If you've been following along, you'll know 2025 is my year for deep inner transformation.
I chose this path after noticing how often my decisions were driven by fear and scarcity. I constantly felt like I was behind, watching others seemingly master the art of life and—in Gary Vaynerchuck's words—"Crushing It."
I've always had big dreams. My younger self was so much freer in imagining what life could look like. But somewhere along the way, I fell into the trap of trying to prove myself, to show others that I mattered and had something valuable to offer. I stopped following my joy and trusting that love for my life and work would naturally attract the right opportunities.
The truth is, we all fall into this trap at some point. And the deeper truth is we don't actually need to prove anything to anyone, least of all ourselves.
But try convincing yourself of that, I dare you.
I've been daring myself all year. 2025 is one massive dare!
A small but illustrative example of how "proving ourselves" shows up: for the past seven weeks, the only thing I've posted on LinkedIn is a simple link to this weekly blog. It's a significant shift from the negotiation-focused content I've shared for the past three years. I've noticed these posts getting very little engagement, and I sense they might even confuse my professional audience.
My ego, whom I've named Nayla, tells me repeatedly that I'm damaging my credibility as a negotiation consultant and trainer. And to be honest, I don't know if that's true.
What I do know is my interest in negotiation runs much deeper. To me, negotiation mastery starts from within—understanding our identities and inner conflicts first. Sharing my thinking and who I truly am is an integral part of my commitment to this deeper work.
If I can't negotiate with myself to embrace discomfort, how can I genuinely guide you through your high-stakes negotiations? Sure, I can teach you theories, but so can Google. The true value lies in deeply understanding contexts, especially our inner human contexts.
Because I experience the same inner resistance you do when facing uncomfortable choices, I speak from empathy and understanding rather than judgment. I realise that many won't fully grasp what I'm doing, and that's okay. My goal is for negotiation to be seen as more than a business skill, it's a muscle we build to shape the life we genuinely desire, to bravely follow the road less travelled.
Still, despite training negotiation skills for four years, first for a global consultancy firm and now in my own business, and having published a book on negotiation, I feel that internal nagging voice saying it's not safe to show people my true self. The fear of harming myself professionally and financially is real.
That's why inner transformation is brutal. You're negotiating daily with your ego, shedding layers of narratives that no longer serve your highest self. Yet it's hard not to remain trapped, constantly bombarded by the world's expectations about who you should be and how you must show up to gain acceptance.
But I'm not playing for acceptance by the masses. I'm here for visionaries with a deeper calling, those determined to meaningfully impact human consciousness, making the world kinder and more compassionate, building communities rather than tearing them down.
Just this week, I made a tough call and said no to work I would have genuinely enjoyed, a large, respected corporate client. I declined because the offer felt transactional rather than transformational.
When I hear leaders say they're too busy to devote more than an hour to developing the skills needed to accelerate their growth, alarm bells ring loudly. It reminds me why I left corporate life: I refuse to become another Human Doing when my soul longs to be a Human Being, creating meaningful change. I want to collaborate with visionaries who constantly question their assumptions and keep both their minds open and their hearts focused on genuine transformation.
I said no because I'm done contorting myself into systems not yet ready to question what they're optimising for.
So, I'll leave you with this reflection:
Are you optimising to minimise disruption to your existing ways of working, or are you genuinely committed to optimising for the most transformative outcomes possible?
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The brutal truth about transformation is that it asks you to let go of who you've always known yourself to be, the version of you that's comfortable, safe, and predictable. It's brutal because you're not just shedding old stories; you're letting go of identities you've built your life around, identities others have applauded and rewarded. It feels terrifying because, in those moments, you're suspended in uncertainty, with no promise of what's next.
This week has been hard, it's the first week post the Human Design Retreat. I found myself deeply emotional, grieving parts of myself that I'm actively leaving behind. The achiever who thrived on validation, the pleaser who wanted everyone to feel comfortable, and the part of me that felt safest in predictable patterns. Letting go of these parts feels like losing old friends, and the sadness is real. Transformation isn't neat or tidy. Sometimes it's messy, confronting, and painfully lonely.
But there's something profoundly beautiful about that messiness. Once you've tasted the freedom that comes from releasing old layers, you can't pretend you haven't seen it. Transformation is brutal precisely because you can't unsee your own truth. Each layer you peel back reveals more of the real you, the you that's been there all along, patiently waiting for permission to step forward.
That's why transformation matters so deeply. It's not about becoming someone different, it's about finally coming home to yourself.
Keep going and keep growing.
Love Glin x
P.S. Three wins from my week:
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Raising my Floor. Saying no to unaligned work. This was big for me but I know this now opens up space to work with visionary organisations ready to question who they're being and embark on a transformation journey to a future aligned to their deepest desires.
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Progress on Glin & Tonic. My designer shared a little more on the creative direction that she is taking with Glin & Tonic. She's helping me to create a product brand for future stationery products I want to create for inner transformation. I've yet to see the initial designs but I'm excited to see what she's coming up with.
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Branding Photos. As part of my identity shift returning back to myself and being SimplyGlin, I'm getting some new professional branding photos taken - the win - sharing the branding shoot with two friends. I'm very grateful for the divine timing of my friend organising a shoot at a beautiful home and asking if I wanted to join.
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