and teaches the team that giggles about him.

For all his bravado, though, he is a loving person: He celebrates his workers, goes to comical lengths to retain staff and offers encouragement when most needed. He gives—and gets—the loyalty he wants.

A Little Scandal Goes a Long Way

Leo folks don't mind scandal. They live by that Oscar Wilde saying that the only thing worse in the world than being talked about is not being talked about. Bill Clinton had Monica Lewinsky, Barry Bonds faces steroid use accusations, and Martha Stewart had her stock scandal. No matter! This sign bounces back. Leos aren't ashamed to flaunt riches and success (Malcolm Forbes) or to circulate in industries serving the elite (Coco Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Yves St. Laurent).

Their understanding of the importance of public image makes them very effective at building a professional persona and then managing and morphing it over a long career—or of providing the service of publicity to others. How could you not return a call from the charming, one-of-a-kind Leo PR person? Leos make a business out of their character (Andy Warhol).

Creativity is King

Many Leos gravitate to industries that celebrate creativity, including show business, art and design, advertising and marketing. Leo actors and actresses are numerous (Philip Seymour Hoffman, Charlize Theron, Helen Mirren, Kevin Spacey, Lisa Kudrow), as are Leo singers—or rather, Leo lead singers (Jerry Garcia, Mick Jagger, Robert Plant). They efficiently create a franchise around themselves (Julia Child, Hulk Hogan, Garrison Keillor, Danielle Steel), and if wealthy, like the idea of leaving a "lasting legacy" via philanthropy (George Soros).

Leo charisma also succeeds in politics—for what is politics, after all, but a popularity contest on a grand scale? Aside from Bill Clinton, Barack Obama is a Leo. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis brought so much style and poise to her role as first lady that she was as well-known as her husband.

Executive Leos include Alan Mulally, CEO of Ford Motor Company, as well as many Leos who made the transition from acting and into the ranks of directing and producing (Sean Penn, Robert Redford, Robert DeNiro). Leos shine when they bestow their charisma upon others—and get others to do their personal best.