What The Quietly Disruptive Movement Actually Is

21 Nov

I've been building something for a while now, quietly.

Too quietly, if I'm honest. 🤣

I've been writing about it, talking about it in workshops, exploring it on my podcast, but I haven't properly named it or claimed it. I think that's because there's a particular kind of terror that comes with saying "This is a thing. This matters. I'm doing this."

But here we are. So let me try to explain what's been happening.

There's a movement emerging, something I've started calling Quietly Disruptive, and if you're reading this, you might already be part of it without even knowing it.

The Pattern I Keep Seeing

I've been building businesses for over twenty-five years, working with hundreds of founders along the way, and there's a pattern I keep noticing that I can't ignore anymore.

Many of these founders are extraordinarily successful by conventional measures. The business makes money, it pays the bills, it might even look impressive from the outside. But inside? They feel trapped.

They've built what I've started calling a cage businessL a business that works but doesn't fulfill, a business that pays for their life but doesn't give them one, a business they're good at running but don't actually want to be running.

The most painful part is the guilt. They feel like they should be grateful, like they're being ungrateful or precious for wanting more than "successful," like something's wrong with them for feeling stuck in a business they themselves built.

Nothing is wrong with you. You're just in a cage.

What "Quietly Disruptive" Actually Means

Let me share with you what I mean by Quietly Disruptive, because I think the phrase needs explaining if you're going to understand what this movement is really about.

Quietly Disruptive is not about being passive or invisible or playing small, and it's definitely not about hustling or claiming space loudly or needing validation from others to know your path is right.

It's about building a business that challenges conventional expectations, not loudly, not with chest-beating or "crushing it" language, but by simply doing things your way, by refusing to follow blueprints that don't fit who you are, by existing on your own terms.

It's about making an impact, either in the world or in your own world, by going after a dream or a vision without needing the ego boost, without needing constant validation or cheerleading from others, because you have this quiet knowing, this quiet confidence that what you're building is uniquely yours and that's enough.

The quiet part is that internal confidence. You're not performing your success for others, you're not posting about every win, you're not claiming space loudly, you're just building something that matters to you whether anyone's watching or not, and there's enormous power in that quiet certainty.

The disruptive part is that when you stop following everyone else's formula and start building what actually fits you, you challenge the status quo just by existing, you give other people permission to do the same, you prove that there are infinite ways to build something meaningful and yours doesn't have to look like anyone else's.

Who This Is For

I've built this movement for a particular kind of founder, and I want to be clear about who that is because if you're reading this trying to figure out if this is for you, I think you'll know pretty quickly.

This is for founders who've been at this long enough to know what they don't want, even if they're not entirely sure yet what they do want.

If you're working with clients you don't love but feel obligated to keep because they pay well, if you're saying yes when you mean no because you're afraid of what happens if you stop, if you're dreaming about a different version of your business but can't see how to get there without destroying everything you've built, I'm talking to you. 😀

If you're feeling guilty for wanting more than "successful," if you think you should be happy with a profitable business even though it's draining you, if you're wondering why success doesn't feel the way you thought it would, this is definitely for you.

I'm talking to founders who don't want to burn it all down and start over, who don't want to "pivot" or "scale" or follow the latest guru's blueprint for seven-figure success. They want something quieter, something more intentional, something that disrupts their own status quo without making a huge noise about it.

These founders want impact without hustle, profit without noise, freedom without having to torch everything they've built. They want a business that fits around who they are, not the other way around.

They're not interested in being the next big thing. They're interested in building something meaningful that gives them their life back.

That's who this movement is for.

What This Movement Offers

I've built this movement on something simple: you don't have to stay stuck in a business you don't love, even if that business is "successful."

What I'm offering through this work is support for people who are ready to strip away the "shoulds" that have been running their business, remove what no longer serves them even if it's profitable, and handcraft something authentic that actually gives them the freedom they started their business for in the first place.

But what I'm really offering is permission to want more than "successful," permission to change direction even when things are "working," permission to build a business that fits your life instead of a life that serves your business.

That's what this movement offers: permission, belonging, and a path forward that doesn't require you to become someone you're not.

Building a business that reflects you and what you want to do

What This Movement Isn't

Before I tell you what I've built, let me be clear about what this isn't, because I think that matters just as much.

This is not another business coaching program promising you six figures in six months if you just follow the formula. It's not about scaling or growth-at-all-costs or building something you can sell. It's not about productivity hacks or morning routines or optimizing yourself into a more efficient version of who you already are.

It's not loud. There are no webinars with countdown timers, no "limited spots," no manufactured urgency designed to make you panic-buy something you're not sure you even want.

I've built this for people who are tired of all that, who want to build differently, quieter, more authentically - even if it means going against every piece of business advice they've ever received.

What I've Built

The movement isn't theoretical, it's real, and I've been building it across multiple platforms and formats depending on what you might need at different stages of your journey.

I've been writing a blog series exploring what it means to build a quietly disruptive business, putting language to experiences that I think a lot of founders share but don't often talk about publicly. The series is here on the website if you want to keep reading.

I send out a weekly newsletter sharing the messy, behind-the-scenes truth about what it's really like to run a business authentically, complete with all the bits nobody posts on LinkedIn. It's where I share the lessons I've learned so you don't have to make all the same mistakes, the confessional truths about building differently.

I host The Quietly Disruptive Business podcast where I have weekly conversations about doing business differently, giving permission and challenge and proof that there are other ways to build. I talk to founders who are building on their own terms, quietly, and we explore what that actually looks like in practice.

I run monthly workshops creating space to work through the blocks that keep you stuck, alongside other founders who understand what it's like to feel trapped in success. These are spaces where we can do this work together instead of in isolation.

I create seasonal prompts like advent calendars and quarterly reflections that give you structured space to reconnect with what actually matters, to get clear on what you want and start making space for it.

Starting in 2026, I'm launching quarterly gatherings bringing the community together in person for real conversations, creating spaces where you can remember you're not alone in wanting to build differently.

And I work one-to-one with a small number of founders at a time who need more than inspiration, who need someone to actually walk beside them as they escape their cage business and build something that fits who they are now. Deep, intentional coaching for established founders ready to build differently.

All of this exists to support one thing: helping you build a business that challenges conventional expectations just by existing on your own terms.

How To Be Part Of This

There's no membership fee, no application, no inner circle you need to get accepted into.

If what you've read here resonates with you, if you recognise yourself as someone who's ready to escape your cage business and build something that actually fits who you are, you're already part of this movement.

Here's how to stay connected with what I'm building:

Subscribe to the newsletter for weekly behind-the-scenes stories and lessons about building authentically.
Read the blog series exploring what it means to be quietly disruptive about your business.
Listen to the podcast for weekly conversations about doing business differently.
Join a monthly workshop when you're ready to go deeper and work through this alongside other founders.
Follow along with seasonal prompts that help you move from stuck to clear about what you actually want.
Come to a quarterly gathering when you're ready to meet the community in person.
Work one-to-one with me if you need deeper support escaping your cage business and building something new.

Start wherever feels right. There's no prescribed order, no requirement to do all of it, just an invitation to be part of what I'm building here.

Why I'm Building This Now

I know there's already so much noise out there telling you how to do business, and maybe you're tired of all the advice and all the strategies and all the "do it this way" messages.

But I keep hearing the same thing from founders everywhere: they're exhausted, tired of the noise and the hustle and the performance of it all. They want something real, something meaningful, something that doesn't require them to become someone they're not just to be "successful."

The world doesn't need more loudness. It needs more people building quietly, authentically, on purpose, creating businesses that actually give them their lives back instead of consuming them.

That's why I'm building this. That's what this movement is about.

The Invitation

This is an invitation to build differently.

Your business can be quietly disruptive, it can challenge conventional expectations just by existing on your own terms, it can be profitable and meaningful and sustainable without looking like anyone else's version of success, it can make an impact without you needing to shout about it or seek validation for every move you make.

If you've been feeling stuck in a business that looks successful but doesn't feel like yours anymore, if you're tired of following all the rules and realizing that success isn't the same as fulfillment, if you've been trying to figure it out alone and staying stuck in the same patterns - this movement is for you.

You don't have to keep building a business that's slowly becoming your cage. You don't have to stay grateful for success that's making you miserable. You don't have to follow blueprints that don't fit who you are.

There's a different way. A quieter way. A more intentional way.

And you don't have to walk it alone.

This is the Quietly Disruptive movement. I'm building it for founders who want to build businesses that fit their lives, not lives that serve their businesses. For people who want to challenge conventional expectations not by being loud about it, but by simply existing on their own terms.

If this resonates with you, you're already part of it. I'm glad you're here. 🫶

About the Author: Becky Benfield-Humberstone works with quietly ambitious founders who are done with loud, performative marketing and ready to attract clients in a way that actually feels like them. Based in the UK and working globally via Zoom, she specializes in helping introverted and authentic entrepreneurs build sustainable client attraction without burning out or pretending to be someone they're not.

Ready to figure out your version of being Quietly Disruptive? Book a clarity call to explore what works for you specifically