I used to hate Valentine’s Day.

I thought it was so cheesy.

The subject matter is so shallow, it almost feels demeaning.

The aesthetics are so incredibly tacky. The red, the bows, the velvet, the chocolates. Those ridiculously obscene roses. First of all, what does candy have to do with romantic love? Second of all, did you know that any rose you buy inside the EU is actually imported from Kenya? I mean, the carbon footprint alone. Ugh, even writing about it makes me cringe.

I forgot where I was going with this.

Oh yeah. It’s been a year since I started this newsletter. Thank you for being here! We are 150 strong, which is way more than I could handle in a real life setting.

Thank you. I love you. I really do. You are my secret crush. You probably don’t even know how much you’ve helped me over this past year.

This really is my favorite platform to express myself. You guys offered your email addresses which, nowadays, is such an intimate thing to give.

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So it’s time to come clean.

A year ago, I had just bought a course on how to build your social media. I was doing everything they said, step by step. Seriously, I would constantly pause the course and implement whatever it was they were saying, as they were saying it. One year later, after implementing all those things I can guarantee these three things will help you too:

• build a newsletter
• just straight up message IG accounts you admire, out of the blue
• Google Authenticator for 2-factor authentication on EVERYTHING

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I’ll start from the bottom and work my way up.

Use Google Authenticator

I’s just proper digital security hygiene. I lost track of how many friends I follow whose accounts got stolen and all the content got replaced with like a crypto scam or something. Use it on your Facebook or Instagram account, your payment processor (if you have one), even on your newsletter platform.

Make Adult Friends Online

Do this even if you will probably never meet face to face. I actually started talking, exchanging ideas and checking up on people from Berlin, Vancouver, New York and London. It was just based off of what i understood we had in common, based on their Instagram account. I love to get to know these people. They are all talented in their very unique way. There is so much to learn from them.

Build a Newsletter

Even silently, those people in your mailing list will teIl you all you need to know about yourself. I used the feedback from my newsletter community to format and edit my first book.

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Yes, that’s right. I’ve been following your behaviour on my newsletter. What you opened, what you didn’t, what you clicked on, what you skipped. I loved every minute of it. It helped me test out ideas, format the book, learn story telling, give key takeaways and drop most of the technical aspects.

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​I love you like I used to love everybody while on MDMA in the club, 10 years ago.

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And because I love you, for Valentine’s Day, I’m asking you out on a date. I'm still in Satu Mare and I'm feeling a little unsocialised.

If you have a great idea to create something, I’ll be your accountability buddy. If you’re already creating something great, but just need to complain about things, I can be your therapist. If you want to use some of the tools I’m using, I can be your IT guy.

Book a 30 minute call with me. I guarantee we’ll have fun and, if I’m not the right person for your project, I can probably point you in the right direction. And of course it’s free, wtf.

I know it’s a Calendly link and it might seem impersonal. But trust me, it’s good. The appointment shows up directly in my phone, wherever I am, whatever I’m doing.
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See you soon.

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Oh and thanks everyone who actually bought the book! I made it for you. If you didn’t get a chance to buy it, I only have 3 books with me, that I can send now. They are nice, they are handmade, embossed, silver title, fancy paper. I wanted the book itself to be a piece of art. Collectable. Limited edition. Nice to have in the home. I was inspired by the books I've seen on the 1988 website - my friend Diana's timeless design brand. It's her birthday so I made birthday promo code. It's valid until midnight, Sunday evening.

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