Confession: I'm owning my worth
A note on the future of this newsletter
Owning your worth is a funny thing. When I use the phrase in my poetry, I’m typically talking about non-financial worth. When I was a resume writer and career consultant, telling my clients to own their worth meant making sure they get paid properly. What happens when you’re a poet for a living? The lines start to blur. I want to say my worth has nothing to do with the money my writing brings in, but to be honest, it’s something I struggle with. Today I’m claiming my worth here by no longer defining my success based on the number of paid subscribers I have.
When I started this Substack, it felt like the perfect opportunity to marry my top four objectives: first, start writing consistently. Second, build a community that doesn’t restrict visibility based on an algorithm. Third, create an additional income stream. Fourth (and most importantly), deliver value and make an impact. All four objectives relate to me honoring my purpose, and thus owning my worth. But somehow, the one most closely tied to financial worth makes me uncomfortable.
Substack as a platform works by taking a cut of paid subscriptions, a cut it totally deserves. I love this platform and what it has unleashed in me: a desire to write and share long-form content consistently! But because it focuses on paid subscriptions, it’s constantly reminding creators to include subscribe links, to track subscription numbers, and to grow, grow, grow. Every time I login to write a post, the first thing I see is my paid subscriber count, paired with how many subscribers I’ve gained or lost since I last logged in. It feels eerily like social media, the very thing I wanted to get away from by starting this newsletter. Today I free myself from tracking the numbers. Today I remember that of my four objectives, only one directly had to do with money.
Putting my content behind a paywall with the hope that more people will become paid subscribers never felt right to me. I’ve never gatekept my content before; in fact,most of the poems in Self Love Poetry first appeared as Instagram posts on my company page. And look what was born of that — a bestselling book and a three-book deal. Who made it a bestseller? Readers like you. Simply put, whether you are a paid or free subscriber here, you’re the reason I’m living my lifelong dream of being an author. And that is priceless.
What does that mean if you’re already a paid subscriber? You’ll continue to get access to all my content here plus you’ll get special perks and my unyielding gratitude. I have a feeling that if you’ve subscribed, it had nothing to do with getting past my paywalls and everything to do with wanting to support me. Thank you. I hope you continue.
What does this mean if you’re a free subscriber? You’ll now have access to more of my content without running into paywalls on every post. If something I share moves you, I hope you’ll consider subscribing. Either way, my worth as a writer will no longer depend on it.
What does this mean for me? I need to find other income streams to supplement my writing. The one I’m most excited about? Taking on more speaking engagements this Fall and in 2024. If you work for a company that brings in speakers as part of its wellness or culture initiative, I’d love to come in and present The ABCs of Self Love — something we could all stand to learn more about in this era of widespread burnout. You can learn more about me as a speaker here.
In honor of owning my worth, I’ve removed the paywalls on all my prior posts. I hope you’ll visit the Self Love Confidential archive and explore all the magic that I've been brewing with your help. Like, comment on, and share the ones that resonate.
Thank you for being here. I truly couldn’t do any of this without you.
With love,
