This page sets out the terms for using carlislerussell.com, subscribing to the Rooms We Return To newsletter, and joining the Rooms We Return To WhatsApp community (together, the "Services"). It's written in plain language because terms you can't read aren't really terms you've agreed to.
The Services are run by Carlisle Russell, an individual citizen of the United States currently based in the United Kingdom. Where these terms say "I," "me," or "my," that means Carlisle Russell; "you" means you, as a reader, subscriber, or community member. By using the Services, you agree to these terms and to the Privacy Policy. If you don't agree with them, please don't use the Services.
There's no store here. Nothing is sold or paid for through this site. Consulting, speaking, and collaborations, when they happen, are arranged separately and governed by their own written agreements, not by these terms.
The short version
This is a personal website, newsletter, and community. There's nothing to buy.
The writing and ideas here are mine. You're welcome to read, share, link to, and quote them with credit. You can't republish them wholesale or pass them off as your own.
The community has a simple rule: be decent. I can remove anyone who isn't.
The content is thoughtful, not bespoke advice. It's meant to inform, not to replace professional guidance tailored to your situation.
I can change or pause the Services, and update these terms, and I'll flag anything significant.
The detail is below, and the full terms are what actually govern.
1. Who can use the Services
The Services are intended for adults. By using them or subscribing, you confirm you're at least 16 years old. If you're under 16, please don't provide me with your personal information.
You're responsible for your own use of the Services, and for anything you submit through them.
2. The newsletter (‘Rooms We Return To’)
When you subscribe, I'll send you the newsletter and, occasionally, related updates. I aim for a consistent rhythm but don't guarantee a fixed frequency or schedule. Some seasons are quieter than others, and that's by design.
You can unsubscribe at any time using the link at the bottom of any email, or by emailing me. Subscribing is free, and there's no obligation on either side beyond what's in these terms and the Privacy Policy.
3. The WhatsApp community
If you join the WhatsApp community, a few things apply on top of these terms.
The community runs on WhatsApp, which is operated by Meta under its own terms and privacy policy. Joining means agreeing to those as well, and it means your WhatsApp number and messages are handled by Meta on infrastructure I don't control. Depending on how a group is set up, your number or display name may be visible to other members.
The community has one real rule, which unfolds into a few specifics: be decent to the people in it. That means no harassment, abuse, hate speech, spam, self-promotion that hasn't been invited, sharing of others' private information, or anything unlawful. This is a space built on belonging, and I'll protect that.
I can remove any message or any member, at my discretion and without notice, if I think it's necessary to keep the space what it's meant to be. You can leave the community at any time.
4. The writing, the ideas, and your use of them
Everything I publish through the Services — the essays, the frameworks and named concepts, the words, images, design, and the way it's all put together — belongs to me (or to the people I've licensed it from) and is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws.
Here's what that means in practice, because I'd rather be clear than vague:
What you're welcome to do: Read it. Share links to it. Quote a reasonable portion of it with clear credit and, where possible, a link back. Forward the newsletter to someone who'd like it. Reference my ideas in your own work with attribution. This work exists to be found and talked about. Being cited is the point.
What you'll need permission for: Republishing an essay or a substantial part of one elsewhere; reproducing my work commercially; presenting my writing, frameworks, or named concepts as your own; or using any of it to create a competing product or publication. For any of these, just ask. Please email me.
What's not allowed: Bulk copying, scraping, or harvesting of the content — whether by a person or automated means — and reproducing the body of work at scale, including to build datasets or train models, without my permission. Normal search indexing, ordinary quotation, and citation with attribution are fine; wholesale extraction is not.
"Carlisle Russell" and any associated names, marks, and logos are mine. Please don't use them in a way that suggests I've endorsed or am affiliated with something I haven't. All rights I haven't expressly granted here are reserved.
5. Anything you send me
If you submit anything through the Services like a comment, a reply, a message, an inquiry, a suggestion, or other content ("Submissions"), then a few things apply.
You keep ownership of your Submissions, but you give me permission to use them in connection with running and improving the Services (for example, replying to you, or, only with your clear agreement, quoting a kind note). You confirm that what you send is yours to send, that it's accurate, and that it doesn't infringe anyone's rights or break the law.
Please keep Submissions respectful and lawful. Don't impersonate anyone, send anything abusive, misleading, or obscene, or include anything malicious. I can review, edit, or remove Submissions at my discretion, but I'm not obliged to monitor them, and I'm not responsible for anything you or others submit.
6. Consulting, speaking, and collaborations
Information on the Services about consulting, speaking, or working together is for context. It's not a binding offer, and reading it doesn't create a client relationship. Any actual engagement is set up separately, in its own written agreement, and that agreement (not these site terms) governs the work. Getting in touch through the site is simply the start of a conversation.
7. The content is information, not bespoke advice
The essays and ideas here reflect my experience and point of view, and they're shared to be genuinely useful. But they're general, written for a readership, not diagnosed for your specific situation. Nothing on the Services is professional marketing, legal, financial, or other tailored advice, and reading it doesn't substitute for guidance suited to your own circumstances. Any decision you make based on it is your own, and I can't promise particular outcomes or results.
8. Third-party links and tools
The Services may link to, or include, websites and tools run by other people, and the newsletter and community rely on platforms like Klaviyo and WhatsApp. I don't control those, and I'm not responsible for their content, accuracy, or practices. If you follow a link or use a third-party tool, you do so under their terms and at your own discretion, so it's worth reviewing theirs.
9. Availability, and changes to the Services
I offer the Services on an "as is" and "as available" basis. I'd love for everything to be perfect and uninterrupted, but I can't guarantee it will be. Things occasionally break, and I may change, pause, or discontinue any part of the Services, or this site, at any time.
10. Liability
Nothing in these terms limits or excludes my liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for anything else that can't lawfully be limited or excluded. None of these terms affect your statutory rights as a consumer, which remain fully intact.
Subject to that, and to the fullest extent the law allows: the Services and their content are provided without warranties of any kind, and I'm not liable for any indirect or consequential loss, loss of data, lost profits, or similar, arising from your use of (or inability to use) the Services or your reliance on their content.
11. Things you agree not to do
Please use the Services lawfully and in good faith. In particular, you agree not to:
use the Services for any unlawful, harmful, or malicious purpose, or to break any applicable law;
harass, abuse, threaten, defame, or harm anyone;
infringe my intellectual property or anyone else's;
send spam, chain messages, or unsolicited promotion through the Services;
impersonate anyone, or misrepresent who you are or where something came from;
collect or track other people's personal information;
scrape, crawl, data-mine, or harvest the content or member information by automated means;
upload anything malicious, or interfere with, disrupt, or try to circumvent the security of the Services or the platforms they run on.
If you break these terms, I can suspend or end your access to the Services without notice.
12. Privacy
How I handle your personal information is set out in the Privacy Policy, which forms part of these terms. By using the Services, you confirm you've read it.
13. Changes to these terms
I may update these terms from time to time. For example, if the Services change or the law does. The current version is always on this page, with the "Last updated" date at the top. If a change is significant, I'll try to flag it. Continuing to use the Services after an update means you accept the revised terms.
14. Governing law
These terms are governed by the law of Scotland, and the Scottish courts will have jurisdiction over any dispute. If you're using the Services as a consumer in another country, this doesn't take away the protection of any mandatory laws of the country you live in.
15. General
If any part of these terms turns out to be unenforceable, the rest still applies. These terms, together with the Privacy Policy, are the whole agreement between us about your use of the Services. If I don't enforce a term straight away, that's not a waiver of it. You may not transfer your rights or obligations under these terms to anyone else; I may transfer mine if the Services move or change hands, without affecting your rights.
16. Contact
Questions about these terms? Email me at [email protected] and I'll help.
