Last week, I wrote U is for Unicorn as an honorary love letter to the many extraordinary people I’ve had the pleasure of podcasting with, working alongside, or being deeply moved by in some form or the other. I wrote it during the first of what seems to be several pockets of birthday celebrations — this one unfolding in the gentle, golden beauty of Kigali.

I was seated in a bar, sipping something light, listening to live renditions of some of my favourite songs. The air was thick with warmth and ease. In between verses and laughter, my mind wandered to the unicorns I know — those rare souls who shimmer in their individuality, whose presence transforms rooms. (Dare I arrogantly include myself in this list?) As I thought about their magic, I also thought about what it means to have a voice — and, more importantly, to use it.

There’s something about Kigali that invites stillness. The town is unhurried, almost sacred in its rhythm. The mornings arrive gently, with a soft blush of sun over the hills. The streets are tidy, the people polite, the air honest. Something in that serenity deepened my quiet contemplation. Without chaos pressing in, I found myself sinking into a different kind of reflection — the kind that doesn’t demand answers but encourages you to hear yourself clearly. It’s funny how silence in the right place doesn’t feel empty; it feels full. Full of clarity. Full of reckoning. Full of truth.

Many people go through life carrying visions that remain unspoken, unexplored, and unlived. Not for lack of imagination — but often because they lack the courage, the permission, the resources, or the stamina to see those visions through. Some leave this world with their stories trapped inside them, never having dared to try. So, this week’s truth is a celebration of those who are not silenced by the many reasons why something is a bad idea. This one is for those who insist on finding, trusting, and using their voice anyway.

I’m spending the week in quiet contemplation but also in soft, steady circles with friends. Many of our conversations have centred around emotional growth — finally saying the things we once swallowed, setting the boundaries we used to fear, asking for what we truly need, or naming truths that once felt too dangerous to speak. There is something sacred about using your voice with intention. It’s not always loud. Sometimes, it’s the quietest truths that shake the ground beneath us.

In fact, two of the bravest things I’ve ever done required very different kinds of voice.

The first: walking away from a relationship that no longer served me — and doing so without a single word of justification, explanation, or apology. Not everyone deserves an audience in your life. And growth — true growth — teaches you how to recognise scarcity in love. When you are rooted in self-love, the absence of it in others becomes blindingly obvious. You no longer chase breadcrumbs. You no longer bargain for care because your voice — your internal compass — knows better. And knows when to leave.

The second — and perhaps most important: birthing a brand called #Unshakable. Dreaming it into existence and propelling it forward step by step, intuition by intuition, manifestation by manifestation — with a voice so clear, so anchored, so rooted in truth that it is now organically making its way across the globe. No shout. No gimmick. No fast-paced marketing tricks. Just truth, amplified.

The growth isn’t rapid, nor is it performative. It’s not a viral flame that burns out. It’s the slow, steady burn of something being built to last — not for virality, but for legacy. I believe #Unshakable is a voice that will live beyond me. It is not being shaped for this moment alone but for the future. For anyone who needs it when I am no longer here to speak it aloud.

That, to me, is the essence of a strong voice — one that doesn’t need to perform to be heard. One that doesn’t need to shout to be felt. One that grows louder, not because it’s demanding attention, but because it’s rooted in something real. Unshakable, even in stillness.

So here’s to discernment — to knowing when to roar, when to whisper, and when to simply walk away. May we all continue learning how to use our voice in every way it wants to be heard — proud, precise, powerful.

What’s the bravest thing you’ve ever said — or not said?

Tell me.

‘See’ you next week.

 

Sally Chiwuzie
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IG Handle: @unshakable.is.a.state.of.mind