Depth Over Reach and Impact Over Numbers

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about depth over reach and impact over numbers.

It’s easy to get caught up in numbers. Followers. Attendance. Growth curves. Even in my own small corner, I notice it. My coffee talks at work usually gather between 19 and 25 people. This month, there were 15.

And if I’m not careful, my mind wants to make that mean something.

But here’s what I know to be true: I’m not here for everyone. I never have been. What I care about isn’t the size of the platform; it’s the depth. The real conversations. The moments where something lands. The quiet “me too.” The messages that say, “thank you… I needed that.”

That matters more to me than anything.

Life Lesson from the Starfish Story

It reminds me of the story of the starfish.

A young girl walks along a beach after a storm, thousands of starfish scattered along the shore. One by one, she picks them up and throws them back into the ocean. A man tells her she can’t possibly make a difference; there are too many.

She pauses, then throws another starfish into the sea and says, “I made a difference for that one.”

That’s it. That’s the work.

Not saving everyone. Not reaching everyone. Just showing up, telling the truth, and trusting that it reaches who it’s meant to reach.

And maybe… that’s enough.

Thank you

So if you’ve been part of this journey –  reading, listening, showing up to a coffee talk, sending a note, or quietly taking something in –  I want to thank you.

Thank you for seeing me.
Thank you for letting me see you.
Thank you for the “me toos,” the kind words, the resonance, the honesty.

Thank you for being part of making sense of this wide, wild world… or at least this small, shared corner of it.

Because every time something connects, every time someone feels a little less alone, a little more understood, a little more grounded…

It matters.

You matter.

And I’m so grateful you’re here.

©2026 Lori Ann King