Welcome, Star — this is your guide through The Starform.
Meet Your Starform Guide
Hi, Star!
I’m DeMarcus: your leader, friend, and the mastermind behind it all. I’ve experienced the struggles you’re likely dealing with now, and I’ve been able to turn those experiences into actionable self-growth advice through my blog — my favorite creation yet.
I’m thrilled to say: Welcome to the Astral Path, your go-to “Start Here” guide that takes you through the universe of The Starform. Inside, you’ll discover everything from my brand manifesto to the meaning behind everything.
No matter where you are in your journey, I hope you’re ready to join me — let’s go!
Throughout this guide, you’ll see me refer to The Starform as both a brand and a blog. When I say “brand,” I’m talking about the overall universe. The “blog,” however, holds all the posts.
The Brand Dictionary
Let’s start with my brand dictionary.
As you’ll discover a bit later in this guide, I love making self-growth fun. One of my favorite ways is using space-themed terminology. These terms are all inspired by and, in some way, related to different things in space.
Below is The Starform Dictionary, your cosmic resource including all of the terminology you’ll find within the brand.
The Starform — the brand as a whole; a space for transformation and cosmic growth
Starform Guide — me, your leader and friend throughout this journey
Star — you, the reader: a bright star shining in your Constellation
Galaxy — the official Starform community, full of unique Stars, all brightening their Constellations
Constellation — your life as a whole, full of countless stars, with you being the brightest one
Light Year — an entire year of growth, segmented by 12 distinct Orbits
Asteroid — an individual post within an Orbit
Meteor Mail — the monthly newsletter
Meteor — an individual email within the Meteor Mail system
Traditional Strike — a sudden landing of ideas, concepts, or realizations that occur between Meteors
Unique Strike — sparks that are related to my blog/life
Flash — that instant of clarity or realization when something clicks and your growth finally lights up
Supernova — a major breakthrough in your Constellation
Eclipse — a temporary period of darkness reflection
Stardust — those little insightful bits leftover from a big picture moment
Astral Path — your “Start Here” guide to The Starform: brand philosophy, meaning, terminology, and more
Equinox Evaluation — a seasonal self-check and progress reflection
Why “The Starform”?
The Starform is a multi-layered name. You can’t understand one part without unpacking another.
Allow me to show you my thought process and how I finally decided on The Starform.
As far as general criteria, the name had to:
- Be simple, yet deep: Initially, “The Starform” appears simple. But once you unpack the different layers, its depth truly shines.
- Draw some kind of meaningful inspiration and be intentional: I didn’t want anything generic like “The Self Growth Spot” or “Develop with DeMarcus” (no offense to anyone who may have those names). The name needed an underlying meaning that tightly sealed everything — and I think “The Starform” does that very well.
- Be unique and memorable: There’s tons of other amazing self-help blogs out there with countless concepts. That challenged me to brainstorm a unique name that people remember. If I’m right, I don’t think many people have cosmic self-growth themes (but you can totally show me some if you want).
- Be marketable and intriguing: Remember: this is, in fact, a brand. Every good business model has strategic marketing. I felt like the whole star thing was perfect: it’s universal, easy to understand, and really fun to play around with.
Now let’s get into the specifics. The name has 4 distinct meanings — all of which work together to form one stellar name: The Starform.
Star: A celestial body that shines brightly in the sky. In many ways, we are Stars: unique individuals with potential to shine. We grow, learn, and radiate our light in our own way.
Form: To shape, create, or structure something. We shape ourselves into new and improved individuals.
The Starform (verb): To Starform means to actively go through the process of forming your star — AKA making your Star even better and brighter, time and time again.
The Starform (noun): The blog is your one-stop space for all things self-growth, productivity, and lifestyle design. As a concept, you are a new, evolving version of yourself that continues to establish better goals, habits, routines, mindsets, and an overall more intentional, aligned, and informed lifestyle.
Our Philosophy: The Manifesto
I find this section particularly important. It highlights my brand’s guiding principles, the very bases of every single decision, post, and email.
Here at The Starform, we strongly value and believe in:
Intentionality: Every single detail with the brand must have intention behind it.
Authenticity: As a leader, I have to be authentic. These pieces of advice can leave a lasting impact on you and I keep that in mind with everything I say.
Taking Action: Yes, knowledge is important. Knowledge is power. More important than anything, though, is applying that knowledge to your life.
Vulnerability: In our community, vulnerability is celebrated and appreciated.
Introspection: Self-reflection is key to growth.
Resilience: Challenges come and go, but you must remain persistent.
Consistency over Perfectionism: We’re constantly letting go of perfectionism and clinging onto consistency.
Onward, Never-Ending Growth & Learning: Self-growth and learning should never end; if they did, we’d stop growing, which is unideal.
Individualism: Personal development is, by no means, a one-size-fits-all concept.
Thoroughness: A huge part of my content is being full; making sure to fully explain all concepts.
Enjoyment: Self-growth doesn’t always have to be so serious. I include the “fun” aspect with cosmic terminology and science facts.
What to Expect
Let’s set your expectations. Throughout the entire Starform brand, you can expect:
- Content Inspired by Personal Experiences: To follow the “Authenticity” principal, I have to share my personal experiences with you. It doesn’t even make sense for either you or myself to regurgitate advice from the internet. My experiences — whether positive or negative — are unique, and I want you to learn from them.
- Actionable Advice with Lasting Effects: Sharing all this knowledge with you is one piece of the puzzle. If you can’t apply it to your life, it’s practically useless. I focus on sharing advice that leads you to actively make positive changes in your life, ultimately creating everlasting effects.
- Little Bits of Me Dispersed Everywhere: The focus is on you, Star. But, you’ll always find little pieces of my personality — like fragments of stardust — everywhere on the blog (like humorous asides, parentheticals, or excessive em dashes — I love those!).
- A Focus on Forming > Fixing: Sometimes we go wrong when we believe we should be on a mission to “fix” ourselves. With that in mind, you’re failing from the jump. You should aim to continuously “form” yourself into a brighter Star, not repair yourself.
- A Creative Approach to Content Creation: I appreciate some good storytelling. I especially love imagery (AKA the idea of “show, don’t tell”). My posts combine story-like techniques (heavy use of vivid imagery and cosmic metaphors) with conversational touches (excess use of parentheticals and single-line sentences).
- A Strong Sense of Community: This brand is interconnected, from the blog to the monthly newsletter. I intentionally connected everything this way because as individual as self-growth is and can be, it’s impossible without communal support. Community means everything to me, and I’m honored to have the platform to cultivate a strong, inclusive environment for us all to share.
Embark on Your Journey Today
Now that you’re a Star in our Galaxy, it’s time to Ignite Your Supernova (AKA ignite the fire needed to inspire a breakthrough in your life).
I’ve got multiple resources for you, so feel free to browse in whichever way/order you like.
Foundational Reads
ABOUT ME — Learn more about me and the story behind The Starform.
THE ULTIMATE STARFORM COLLECTION — Your one-stop hub of ongoing series that challenge and encourage you to brighten the greatest Star in your Constellation: You. I like to call this a “living” post because I constantly create series and add them to it.
Join the Meteor Mail Newsletter
The party doesn’t end on the blog: us Stars all gather together in the monthly newsletter, Meteor Mail.
This is a newsletter where I send one value-packed email each month. Inside, you’ll discover:
- Interactions between you and I
- Your Orbit recap
- A thought-provoking, introspective journal prompt
- A personal Spark from me
What’re you waiting for? Join now to get monthly updates and encouragement (plus an exclusive freebie!).
Keep Exploring
Still interested? Find me over on Instagram or Pinterest, where I regularly share self-growth advice and personal insights.
You can even shoot me an email at demarcus@thestarform.com for business or personal inquiries. Even if you just want say hi or chat for a bit, I’m always down!
Remember, Star: you have the power and freedom to form your own star. Keep shining — one day at a time.
—with love, DeMarcus