Living in Protest: Building a Business Inside a System I Don’t Believe In

Some days, I feel like I’m building something beautiful on poisoned soil.

I’m creating a business rooted in care, integrity, and alignment.
But the world around me?
It feels like it’s crumbling under the weight of greed, inequality, and extraction.

There’s a genocide happening in Gaza.
There are people working full-time who still can’t afford to live.
Sewage is being dumped into rivers while water companies profit.
Corporations take record-breaking bonuses while laying off staff.
And I’m supposed to keep calm, pay my bills, and smile on social media?

I feel angry. I feel disillusioned.
And I feel alone, especially in the world of online business and coaching, where the dominant narrative is still one of luxury, hustle, and self-optimisation.

“Just raise your prices.”
“Collapse time.”
“Manifest the designer handbag and the million-pound house.”

What if I don’t want any of that?

What if I don’t want to build a business that props up the very systems I long to dismantle?

I Want to Live Differently

I want to create a business that heals, not harms.
That uplifts, not extracts.
That honours the earth, the body, the collective.

But here’s the paradox:
I still have to exist within the system I don’t believe in.

I still have to pay the water bill, even when I know that privatised utilities are failing us.
I still have to pay taxes, even when I know they fund violence, not care.
I still have to earn money, even when the very idea of “earning worth” makes me want to scream.

And so I ask myself daily:
How do I live in protest, while still participating enough to survive?

My Answer (So Far):

I Choose Integrity Over Illusion

I don’t have all the answers. I’m not a saint or a saviour. But I know I can’t numb myself anymore. I can’t pretend the world is okay just so I can sell something. I can’t keep playing the game when the rules make no sense.

So instead, I build slowly. Intentionally. With care woven through every choice.

• I price my offers in a way that honours value and accessibility.

• I centre rest, softness, and wholeness in my rhythm.

• I speak to the people who are exhausted by hype and hungry for depth.

• I tell the truth, even when it’s inconvenient.

Because this is my protest: To stay soft in a hard world. To speak truth in a sea of noise. To build with integrity inside a system built on exploitation.

A New Way Is Possible (Even If We Can’t See It Yet)

No, I don’t have a five-step plan for revolution. But I do believe in the power of small, intentional, embodied resistance.

Every time we choose enoughness over endless striving,
Every time we rest instead of hustle,
Every time we refuse to replicate harm in our work,
We plant the seeds of something better.

You’re not broken for feeling disillusioned.
You’re not weak for feeling tired.
You’re awake.

And I believe that those of us who feel this deeply are here to help shape what’s next, not by burning ourselves out trying to fix everything, but by becoming living examples of another way.

Living in Protest Is Not About Loudness—It’s About Alignment

I’ve never been someone who jumps on the bandwagon. At 17, I began training as a counsellor, and it shaped how I see the world. From those early days, I was taught the core person-centred values: unconditional positive regard, non-judgment, acceptance, and the belief in the inherent goodness in people. These weren’t just professional principles, they became part of who I am.

I am a reflector by nature. Curious. I want to understand why people act the way they do.
I don’t take headlines at face value. I question fear-driven narratives and separation tactics. I look for what’s underneath: the systems, the pain, the unmet needs, the histories.

And maybe that’s why I feel so out of place in how activism often looks online: loud, fast, reactive.
Because that’s not me.

But I’m realising now that activism isn’t always the loudest voice in the room.
It can also be the steady one.
The grounded one.
The one that listens, learns, and then chooses to act from clarity, not chaos.

If this speaks to something deep in you, something you haven’t seen reflected elsewhere, know that you’re not alone.

I’m building a quiet ecosystem of wholehearted rebels, value-led creatives, and regenerative entrepreneurs who are doing business differently.

📬 Join my mailing list for honest reflections, slow business insights, and gentle support for the road ahead.

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And I would love to connect more with you and hear your thoughts. Connect with me personally at hello@debsthorpe.com.

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