how to quiet-quit social media: the six phases of worldbuilding
Welcome back. In Part One, we explored the philosophical shift—moving from hoping to go viral to deeply serving your community, from broadcasting your story to building meta worlds. In Part Two, we dove into the TLC framework: Traffic, Leads, and Customers—the infrastructure you need before you can responsibly phase out of Instagram.
Now we're going deeper into the actual phases of worldbuilding—the six sequential steps that allow you to structure, articulate, and grow your transformational offering in a way that honors your medicine and serves your community.
This is where the real work happens. This is where you stop spinning your wheels on tactics and start building something that can hold you—something that has its own essence and ethos and momentum, something bigger than your feed.
Hello, World!
Why Infrastructure Alone Isn't Enough
You can have all the traffic sources in the world. You can have the most incredible lead generator. You can have a customer journey mapped out perfectly.
But if you don't know what world you're building, if you haven't clarified the medicine you bring, if you can't articulate the transformation you offer—you're still going to feel lost. You're still going to feel like you're performing. You're still going to feel like something essential is missing.
The missing piece isn't another marketing strategy. The missing piece is the world itself.
The world you're inviting people into. The world that exists beyond Instagram, beyond any single platform, beyond the algorithm. The world that has its own arc and momentum, like tending to a starter culture for your sourdough. You feed it every day. You feed the world. You build the world.
And then naturally, when you build a world, people will want to inhabit it if it's the kind of world they like being inside of.
Three Things to Know Before We Begin
1. This Is a Slow Process
This is not something that's gonna work for you if you quit Instagram today and expect it to start working next week. This is a slow build process, and it is strategic.
We live in a culture that wants everything fast. Instant results. Rapid growth. Viral moments. Scale at all costs.
But building a world—a real world that people want to inhabit, that honors your medicine, that creates actual transformation—that takes time.
It takes time to clarify what you're really offering. It takes time to design a business model that actually supports your life. It takes time to develop messaging that lands without performance or dilution. It takes time to build momentum that doesn't burn you out.
And that's okay. Actually, that's more than okay. That's the whole point.
We're not trying to build something that works for three months and then collapses. We're trying to build something sustainable. Something sovereign. Something that can hold your vision for years, not just a launch cycle.
2. This Is Long-Term Vision Work
When I talk about having an exit plan—by the end of 2026, I'm completely off of Instagram—I'm talking about a long-term vision.
I've been on Instagram since way before there was an algorithm. I've been sharing my art, my work on Instagram for so many years. So there's a transition period I have to go through.
What I have to look at is: how can I scale down what I'm doing on Instagram and scale up in other areas? Hence this podcast. Hence my lead generators. All the other pieces I have going in my ecosystem.
This didn't happen overnight. This has been a year and a half of intentional worldbuilding. And it will continue.
This is how you think when you're building for the long term:
You're not asking "What can I do this week to get more followers?"
You're asking "What do I want my business to look like in two years? What infrastructure needs to be in place? What world am I building that will still be here when Instagram changes its algorithm again—or disappears entirely?"
You're planting trees you'll sit under later. You're building foundations that future you will thank you for. You're thinking in seasons, not days.
3. This Requires Praxis—Not Just Information
The word praxis means the integration of theory and practice. It's not just learning about something. It's not just thinking about something. It's doing the work.
Information without implementation doesn't change anything. Theory without practice just sits in your notes app gathering dust.
Praxis is what happens when you:
Learn the framework AND apply it to your actual business
Get the teaching AND do the work in real-time
Receive the guidance AND make the decisions
Understand the concept AND build the thing
This is the difference between consuming content about marketing and actually building a world. Between learning about business models and actually designing one that supports your life. Between thinking about your message and actually crafting it so it lands.
The 6 Phases of Worldbuilding
This is called the Vision Midwifery™ Framework, and it's what allows you to midwife your vision to life—to clarify the core value of your work, design a soul-resonant business model, and craft a message that positions your work clearly without diluting its essence and soul.
Each phase builds on the last. Each phase is essential. You can't skip ahead and just "do the marketing" without clarifying your medicine first. You can't create momentum without having a model to support it.
This is the architecture of worldbuilding.
Phase 1: Your Medicine — What You Offer
The question: What is your medicine?
This is your core offering and mythopoiesis—it's what you and only you are uniquely positioned to bring into the world. It is your soul's work and the medicine you provide to your community.
This phase is about discovering and defining your gifts and vision.
In this phase, you clarify:
Your value proposition—what you actually offer at the deepest level
The soul-level purpose behind your work—why you're here to do this
Your audience—who this medicine is truly for (and who it's not for)
The deep need your work responds to
Why this phase matters for quiet quitting Instagram:
When you're clear on your medicine, you stop needing external validation from the algorithm. You stop wondering if your work matters. You stop trying to be everything to everyone.
You know what you bring. You know who it's for. You know why it matters.
That clarity becomes the foundation everything else is built on. It's what allows you to speak directly to your people without needing to broadcast to the masses. It's what makes your lead generator powerful—because you're clear on the transformation you offer and who needs it.
The shift this creates:
Instead of scrolling Instagram wondering what to post, hoping something resonates, you have rooted clarity about your medicine. You're not performing. You're not guessing. You know what you're here to offer and why it matters deeply to a specific group of people.
Phase 2: Your Modality — How You Deliver
The question: How will you offer your medicine?
This is the mode of delivery for your work. Whether it's through teaching, guiding, designing, building, or other formats, your modality is how you serve others and express your mythocultural role.
Your medicine is not your modality. Your medicine is the core transformation. Your modality is the vehicle.
In this phase, you define:
Right-fit delivery formats (1:1, group, product, creative container)
Your scope—what you do and what you do not do
Policies for how you hold and transmit your work
How to talk about what you do in a way that feels true and makes sense to real people
Why this phase matters for quiet quitting Instagram:
When you're clear on your modality, you stop comparing yourself to everyone else's business model. You stop thinking you need to offer what they're offering or deliver your work the way they do.
You design a way of working that actually honors your energy, your gifts, your season of life.
Some of us are here to be in the house reading books and connecting to a small set of people. That doesn't mean your impact is any less. It's just powered differently. Honor your introversion. Honor your shyness. Build a modality that respects the medicine you bring in that way.
The shift this creates:
You stop trying to force yourself into modalities that drain you just because you see other people succeeding with them. You design a delivery method that works for your actual life, your actual energy, your actual gifts—which means you can sustain it long-term without burning out.
Phase 3: Your Methodology — Your Transformation Process
The question: What is the process behind your work?
This is the step-by-step system you use to help your clients or community move from where they are to where they want to be. It's your proven method for transformation. Your theory of change.
In this phase, you outline:
Your theory of change—how transformation happens through your work
Your client or student journey—the path people walk with you
A simple framework for how your work moves people from A to B
The transformation you guide people through
Why this phase matters for quiet quitting Instagram:
When you have a clear methodology, you can talk about your work with confidence. You're not just saying "I help people feel better" or "I support transformation." You can articulate the specific process, the specific journey, the specific steps.
This is what allows you to create that incredible lead generator we talked about in Part Two—because you can give people a taste of your methodology, a sample of the transformation. This is what makes your customer journey clear. This is what helps people understand: "Oh, I need exactly what they offer. This is the path I've been looking for."
The shift this creates:
You're not trying to explain your work in a 90-second reel. You can point people to your lead generator, your website, your podcast—places where you can actually walk them through your methodology without compression or performance. Your methodology becomes something you can teach, something you can demonstrate, something that proves the value of your work.
Phase 4: Your Model — Your Business Structure
The question: What is the structure of your business?
This is your business model, which includes your pricing, offerings, product testing and build, and the systems that support the exchange of time, money, and service with others.
Model is about creating a structure that allows your vision to expand without compromising your capacity or integrity.
In this phase, you design:
Your offer ecosystem—how your offerings fit together
Your pricing and revenue strategy
The backbone of your business model
A structure that aligns with your season of growth and protects your peace
Why this phase matters for quiet quitting Instagram:
When you have a clear business model, you know exactly what you're inviting people into. You're not just hoping someone will book a call or buy something someday. You have a structure.
You know: "These are my offerings. This is how much they cost. This is how long they run. This is how they fit together. This is the investment required. This is what's possible."
And you can campaign 2-3 times a year around those offerings instead of constantly trying to sell in your stories because you don't have a clear model.
The shift this creates:
You're building something that can actually sustain you financially while also honoring your need for space, for rest, for time away from the app. You have offers you feel good about. You have pricing that supports your life. You have a model that doesn't require you to be constantly visible to make money.
Phase 5: Your Message — How You Communicate
The question: How do you communicate your vision?
This is your messaging—the way you speak to your audience, how you share the essence of your work, and how you connect with the people you serve.
Your message is what happens when you combine medicine and methodology. It communicates the value you provide.
In this phase, you develop:
An understanding of your audience's language and needs
Clear, soul-aligned messaging that doesn't require performance
Light-touch market research to sharpen positioning
The ability to talk about your work in any context without waiting for it to be "perfect"
Why this phase matters for quiet quitting Instagram:
Remember what we talked about in Part One? You stop creating content solely based on what you feel or what's moving through you. You start creating content that engages realistic conversations you're already having with your people.
When your message is clear, you're not posting every day hoping something lands. You know what to say. You know who you're talking to. You know what matters to them.
The shift this creates:
Your message works in your emails, on your podcast, in your blog posts, in conversations at conferences, in your lead generator. It's not dependent on Instagram stories or reels or whatever new feature they roll out next week.
You have rooted messaging that travels with you wherever you show up. You can have a conversation about your work at a dinner party or on a podcast and people immediately understand what you do and who it's for.
Phase 6: Your Momentum — Sustainable Growth
The question: How do you keep your vision moving forward?
This is your momentum—the energy and lifeforce that propels your vision. Momentum is about taking care of the systems inside of your body, your team ecosystem, and your organization that allows for cashflow to be consistent and for operations to liberate flow.
In this phase, you create:
Sustainable visibility and marketing practices
Your conversion pathway—how people find you, engage, and say yes
A 6-12 month vision for growth
Systems that hold the business with care and don't burn you out
Why this phase matters for quiet quitting Instagram:
This is where everything comes together. This is where you build a plan that says: "Okay, I have my medicine clarified. I have my modality designed. I have my methodology articulated. I have my model structured. I have my message clear. Now how do I create momentum that's sustainable?"
Not momentum that requires me to post three times a day.
Not momentum that demands I be on Instagram stories constantly.
Not momentum that drains my life force.
But momentum that honors my energy. That builds over time. That creates consistent cashflow without constant visibility. That allows me to campaign 2-3 times a year and rest in between.
The shift this creates:
Momentum that comes from the world itself—not from you performing on the app. You have systems. You have conversion pathways. You have visibility practices that don't require you to be everywhere all the time. You can take three months off Instagram like I did and come back to people saying "Welcome back, it's so good to feel your energy in this space."
Why These Six Phases in This Sequential Order
You might be wondering: "Can't I just skip to the message part? Can't I just figure out my momentum first?"
No. And here's why.
Each phase builds the foundation for the next.
You can't design a clear modality until you know your medicine. How can you choose the right delivery format if you don't know what you're actually offering at the deepest level?
You can't articulate a methodology until you know how you're delivering your work. The process of transformation looks different in 1:1 work than it does in group containers or digital products.
You can't structure a sustainable model until you understand the transformation you're guiding people through. Your pricing, your offerings, your business structure—all of this depends on understanding the journey people take with you.
You can't craft resonant messaging until you know what you're actually offering and how it works. Messaging isn't just words. It's the distillation of your medicine, modality, and methodology into language that lands with the right people.
You can't create sustainable momentum until all the other pieces are in place. Trying to build momentum without clarity on the first five phases is like trying to push a car uphill with no gas in the tank. You'll burn out fast.
This is the architecture of worldbuilding.
It's not random tactics. It's not growth hacks. It's not the next best marketing strategy. It's a framework that holds your vision, your medicine, your work in a way that allows it to grow and expand without compromising your soul or your capacity.
What Worldbuilding Actually Makes Possible
When you've moved through these six phases—when you've actually done the work, not just thought about it—here's what becomes possible:
You stop spinning your wheels. You're not constantly wondering what to post or how to show up or whether you're doing it right. You have clarity. You have structure. You have a world to tend.
You stop second-guessing yourself. You know what you offer, who it's for, how it works, what it costs, and how to talk about it. The decision is already made. Now you just show up and serve.
You stop needing Instagram to validate your work. Your world exists whether you post today or not. Your medicine is real whether the algorithm shows your content or not. Your business has infrastructure that supports it.
You can actually quiet quit. You can take time off. You can scale back. You can show up when it serves you and disappear when you need to rest. Because the world you've built doesn't depend on your constant visibility.
People come to you. When you build a world that people want to inhabit—when you create an environment that feels like their favorite bookstore or coffee shop, when you offer medicine that truly serves them—they find you. They stay. They invest. They refer others. Not because of your Instagram following, but because of the world itself.
You can do like I did: Take time away from the app, and then when you come back on because you have some things to share, because you have offerings that are opening up, you're welcomed back into this space. People say, "It's so good to feel your energy back in the space, welcome back." Nobody's like, "Who is this bitch?" Nobody has that energy toward what you're doing.
Some people maybe are no longer resonant with the updated thing you're bringing through—that's okay. They can leave. We should be able to let people leave and come and go as and when.
The Work Is Not in the Tactics
I know you might be itching for more tactics. More "do this exact thing and it will work" kind of advice.
But here's what I've learned after over a decade of guiding entrepreneurial containers in the realms of brand storytelling and social media: tactics without foundation crumble.
You can learn every Instagram strategy. You can implement every funnel. You can optimize every email sequence.
But if you haven't done the foundational work of moving through these six phases—if you haven't clarified your medicine, defined your modality, articulated your methodology, structured your model, sharpened your message, and created sustainable momentum—you're building on sand.
The work is worldbuilding.
The work is moving through these six phases sequentially, with support, in real-time—not just reading about them.
The work is going slow so you can build something that lasts.
The work is thinking long-term so you're not scrambling every quarter.
The work is tending to the world you're creating with the same devotion you would tend to a garden or a sourdough starter or a sacred relationship.
Where This Work Happens
If you're someone who's been building in fragments and pieces and is now ready to design a whole ecosystem—
If you're tired of second-guessing yourself when it comes to sharing your offerings online—
If you want to share your work in a way that actually leads to impact and sales without sacrificing your soul to social media—
If you're ready to build a business that aligns with your pace, protects your peace, and makes space for you to do things your way—
The World Building School is where we do this work together.
This is a foundational six-week business development intensive where we walk through all six phases of the Vision Midwifery™ Framework.
Together, we will midwife your vision to life by clarifying the core value of your work, designing a soul-resonant business model, and crafting a message that positions your work clearly in the digital marketplace without diluting its essence and soul.
This is not just another course you watch alone.
We do the work together. In session. With support. 80% of the work happens live in our three-hour weekly sessions. This is praxis—theory and practice integrated.
You'll also receive immediate access to a six-part self-paced course with deeper homework to do over time, a forum for weekly live Q&A and for sharing reflections in between sessions, and office hour support with our co-facilitator.
You'll have a cohort of like-hearted, mystical, wild-hearted creature people who are also building in a way that is counter-cultural so you don't have to feel alone in the work.
This is the missing piece.
Not another marketing strategy. Not another Instagram hack. But the actual foundational work of worldbuilding so you can quiet quit Instagram—or any platform—without your business falling apart.
Building Vision in a Changing World
Building vision in a world that is rapidly changing isn't easy, but it's necessary.
Your vision, your voice, and your offerings are answered prayers for our shared futures.
The world needs your medicine.
Not your performance. Not your constant visibility. Not your perfectly curated Instagram aesthetic.
Your actual medicine. The world you're here to build.
And that world takes time. It takes slowness. It takes long-term vision. It takes praxis—the actual doing of the work, not just thinking about it.
But when you build it—when you really build it, moving through these six phases with intention and support—it holds you. It sustains you. It creates the freedom you've been seeking.
The freedom to show up when it serves you and rest when you need to.
The freedom to campaign 2-3 times a year and go back into your cave in between.
The freedom to spend your energy on your actual work instead of feeding the algorithm.
The freedom to build something bigger than your feed.
That's what we're building toward. That's what these six phases of worldbuilding make possible.
The World Building School is now open for enrollment. If you're finding this when enrollment is closed, join the waitlist to be the first to know when we open again. Learn more at storywork.studio/worldbuilding-school
Remember: This is a long-term game. Give yourself time. Give yourself grace. Give yourself the support you need to build this properly.
