Invisibility is a Superpower

In the early stages of any creative journey, it’s easy to feel like your work is slipping into the void. You put your heart into what you create, but it feels like no one’s watching, no one’s listening, and no one cares.

But here’s the truth: invisibility is a gift.

It’s not a punishment or a sign you’re failing—it’s an essential phase in your growth. This quiet period holds the sacred space for you to explore, experiment, and find your voice. It’s where the foundation of your greatness is built, brick by brick, away from the noise of external expectations.

When no one is watching, the stakes feel lower. There’s freedom in knowing your early work doesn’t have to be perfect or polished. This is where you get to:

 • Experiment Fearlessly: Try new ideas, take risks, and follow creative instincts without worrying about judgment.

 • Build Resilience: Learn to create for yourself first, driven by passion rather than validation.

 • Discover Your Unique Voice: The quiet phase gives you time to figure out what you stand for and how you want to show up in the world.

The Sacred Space of Becoming

Think of this phase as a cocoon. The caterpillar doesn’t rush its transformation—it stays hidden, slowly becoming what it’s meant to be. Your work deserves the same tender process.

The invisibility you might be resisting is actually giving you time to:

 • Develop your skills.

 • Refine your message.

 • Create a body of work that feels aligned with who you truly are.

By the time people notice you, you’ll be ready—not scrambling to figure it all out in the spotlight.

The Pressure of Early Recognition

Now, imagine the alternative: immediate attention. Your early work becomes scrutinised before you’ve had a chance to grow into it. You’re expected to know your voice, your style, your direction—all before you’ve had the chance to explore. 

Invisibility, on the other hand, shields you from that pressure. It offers you the freedom to evolve in your own time, on your own terms.

Shifting Your Perspective on the Quiet Phase

If the quiet phase feels frustrating, here’s how to reframe it:

 1. Create for the Love of It: Instead of focusing on how many people are watching, focus on the joy of creating something meaningful to you.

 2. Celebrate Small Wins: Each piece of work you produce is a step forward. Honour the process.

 3. Trust the Timing: The world will notice you when you’re ready to be seen—and not a moment before.

Your early work, the phase where it feels like no one is watching or noticing, is much like winter. The world above ground may look still, quiet, and unchanging—but underneath, there’s life brewing, roots deepening, and seeds preparing to sprout.

Winter and gardening hold profound lessons for the creative process, especially when you’re in the quiet phase of invisibility. These natural cycles remind us that growth doesn’t always look like action. Sometimes, the most transformative work happens beneath the surface.

Winter: The Season of Rest and Renewal

In winter, plants and trees aren’t “doing nothing”—they’re resting, conserving energy, and focusing on their roots. This is their time to:

 • Strengthen Their Foundation: Trees use winter to fortify their roots, ensuring they’ll be able to support new growth in the spring.

 • Gather Energy: By slowing down, they conserve the resources needed to flourish when the season shifts.

For you, invisibility works the same way. It’s your winter—a time to dig deep, nourish your creative roots, and prepare for the moment when your work begins to bloom. 

Planting Seeds: The Invisible Work of Creation

Before a garden bursts into vibrant colour, the seeds have to be planted—and then comes the hardest part: waiting.

When you bury a seed, it vanishes into the earth, completely out of sight. For days, weeks, or even months, it seems like nothing is happening. But beneath the surface, the seed is doing the most important work of all. It’s breaking open, sending roots deep into the soil, and preparing to push toward the light.

Your creative journey is no different.

Every time you create something—a piece of art, a blog post, a client gallery, or a video—it can feel like that seed, dropped into the soil and swallowed by the earth. You pour your heart into it, but when no one responds, likes, or shares, it can feel as if it’s disappeared into nothingness.

 • Starting a Social Media Page with Low Engagement: Posting to what feels like an echo chamber can be frustrating, but every post is a practice in finding your voice and connecting with the audience that’s meant for you. 

 • Starting a Podcast with Few Listeners: Even with a small audience, your episodes are laying the foundation for a community, creating content that people can find and connect with when the timing aligns.

• Creating Art No One Sees: Every piece of art you make, even if it feels overlooked, sharpens your skills and deepens your voice. You’re building a body of work that matters, even if the world isn’t ready to see it yet.  

 • Writing Blogs That Feel Unread: Those words you’re weaving are planting tiny seeds of connection, storytelling, and expertise. Even if it seems no one is reading now, the groundwork you’re laying will create opportunities for people to find you later.

 • Posting Videos That Go Unnoticed: With each video, you’re learning, experimenting, and practicing the art of visibility. You’re creating a digital footprint that will grow over time.

 • Hosting Events That Don’t Sell Out: The value isn’t just in how many people show up—it’s in the connections you make, the lessons you learn, and the way you refine your process. Every event plants the seeds for future gatherings and builds trust with your audience over time.

 • Launching a Programme with Fewer Sign-Ups Than Expected: Every launch teaches you something—about your audience, your offer, and yourself. It’s an opportunity to refine, grow, and build momentum for future iterations. Success isn’t always immediate, but each step forward is progress.

 • Writing a Book That Takes Years to Finish: Each draft, revision, and moment of doubt is part of the process. Even if it feels like no one will ever read it, you’re crafting something deeply meaningful that will find its way into the world at the right time.

 • Pitching Ideas That Get Rejected: Each “no” teaches you resilience, clarity, and how to refine your ideas. Every pitch is a step closer to the “yes” that will change everything.

 • Opening a Shop or Business That Feels Quiet at First: Even slow beginnings are beginnings. Each interaction builds trust, and every quiet day gives you space to refine your offerings.

 • Creating a Course That Doesn’t Hit Its Target: Every enrolment, no matter how small, is an opportunity to transform someone’s life. Those experiences build your confidence and improve your ability to serve.

 • Sending Newsletters That Hardly Get Opened: Each email is a moment of connection, even if it feels like no one’s reading. You’re building a habit and leaving breadcrumbs for people to follow when the timing is right.

 • Facilitating a Retreat with Fewer Attendees Than Expected: A smaller group often allows for deeper connections and richer experiences. Every retreat is a chance to build your reputation and your skillset as a facilitator.

 • Trying Something New That Feels Awkward: Whether it’s public speaking, a new art form, or an unfamiliar skill, those early, awkward stages are where you learn the most about yourself and what you’re capable of.

The Quiet Work is Never Wasted

Just because you can’t see the results yet doesn’t mean nothing is happening. Underneath the surface, your work is gaining strength, depth, and momentum. Every creation, every edit, every post is laying the foundation for the bloom that’s coming.

What feels invisible today is building the roots that will one day support your growth. The seed doesn’t question why it’s in the dark—it simply does the work, trusting that the right moment will come to rise toward the light.

Your Time to Bloom Will Come

The hardest part of the creative process is trusting that your efforts are enough, even when it feels like no one is watching. But just as no garden skips the planting phase, no creative journey skips the quiet, unseen work that happens before the breakthrough.

Keep creating. Keep planting. Keep trusting that your work is growing, even if you can’t see it yet. Because one day, your seeds will break through the surface, and the bloom will be more beautiful than you could have imagined.

Your creative garden is coming to life—it’s just waiting for its season to shine. 🌱

The Parallels Between Gardening and Creativity

 1. You Can’t Rush the Process: Just like seeds need time to grow, your creative work needs time to evolve. Impatience won’t make it happen faster.

 2. The Work Below the Surface Matters: In gardening, the roots are just as important as the blooms. For you, the unseen effort—learning, refining, and experimenting—is what will sustain your future success.

 3. Consistency Pays Off: A gardener waters their seeds regularly, even when there’s no visible progress. Keep showing up for your work, even when it feels invisible.

The Promise of Spring: Your Moment to Bloom

Winter doesn’t last forever, and seeds don’t stay buried. When spring arrives, the world bursts into life. Flowers bloom, trees bud, and gardens flourish in ways that feel almost magical.

The same will happen with your creative journey. The invisibility you’re experiencing now is temporary. Every piece of work you create, every lesson you learn, and every experiment you try is preparing you for your spring—your moment to bloom.

When that moment comes, you’ll stand tall, rooted in everything you’ve cultivated during this quiet phase.

Embrace the Season You’re In

Nature doesn’t skip winter, and gardens don’t skip the time it takes for seeds to grow. Your creative journey is no different. This is your time to rest, nurture, and trust that the work you’re doing now is laying the foundation for something extraordinary.

So, honour the season you’re in. Water your dreams, tend to your ideas, and trust the process. Because when your spring arrives, the world will finally see the beauty you’ve been quietly cultivating all along.

Embrace the Season You’re In

For a long time, I stopped posting altogether. I’d worked so hard to grow my following—knowing I was planting seeds for a future where I’d pitch to become a Hay House author. But instead of feeling like I’d built a community to connect with, it created a pressure so heavy that posting no longer felt natural.

Every time I thought about showing up, it felt like the stakes were too high. I couldn’t just post something random or experiment freely—it felt like everything had to be important, perfectly crafted, and deeply meaningful.

Sure, in the grand scheme of things, my 8,600 Instagram followers, 4,400 Facebook followers, and 2,000-person email list aren’t enormous numbers. But when I pictured all of those people together—a stadium full of family, friends, ex-colleagues, and students—it suddenly felt huge. It wasn’t just an audience; it was a crowd of people who had seen all the versions of me: the teacher, the coach, the photographer. And the thought of posting something that might not land felt like inviting them all to judge my work, my choices, me.

That pressure? It froze me. It turned something I once loved—sharing my ideas and creativity—into something I avoided.

What I’ve realised, though, is that the pressure I felt wasn’t coming from them. It was coming from me. I was the one setting impossible standards for what “showing up” needed to look like. I was the one turning a post into a performance instead of a way to connect.

These days, I’ve been shifting back into spaces that feel lighter. Writing long-form on my blog and Substack, or creating my podcast, has given me room to breathe and to experiment in the beautiful invisibility I feel there. These aren’t places where I feel like I have to get everything perfect. They’re spaces where I can experiment, explore, and reconnect with the joy of creating for its own sake.

Now, when I post or create, I remind myself that it’s okay to be seen in the messy, in-progress phases. That every post, every blog, every podcast episode is just another seed planted, no matter how small or imperfect it might feel in the moment.

If you’ve ever felt stuck under the weight of showing up, know this: the people who matter aren’t looking for perfection. They’re looking for you. So, let yourself experiment. Let yourself play. And trust that the seeds you’re planting will bloom when the time is right.

Writing long-form on my blog and Substack, and launching my podcast, have been my way of stepping into quieter spaces. These platforms feel more intentional, more like a journal I can share with those who choose to show up and listen. They’ve given me room to experiment, to find my voice, and to reconnect with my creativity without feeling like I’m standing under a spotlight.

Every blog post, every Substack entry, every podcast episode feels like planting a small seed. Some seeds may bloom right away, others may stay hidden for a while, quietly building roots beneath the surface. But each one is a step forward, a piece of a bigger picture I’m still creating.

It’s a reminder that invisibility isn’t something to fear—it’s something to embrace. It’s the cocoon that lets you grow, refine, and align with your purpose before the world starts to take notice.

If you’re in a quiet phase, trust that it’s serving you. The seeds you’re planting now will bloom in their own time, and when they do, they’ll be more beautiful than you can imagine.

Your Turn

What seeds are you planting during your quiet season? Where are you experimenting, or where have you found space to grow? Let me know over on instagram @iamrosiepeacock - I’d love to hear how you’re nurturing your creative garden. 🌱