Soul Currency

What You Lost in the Chase. What You Can Reclaim.

There’s a kind of wealth we rarely track.

It doesn’t appear in dashboards.

It doesn’t show up in quarterly goals.

It can’t be sold or scaled.

But when you lose it, everything starts to feel hollow.

It’s the currency of the soul, the deep, inner current that powers creativity, joy, connection, and conviction.

Not what you do to be useful.

What you do because it makes you feel alive.

So ask yourself:

Are you rich in output, but broke in spirit?

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NOW: The Quiet Bankruptcy of “Keeping Up”

Somewhere along the way, you got good at it.

Operating. Executing. Delivering.

On time. On point. On brand.

But behind the productivity, something slipped.

A voice. A craving. A creative spark.

Maybe it’s:

• A dusty notebook full of ideas you never pitched.

• A playlist that once made you feel something.

• A Saturday ritual that made you feel like you.
  

These aren’t hobbies. These are markers of your soul currency.

And when you stop spending it, you stop feeling it.

Ask yourself:

~ Where have I become emotionally disconnected from what I do?

~ What part of me has gone quiet while I’ve been performing?

~ What if being functional is no longer enough?

The Now demands that we stop mistaking motion for meaning.

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NEW: Reclaiming Your Soul, Without Permission

You don’t need a sabbatical or a second chance to come back to yourself.

You need a shift.

Try this:

1. Listen for the Longing

   • What used to light you up, before performance replaced presence?

2. Make It Useless (on purpose)

   • Not every hour needs to be monetized. Let something exist just because it moves you.

3. Follow the Pull

   • A song. A conversation. A weird, creative urge. Don’t overthink it. Just follow it.
     

Ask yourself:

~ What’s one thing I can do this week that makes no sense on paper, but perfect sense to my soul?

~ What am I reclaiming, not to post, pitch, or perfect, but just to feel whole again?

The New begins when you stop optimizing and start expressing.

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NEXT: Building with Soul at the Center

Imagine a future where your work doesn’t extract, but expands you.

Where what you create feeds your spirit, not just your status.

That future is real.

But only if you stop ignoring what your soul keeps whispering.

You don’t need to go back in time.

You just need to remember who you were before the world told you to grow up, fall in line, and mute the music.

Ask yourself:

~ What does a soul-rich life look like to you?

~ What if that’s the real bottom line worth chasing?

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The Payoff: Invest Where It Actually Matters

In the Now, we feel what’s missing.

In the New, we reclaim what we buried.

In the Next, we move through the world as artists—intuitive, brave, and unapologetically alive.

So here’s your invitation:

Do one thing this week that returns you to yourself.

Not because it’s productive.

Because it’s true.

And if you need help tuning into that voice again, I’ve created something just for that.

It’s called ShiftStory, a walk-and-talk experience designed to reconnect you with what matters most:

Your story. Your energy. Your next move.

Because in a world that constantly demands performance,

Soul currency is your act of quiet rebellion.

Spend it.

Without apology.

It was always yours.

"Let your soul inform your money, and your money express your soul." ~ Lynne Twist, The Soul of Money: Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Life

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I’m Tobin Trevarthen, a narrative strategist, founder of Spatial Shift by Tobin, and author of Narrative Generation.

I spent decades in the corporate and start-up worlds, selling over $1B in marketing programs before shifting into narrative work that helps people and organizations make sense of transformation through story.

I’ve worked with founders, execs, startups, Global 1000, and cultural institutions to design narrative frameworks that spark clarity and alignment.

Now New Next is where I reflect on the long game, with a sense of urgency. I write for modern elders, edge thinkers, and curious builders trying to name what matters now, what’s emerging, and what’s worth pursuing next.

You’ll find no hype here. Just a mix of strategy, story, and soulful direction for a shifting world. I also write about narrative worth, identity, and the art of sensing what’s unsaid.

Let’s walk the edge together.

ShiftStory™ is my new ideation for building narrative agency in uncertain times.

Follow me on LinkedIn. Or DM at tobin@spatialshift.com for more information.

Join my success roster of Global 1000 companies, Senior Executives, and Emerging Movements.