How to cultivate defiance: silence, resistance, and action

“If you have nothing useful to say, then say nothing at all….”

Silence comes easy to me; the effort of sorting my thoughts, expressing them clearly to others – who won’t understand, or who actively strive to misunderstand – is burdensome.

And TBH, the last few months (from May to August of this year) have been challenging – personally, politically, philosophically.

Last night, I think I hit the bottom of what must have been a long-brewing existential crisis.

And you know what? I feel better now.

I’m ready to talk. So thanks for joining me.

The wisdom of others: finding your own path to defiance 🎤

I have not been completely silent, nor entirely inactive.

Some of the time, I have been gathering in my thoughts – trying hard to make sense of the shifting political and cultural landscape 🗑️🔥 that is transforming my work in the UK, and more importantly, upending the lives of family and friends here, in the US, and globally.

And I spent some time hanging out, and recording interviews with some of the most brilliant activists and lawyers I know – to research my fellowship project for the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity and to produce and launch The Lawmanity Podcast 🎤

I asked my friends and heroes the questions that are keeping me up at night:

• is the law a barrier or a tool to achieve change?
• what does justice look like to you?
• what advice do you have for a younger you?

After reviewing those interviews, writing up my fellowship project and spending quite a lot of time staring out the window, silently.. here’s what I’ve learned, about others, and my own journey to defiance:

Step 1: Embrace your silence 🪷

Everyone is different, but for me – until I have had space to think through everything happening around me – until I can put my own narrative and story to where I am now, what’s happening for me today, and where I hope to be going … I feel uneasy, unmoored, and uncertain.

So Step 1 is: stay still, stay silent, take space.

🪷Give yourself a hug, practice sitting comfortably with who you are, be compassionate towards yourself and others 🪷

I do this, because I must. ☕ I have a regular morning practice, which requires spending time with me, and for me. Because many years of lawyering and activism has taught me that this work will literally end me, if I don’t look after myself, daily.

And the end of me (or the end of you) is no triumph for any cause that matters, to either of us.

☀️ If you need another reason to sit in the sun, and go easy on yourself, here it is: the most consistent, motivated, effective activists who I know … are bold, confident leaders because they are right with themselves – from the inside.

Where to get started? Try this loving kindness meditation with Andy Puddicombe from Headspace or this mountain meditation written by Jon Kabat-Zinn.

Step 2: Encourage your resistance 🦁

If you are right with yourself, you start to listen to your inner voice, and trust your instincts.

I think most of us have an inner sense of justice and injustice, which speaks to us entirely separate from the external messages we receive – from friends and family, from work colleagues, from pop culture and social media.

But often, we’re socialised to ignore, or even silence, that inner voice.

I picked up this book, Defy, The power of no in a world that demands yes by Dr. Sunita Sah and read it – more or less – straight through. The author has studied defiance, and importantly, the precursors that people experience and express that lead up to single and sustained acts of defiance.

The book had me hooked at a really simple (and non-political) example of defiance that she shared from her own life – a single, trivial, banal occasion when the author chose not to do what she felt pressured to do. The author demonstrated that we all feel inner resistance, and we all have the ability to tap into the “why” that is causing us discomfort.

So Step 2 is: listen to and encourage your resistance.

Name the thing that is bothering you. Describe – for yourself, but as if you are explaining to others, what exactly is not okay about what is happening, and why you are feeling resistance.

🦁 Literally, give courage to your inner voice, but more importantly, ask yourself what a better world would look like. ❤️

What are the conditions that would release this dis-ease, and that would allow you to feel an absence of resistance towards this situation, your surrounding world?

Step 3: Embolden your actions 🗣️🪧📝

Before we get to step 3, I just want to make really clear that I believe silent reflection, coming to understand your self worth and listening for your inner voice are all worthy actions that already count as potent acts of resistance.

Action does not need to be visible, or effortful or large-scale (in any way), in order to be important, significant.

I also think, as explained in The courage to be authentically you, that our identities mean that some of us carry more risk in being visible, and vulnerable, in our defiance. So what action looks like is going to be different for each of us, and that has to be okay.

But, for me, the last step in defiance does involve doing things, with my mind and my body – and usually, with others or with the purpose of communicating with others.

You will need to negotiate your defiance, on your own terms. But drawn from my interviews with other activists and reflecting on my own decisions, I here are some questions to explore for ideas:

• What do you have the time, resources and energy to do?
• What are you good at? What do you enjoy?
• Where do you hold influence? Who listens to you, and on what (social media or real life) platforms?
• What can you risk and what things in your life are non-negotiable?
• What brings you joy?

Don’t estimate the joy question. 🌈 Defiance, like any habit, must be rewarding… and yes, of course, joyful ✨🪩

Step 3: make a plan and take step towards defiant action.

Sometimes our intentions fall down between the dreaming part, and the doing part. ⛅

So borrowing a little wisdom from the “getting things done” method – I’m suggesting you actually identify and take the first step towards expressing your own defiance in a single, clearly identified action.

That could be:

• text a friend who mentioned a gig, event or action you are curious about joining
• donate £2 to a cause you believe in
• drop in on a campaign group or charity, and ask how you can help
• 💡 [your amazing idea here]

That’s all I’ve got for this week. Thanks for reading the Long View – it’s good to be back!

I’d love to hear how you’re sitting with the world this week, whether you have tips for 🪷 creating silent spaces, 🦁listening to your own resistance or getting from planning to action in the changes you want to see in the world. 🗣️🪧📝

First published on LinkedIn on 4 September 2025:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-cultivate-defiance-silence-resistance-action-jen-ang-vxx8e