These are my Momentos, short personal diary entries I write daily – since 2013 – and publish monthly. Some links are affiliate links.
1
I struggle with being social online, whether in private communities or places like X. Rarely enough time in the day to get my work done, so the social stuff feels like a distraction. But then I also feel guilty for not doing it, and mainly showing up there when I want to promote something.
2
For a while there I truly felt I was the best in the world at something: reviewing “make money online” courses. I miss that feeling. Now I’m aiming to be the best in the world at my new thing: curating business ideas. Some tough competitors out there, but I think I have a fair shot.
3
First time watching Once Upon a Time in the West from 1968. Charles Bronson mid-40s when he made that, looking great. He’s been dead 22 years now. Claudia Cardinale looking as good as any woman has looked on screen. She’s now 86 years old, barely recognizable. Everything comes and everything goes.
4
This doctor is better than most, but he expressed absolute certainty about something that turned out to be wrong. Happens a lot. To the point where I now generally regard any expression of certainty as a red flag. As Bertrand Russell said, it’s the intelligent people who are full of doubt.
5
Just over 5 hours to get that video done, soup to nuts. An hour to plan, an hour to record, 2.5 hours to edit, the rest to timestamp, create the thumbnail, other bits and pieces. Aiming to put out a video like that every week this month. Cautiously optimistic that the format will do well.
6
Spent a few hours today setting up my business ideas database. Have each idea summarized by AI and displayed in a table, easy to browse and filter. Will probably have that freely available to start, but might eventually charge for access. It gets more valuable over time.
7
Seen in a private forum today…
things we think are super boring are often the most interesting to others. It’s boring to us often because it’s in our zone of genius, it’s something we can do with our eyes closed, etc, but the things that come EASIEST to us are often the things other people want most from us.
8
5.5 hours researching and writing up business ideas for the newsletter. Ended up with 12 stories, 1987 words. I have a “rejected stories” Google Doc, for content I write up then decide not to use, because the numbers don’t add up or it feels off somehow. 3 added to that doc today.
9
I’ve tried things in the past that have worked well for others, copied them as best I could, failed to match their results, not even close. But I’m determined to keep trying until I get lucky, then ride the wave for as long as I can. I believe that’s how success really works.
10
Looking back at my old videos, like this one in Hong Kong. Impressed by how comfortable I was talking on camera, how fun and effortless I made it look. I’ve definitely lost a lot of that, need to get back to filming myself regularly, put in the reps.
11
Reading back through my old Momentos again, Bali 2019. Been thinking about that time a lot lately, similar work vibes, putting in long hours, waiting patiently for it all to pay off. It did back then, and I like to think it will again, but you never really know.
12
At least a dozen years since I last watched The Terminator. I remember seeing it as a kid, alone at my aunt’s house in Dublin one night. The ending scared the absolute shit out of me, had to turn it off. No memory of the sex scene right before, so I probably hadn’t hit puberty yet.
13
Spent four hours on that little piece of content, was confident it would attract tons of eyeballs. Instead, crickets. It’s disheartening, putting your all into something and nobody seems to give a shit. Reminding myself…
It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.
14
I’ve had a six pack for years but a while back I did a blood test and my cholesterol was the highest the doctor had ever seen. High cholesterol left unchecked = heart disease, the first symptom of which is often sudden death. My cholesterol is under control now, but if not for that test I’d still be a ticking time bomb.
15
Up and over the mountains to take in the snowy landscape. We get a good dose of snow 3-4 times a year in Andorra, makes the place look like a fairytale. I’d like to be spending more time outdoors here, enjoying it. But right now I feel like I have to grind.
16
43 years old today. Up early, cooking and exercising, got it out of the way. Worked for a few hours. Finished watching T2, Arnie my age when he made that. More snow in the afternoon. Met friends at the big hotel. Cheesecake and candles, chats and hugs. Good day.
17
That tweet I spent 4 hours crafting last week… 276 views so far. Silly meme I posted in 2 seconds a day later… 333 views. Those numbers make me feel like a clown in the algorithm’s circus. And yet I’m not going to run away from it.
18
I used to believe the self-doubt would go away eventually, once I had some success under my belt. But I’ve always felt it to some degree, even when I was pulling in $36K in one month. I tend to think it’s normal now, that it will always be along for the ride, no matter what heights I reach.
19
Bernardo O’Reilly in The Magnificent Seven (video)…
You think I am brave because I carry a gun? Well, your fathers are much braver because they carry responsibility, for you, your brothers, your sisters, and your mothers… I have never had this kind of courage. Running a farm, working like a mule every day with no guarantee anything will ever come of it. This is bravery.
20
I aim for 60+ “deep work” hours each month, at 77 already for March. Been pushing hard to get the business back on track, energy levels high. But I took this afternoon off to hit the spa and suddenly felt burned out. I came out of the sauna like a zombie, couldn’t face the cold plunge.
21
They say the best way to become successful is to increase your rate of failure. That’s what I’ve been trying to do, testing out different ways to grow and monetize my newsletter. The work is enjoyable, but I can feel the clock ticking, and that makes it stressful.
22
Can be hard to stop myself from researching and writing up business ideas. I get deep into it, excited to uncover new and unusual ways people are making money. Find myself in that flow state, look up and several hours have passed.
23
My ideal consulting client. Someone working a comfortable 9-to-5 with good income and free time on evenings and weekends. Eager to start their own thing, become their own boss. Struggling to pick an idea and overcome procrastination. I know I can help that person.
24
Fifth time calling, nobody picks up when I wait on the line. Voice message in Catalan says something about pressing one, try that. A woman answers. I explain myself in Spanish. She says call back and don’t press one. I tell her nobody answers when I do that. Vale, she says, adieu, and hangs up.
25
Trying to get better at YouTube, studying up the last couple of days. My intros can definitely be improved, boost that retention. Also seeking out tips for being more relaxed and natural on camera. Cleared my schedule for tomorrow so I can record unrushed.
26
Ira Glass talks about the gap between taste and talent. Feeling that today, editing my video. I know what good editing looks like from watching a lot of YouTube. But I can’t afford to spend the time and don’t want to spend the money to reach that level. Gotta make do with good enough and curb my perfectionism.
27
A friend gifted me a coaching call today. She has tons of experience in an area where I’m trying to improve, got a lot from our call. If money were no object, I’d hire a coach for everything I want to get better at. Feels like a cheat code when you find a good one.
28
Found another business ideas newsletter. 2x my subscribers, much higher open rate, probably earning $20K each month despite content I consider mediocre at best. Inspiring in one way, depressing in another. I really need to up my marketing game. That’s where they’re crushing it.
29
Feels like I’ve been working a ton lately, but I’m awake for 16-17 hours per day, and I clock only 7-8 hours of work. Where does the rest of that time go? Doesn’t feel like I squander it. It’s simple stuff like showering, exercising, cooking, eating, cleaning, laundry, etc.
30
Numbers look good today. Latest video doing well, already 7x the views of the previous and trending upwards. Also 10x the usual newsletter subscribers today, a paid promo coming to fruition. Nice to see a few bets paying off, felt like I was on a bit of a losing streak for a while.
31
Long days, late nights, missed an eclipse behind the clouds. Left her behind in my dream, eager to get back. Driving south, snowy peaks, espresso sneak. Chiron with his trauma, Amy with her podcast. Ground beef, starry skies, another month wave goodbye.