"Have you noticed how all the big creators from LinkedIn are jumping onto Substack?" I asked a friend this week.
"It feels like there’s no sacred space for creative expression anymore." Soon, Substack - like LinkedIn - will be filled with people chasing audiences, using it as yet another platform to leverage for revenue growth.
Then, en masse, we’ll see the rise of 'Substack growth experts' sharing their hacks on how to scale and build 6-7-8 figure businesses, while adding disclaimers that their figures are merely representative and don’t guarantee similar results.
As we sat sipping our coffees, our eyes rolled at the thought. Another space for genuine expression slowly morphing into a commercialised playground, filled with hungry hippos chasing the next big return.
We sat for a moment, feeling somewhat resigned to the idea that we might soon be in search of yet another space. Somewhere untouched. Somewhere without the hungry hippos.
But then, a realisation landed.
Quiet, yet heavy.
As quiet ones - those who create from the heart - any space we find for depth, connection, and truth will eventually attract the hungry hippos. Those who commercialise human connection, commodify creative expression, and turn storytelling into scalable business models.
And with that realisation came a deeper truth.
We can't keep running from the noise.
We can’t keep moving on - to another platform, another job, another relationship, another postcode - hoping the quiet we crave will be waiting there.
Because the signal we’re seeking isn’t out there. It’s within.
It lives in the quiet corners of our own hearts. In the truth that rises when we stop performing and start listening. In the stillness that exists beneath the surface of the noise.
I’ve found myself searching for a new space lately. A quieter one. Somewhere I can hear myself clearly. LinkedIn has felt noisy. Performative. Like a crowded room where only the loudest are heard.
Substack felt like a refuge at first. But it’s changing too. And in trying to escape the hungry hippos - always ravenous, always multiplying - I realised I’ve been running from myself.
What became clear in that coffee catch-up is this: the noise will always exist. But we can choose not to let it disturb our peace.
When we’re grounded in our own signal, we can speak and share from a place of truth. We don’t need to shout. We don’t need to perform. We just need to be present.
Those who are meant to tune into our frequency will find us. But if we keep disconnecting from ourselves, losing our signal, we dilute the contribution we’re here to make.
There’s a lot of noise in the world right now. So many systems are crumbling. For a better, more thoughtful world to emerge, we each have a role to play. And that starts by strengthening our own signal.
The hungry hippos will always be around. But if we move away every time they show up, we abandon our own path. The difference we’re here to make.
We don’t need to find somewhere quieter.
We need to find the quiet within.
From that place, we create. We connect. We lead.
The world needs the quiet, reflective visionaries, like us, to play our part. To show up when it matters most.
A war against anything never leads to peace. But love and acceptance do.
And from a place of peace, we can quietly and thoughtfully change the world.
Keep going and keep growing.
Love Glin x
P.S. Three wins from my week:
1. Deepening my practice
It was great to be in Sydney this week delivering another negotiation training workshop. I’m noticing that the more I practise tuning into my own signal and tuning out the noise, the deeper my work becomes. Connecting the threads of inner and outer negotiation created a powerful container for growth.
2. Time to reflect
Aside from workshop delivery and coaching, I gave myself a couple of days to contemplate and rest. I’m seeing how much clearer my thoughts are when I give myself that space, and how necessary it is to just be, without the pressure to fill my diary with doing. It’s about time I started embodying rest as self-care, not something I do only when I’m on the edge of functional burnout.
3. Strengthening Signal
I’m writing this as we journey back to the Sunshine Coast. This trip feels different - the energy in our conversations has shifted. I’m all in. No longer accepting hiding parts of myself. My own signal, my connection to my heart, has strengthened. I’ve written more this week. I’ve recorded more personal musings on my secret podcast (Link Below). I’ve read more. I’ve connected with myself at a deeper level. I’m feeling the peace that’s been available all along, accessed only through surrendering the resistance to being seen, entirely as I am - SimplyGlin
https://getthestuckouttahere.supercast.com
|
|||
 |
|||
|
||||
|
||||
|
Responses