Mails about Rebellion
For entrepreneurs, the slightly unhinged, and anyone crazy enough to think they can make the world better: No bullshit. No conventional wisdom. Just what's actually working right now. The game has changed. Society's playbook is broken.
Facebook accidentally gave me my competitor's entire playbook
It was 2am in Cyprus. I couldn't sleep. My competitor had just launched a campaign that was destroying us. Their ads were everywhere, converting like crazy, and I had no idea what they were doing differently. So I did what any desperate entrepreneur does at 2am. I opened Facebook and typed their company name into the Ad Library. What I saw made me sick to my stomach. Are you following along? The 7-Year Playbook Sitting In Plain Sight There it was. Every single ad they'd run since 2017. Not...
I closed a €50K deal while coughing up my lungs
You probably think showing weakness to prospects kills deals. Most successful entrepreneurs believe this. And even if you don't, here's why most people get vulnerability completely backwards. Let me tell you what happened when I broke every rule in the book. I'm in Berlin. Which means I have corona. It's always the same pattern. The moment I step foot in this city, my immune system waves a white flag and surrenders. So here I am, propped up in bed in my Neukölln apartment, throat on fire,...
I rejected a €50,000 client (and they begged me to reconsider)
I said no. Not because I was too busy. Not because the money wasn’t good. Not because I didn’t like the work. I said no because something about the conversation felt wrong. The potential client was offering me €50,000 for a three-month project. “But Jan,” my business partner said after I hung up, “that’s more than we made last quarter. Are you insane?” Maybe I was. But three weeks later, that same client called back. “I’ve been thinking about what you said,” he started. “About not being the...
Stop trying to be successful (it's ruining your life)
I wanted to quit the most successful year of my life. It was 2019. I was staring at my laptop screen showing €400K in SEO revenue. The highest number I'd ever seen in my business account. I should have been celebrating. Instead, I felt like I was suffocating. My calendar was packed with the same calls. The same presentations. The same fucking PowerPoint slides I'd been delivering for two years straight. Every Monday felt identical to the last. Every client wanted the exact same "proven SEO...
I made €400K from SEO and felt more trapped than when I was broke
I wanted to hang up mid-sentence and never take another SEO call again. The startup founder was explaining their "revolutionary" approach to customer acquisition for the third time. I'd stopped listening after the first minute. Instead, I was staring at the same PowerPoint template I'd used for 200+ client presentations: Slide 1: SEO Audit Results Slide 2: Keyword Opportunities Slide 3: Technical Recommendations Slide 4: Timeline & Investment The same fucking presentation. Again. My cursor...
Why my audience stopped giving a shit about my content
You’re saying the right things. Using the right tone. Following the rules. And still—no one cares. Dead-behind-the-eyes, scroll-past-without-reading, completely-fucking-indifferent. I know because yesterday I caught myself mid-sentence during a client call, spouting the same vanilla bullshit I used to mock. “Well, you want to create content that resonates with your target demographic while maintaining professional credibility across all touchpoints…” I stopped. The client nodded politely....
The $400K business built on an audience of just 287 people
Last week, I met a founder who’s making $400,000 a year from an audience of 287 people. Not 28,700. Not 2,870. Just 287. “That’s impossible,” you’re thinking. “$1,394 per customer? What are they selling, luxury cars?” Nope. Online courses and consulting, just like thousands of others. The difference? While everyone else is screaming into the void trying to reach millions, she’s completely dominated a micro-audience. She doesn’t have followers. She has devotees. When she launches, her tiny...
I just sold $127,000 of a product that doesn't exist (and you can too)
Last month, I committed what most business “experts” would call entrepreneurial suicide. I stood on stage at a startup conference in Limassol and announced I was launching a new marketing program. I showed beautiful slides. I outlined the curriculum. I detailed the transformations clients would experience. Then came the Q&A. “When does the program start?” someone asked. “That depends on you,” I replied. “I haven’t built it yet.” The room went silent. I could see the confusion on their faces....
The 'Choose Your Own Adventure' marketing map our clients are obsessed with
I promised you the Anti-Funnel mapping template that's changing the game for rebellious brands. And unlike most marketing gurus who tease but never deliver, I'm a punk who keeps his promises. Last week, I laid out why traditional marketing funnels are dying. The linear "awareness → consideration → decision" model doesn't match how real humans actually make decisions. After sharing that email, my inbox exploded: "Can I see this Anti-Funnel template?" "How exactly do you map customer journeys...
Delete this E-Mail before reading
I just watched 12 people ignore a man on fire. Not literally on fire—but he might as well have been. This happened yesterday at a crowded coffee shop in Berlin. A man in a bright red jacket stood up and loudly asked if anyone could help him jump-start his car. (Would never happen in Cyprus 😀) Nobody looked up. Nobody responded. Everyone continued scrolling on their phones. He repeated his request, louder this time. Still nothing. Just the ambient sounds of coffee grinding and keyboards...
For entrepreneurs, the slightly unhinged, and anyone crazy enough to think they can make the world better: No bullshit. No conventional wisdom. Just what's actually working right now. The game has changed. Society's playbook is broken.