How To Cast Your Birth Chart: The first step in using astrology for your personal development

There comes a time when you’ve been hearing and learning bits about astrology that you’re going to want to start being able to look at your own chart and the charts of friends and family.

This starts with learning HOW to cast your birth chart. I’m going to share here how to cast your chart step by step AND share the things that I look at first after I’ve cast a chart (which may surprise you!).

What makes this tutorial different: I focus on planets and aspects first, not houses or zodiac signs. Why? Because there's no single house system all astrologers agree on, and I've found that understanding how your planets interact is where the real depth lies. This is astrology for personal development, understanding yourself, your patterns, and the archetypal themes you're working with.

How to Cast Your Birth Chart (Step-by-Step)

Step 1: Open a Web Browser

Open a web browser and type in www.astro.com

Astro Dienst is an amazing free resource that allows you to create your birth chart in minutes. Once you have your free account, you can follow along with the video below.

Step 2: Watch the Full Tutorial

This 13-minute video guide will walk you through:

• How to enter your birth details (and what to do if you don't know your birth time)

• Which house system to choose (I recommend whole sign when you're starting out)

• Why I focus on planets and aspects

• What to look at in your chart right away

Why I Don't Start With Houses (And What To Look At Instead)

I prefer to start with what is the most certain and most ‘real’ in a chart. If you’ve looked at astrology for a while, there’s so many house systems, and they all have their merits, but there's no one house system that all astrologers agree on. So why start with something that is not 100% solid?

You'll see videos and articles talking about which house the next full moon is falling in for you, and yes, that can be interesting and feel like a ‘quick win’ when you’re starting out. But I prefer you look to see if that lunation is aspecting any of your natal planets or angles. That's more personal and likely to be more accurate for what you're actually experiencing.

I find that beginner astrology courses often teach you all about the zodiac, the houses, and the planets — but you're left with a lot of cerebral information and still don't really know how to use it or apply it.

That's why I teach differently.

What I Focus On First:

When I teach someone to look at their birth chart, I always look at the planetary placements, and the aspects to each planet. We can get so much from a chart just by looking at the planets and their aspects. I only find this a brilliant way to learn as you are applying your knowledge straight away but have less overwhelm as your not also trying to blend in the zodiac straight away.

What If I Don't Know My Birth Time?

I get asked this all the time. It’s common to not know or not have an exact time. The way I work with focusing on planets over houses as a first step means that it’s perfect if you don’t know your birth time. Birth time gives you your Ascendent (AC) and other angles (which the various house systems then calculate of), and also the exact degree of your moon. But the other planets will largely be in the same degree in a chart the whole day you were born.

So even without a birth time, you'll know:

• Your Sun, Moon, and all your planets

• How those planets aspect each other

• The archetypal energy you're working with

If you do want to dive deeper into the planets, the glyphs, and how they relate to each other through aspects you can check out my Spiritual Nutrition Astrology Fundamentals Course.‍ ‍Not only will you learn all these fundamentals, but there’s a huge focus on how to best use these tools. By this I mean honing in on your Inner Astrology - your self awareness, metacognition and intuition when working with your chart. This is paramount when wanting to use astrology for personal development.

Ready To Go Deeper?

If you want to dive deeper into the planets, the glyphs, and how they relate to each other through aspects, check out my Spiritual Nutrition Astrology Fundamentals Course.

This 12-week live course teaches you:

• The true fundamentals of astrology (planets + aspects)

• How to read your chart from a trauma-informed, psychological approach

• Inner Astrology using meditation, Yoga Nidra, and embodiment to viscerally understand the archetypes (not just intellectually)

• How to use astrology as a personal development tool for self-awareness and growth

Your learning begins the moment you enrol: You'll get immediate access to my bestselling meditation course Addicted To Being, join our private Telegram community, and book two 30-minute private tutorials with me.

Early Enrolment is open now (£750 until 22 June). The course starts 21 September 2026.

About Belinda Matwali

Hi I’m Belinda Matwali, a trauma-informed astrologer and meditation teacher. I’ve studied meditation, astrology and trauma-informed work with best teachers in the world. I’ve collaborated with leading luxury and wellness brands, creating unique astrology experiences with high end brands such as CHANEL Beauty in Ibiza, Casamigos in Amalfi Coast, Prangell Jewellery in London. I’ve been a resident astrologer at Six Senses in Ibiza and currently resident astrology at the prestigious Surrenne wellness members club by the Maybourne Hotel group that includes Claridges and the Connaught hotels. As well as my luxury experience offering sessions and retreats globally I’ve spent decades honing my craft, from many many visits to India to sit with masters, training with my spiritual mentor about european mystery school lineages and a lifetime of curiosity and passion to continually learn astrology. You can learn more about my trainings, qualifications and life experience on my by ABOUT PAGE.