Reader, I just woke up, made some Saturday morning coffee and I have a question that has been sitting in my inbox for weeks.

Everyone keeps asking me the same thing *everywhere*... should I start a Substack or build my own email list?!

So today we are talking about it. My honest take. ⬇️

Substack is genuinely great for some people.

A few of my own students use it and I have encouraged them to stay there because it made sense for where they were in their journey.

So this is not me saying Substack is terrible, because it is not.

But here is what I always think about when someone asks me this question.

Close to 200 women have invested in my resources in ONE year. During launches I have made thousands in a single week.

All from this email list, built completely for free through my blog and Threads. Not a single penny spent.

Oh and I have automations set up too.

Emails going out while I sleep, sales coming in while I am at a cafe doing absolutely nothing, new subscribers getting welcomed automatically while I am on a plane somewhere.

All happening without me lifting a finger.

In fact this diary entry is automated too, I am probably on my hot girl walk somewhere in the forest right now. 😂

So, could I have done any of this on Substack? Hard no.

Because Substack is built for writing and community. Your own email list is built for whatever YOU want to build.

You want to sell a product? Done.

You want to set up automations that bring in passive sales? Done.

You want your emails to look exactly how you want them to look? Done.

And you are not sitting next to thousands of other writers all trying to get discovered in the same place.

Your email subscribers signed up for YOU and there is something really powerful about that.

That said, my list is mine forever, it's an asset that I own and should be a priority if you want to build something that lasts.

💌 Now I want to hear from you... are you currently on Substack, thinking about it, or already building your own list?

Hit reply and tell me where you are at, I respond to every single one!

"I am allowed to build my dream business through my words alone. My writing is enough and it is only getting started."

💭 Something I wrote today - If you want to read more of the comparison about Substack vs emails

🤍 Another gem - My 6 habits while building a writing based business while traveling the world

See you next week,

Ps. 💌 A huge welcome to the 100+ new faces who joined this diary this week, I am so glad you found your way here. Hit reply and say hi, tell me where you are reading this from or what brought you here!