Hi there! 💖
It's my birthday today!! I'm writing this from a plane. My husband and I are flying to New York for four days to celebrate and I feel like a teenager. This is our first trip without the kids in a very, veeery long time.
Here's what I keep thinking about on this flight.
I've been making content since I was 24. That's a third of my entire life spent filming, writing, editing, posting, building audiences, starting over on new platforms, figuring it all out in real time.
When I started, I was filming YouTube videos in a tiny apartment and hoping someone would watch. I had maybe 200 subscribers and no idea what I was doing. My lighting was a desk lamp 🤓
Today I run a 35-person media company and interview the brightest minds, researchers, CEOs of leading tech companies on my podcast. 12,000 of you read this newsletter. And somehow it still feels like we're just getting started.
You know what nobody tells you about doing something for 12 years? The first 3-4 years feel painfully slow. You're putting in the work and the numbers barely move. That's when a lot of people quit and I get it.
But somewhere around year 5 of doing what you love, something shifts. You stop questioning whether this is the right thing and comparing your stats to everyone else's.
The compounding kicks in: the relationships you built actually start calling you back, the skills you stacked start combining in ways you didn't plan. And people start coming to you!
This year feels especially wild. The creator economy is changing faster than anything I've seen in 12 years. AI is automating skills that used to take years to learn. Entire career paths are being rewritten right now.
But here's what I know for sure after watching this space for a third of my life: tools change, platforms change, algorithms change. The people who think well, adapt fast, and actually care about getting better become more valuable EVERY. SINGLE. YEAR.
That's why I started this newsletter. And that's who reads it.
You are 12,000 people who actually think about their future instead of just scrolling past it. I'm so glad you're here.
Thank you 💖
Okay boarding is ending. New York is waiting!!
We'll be back next week!
— Marina