Here’s a pic of my little sis and me at an amusement park. It has absolutely nothing to do with this blog.
Where are you?
I’m aware that these blogs have been a bit scattered for the past two weeks. Here are my excuses.
Most of my writing lately has been for my book, which I’ll discuss more today.
While slowly recapping my road trip, it’s becoming harder to remember the sequential details of each day. But fear not, I will finish the story.
I’m building a group for founders/entrepreneurs. In other words, my creative energy has been kind of diluted.
I’ve been actively trying to get off nicotine gum for the last seven days. What started as a stimulant for writing became a physical necessity. I’ve never even smoked a cigarette; who would’ve thought? (I’m also almost entirely off coffee.)
So I’ve fallen off the wagon. This is me getting back on it.
I want to share a few changes I’m making to this blog and give an update on the book.
Changes
Many of you subscribe to my once-weekly, then biweekly, now monthly newsletter.
That is no more.
It started as a fun little email I would make for my friends. But in recent months, as I spend more time on money-making projects and things that are reaching way more people, the newsletter has steadily become a chore rather than something I look forward to.
Lynne Tye, a badass entrepreneur I interviewed for my book, told me about the difference between giving up and quitting.
Here’s my rule for quitting: If the Resistance of the thing is greater than the value I get from it, I move on.
That’s what happened with my first podcast Fancy, my YouTube channel, and my daily vlog. I was wildly committed to each of them…until I wasn’t. And creating something out of obligation simply isn’t sustainable. Lack of passion is tough to hide.
So what now?
Starting June 1st, you’ll be able to subscribe to this blog.
There are about 45 of you who regularly check this site to see the latest post. Then when I post some on Facebook, depending on the topic, that brings anywhere from 20 to 700 extra eyes to the page. That system is a bit up in the air and it asks you guys to do most of the work.
So at the start of next month, readers can subscribe and get each blog sent directly to their email. Eventually, you’ll be able to choose the specific categories you want. (e.g. blogs about business, personal stories, writing, dating, habits, etc.)
Stay tuned.
Latest book update
I cried last Friday. Let me explain.
Eric Rosen is my favorite YouTuber. Here’s his channel.
He’s one of the biggest chess content creators in the game. His Twitch channel has 219k+ followers. He has close to 600k YouTuber subscribers. His videos have played an enormous role in my improvement and love for the game of chess.
I interviewed him for my book on Friday.
It was the most nervous I’ve ever been to meet someone. I logged into Zoom 20 minutes early. When the clock reached 3pm on the dot and I read the banner, “Eric Rosen is in your Waiting Room,” it genuinely didn’t feel real.
We spoke for an hour and a half and it’s one of my favorite conversations I’ve had to date. He was such an authentically kind and giving person. He took me through his entire journey in making it as a professional content creator—from 0 followers to hundreds of thousands, from tutoring chess to beating top 10 players, from learning how to set up a camera to getting tens of millions of views a month.
When we concluded and I closed the Zoom, I sat in this chair and watched the recorded file download to my computer. I couldn’t help but have a big dumb smile on my face and get teary-eyed. So many emotions.
Extremely grateful to spend time with people who are creating cool things. Proud of myself for putting myself out there. Inspired to do great work.
Anyway, hope that clears a few things up. I’m feeling jazzed about the future.
I’ll continue to share updates from behind the curtain of my book. I’ll finish recapping the road trip this week. And finally, in six days, I’ll be living in NYC for two weeks as a trial run before moving there.
Much to come in the near future.
See you tomorrow.