I just checked the Amazon reviews of my new 10 Commandments book. I have a new 2-star review. My instinctive reaction was to write a new email all about it. It's going out tonight. The idea being, take any energy, including negative energy, and redirect it into something useful, like an email, or like this post here. At the same time, I've also silently unsubscribed a few people from my list over the past few days for replying to my emails with messages that I found frustrating or stupid. Here's an example, in reply to an email in which I said I have friends of 20+ years and ex-girlfriends reading my newsletter: "Just FYI, you cannot have 'girl' friends for 20 +years. They may have started out girls but by the time they reach 18, they have become women. Thanks," So I thought we could maybe start a little discussion? How do you deal with bad reviews, unfair refunds, and replies to emails that bother you or waste your time? Maybe we can collect the ideas that bubble up and create a valuable community resource.

I'm still finding confetti around my terrace from the close of the pool party on Thursday night... I also still have to return the plastic patio furniture I borrowed from the neighbors. But I am slowly working my way through the list of todo items that piled up after the party and auction. Now it's time to take care of a MAJOR outstanding item. Rewind back to hour three of the party, around 8:30pm my time, on Wednesday night... @Thomas Lalas wrote the following: "At this point I've read SO many funny + creative comments, I think it's worth putting a prize for the funniest comment." In my party high, I immediately agreed to this great suggestion. Yesterday, as I reread the comments, a clear winner emerged. And so, after only a few days' delay, I would now like to OFFICIALLY announce the WINNER of the prestigious "Inaugural Pool Party Funniest Comment" award... [drum roll please] [camera switches between various nominees] [opening the envelope] 🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄 🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄🦄 🎈🎈🎈 @Filip Stilin!!! 🎪🎪🎪 👑👑👑👑👑👑 👑👑👑👑👑👑 Filip wrote multiple funny comments throughout the pool party. But one that seems to have gotten the most laughs, at least what I can tell with my not-particularly-careful tallying, was: "@Gc Tsalamagkakis Subject line: He auctioned his CAT?!?!" This was one of several inside jokes that developed throughout this party. GC was bidding and moving house at the same time. He included pics of his move, one of which featured a cat carrying case... but no cat. Hence Filip's comment above. (Not so funny now? Such is the nature of humor. I guess you had to be there.) As a prize for boosting the overall party vibe of our first pool party, Filip wins: 1. The title of "Grand Comment Poo-Bah" for the rest of 2025 2. A physical copy of my favorite comedy book. I won't say what it is, but it's influenced my writing as much as any copywriting or marketing book I've ever read. (Filip, I will be in touch by DM to find out where can send it)

Welcome WELCOME The pool party is ON. You can find the margaritas and soft drinks over in the corner... ... the DJ has set up and is playing already... ... and after you've had a chance to dip yourself in the pool, and as the party heats up... ... perhaps you'd like to also take a look at this little offer I am making? The offer in a peanut shell: I am offering to take the winning bidder — let's imagine it's you — and... 1. To give you a NAME and credibility on the Internet, along with MY FULL ENDORSEMENT, and... 2. To DRIVE MY RESPONSIVE READERS to the optin for your list, and... 3. To work with you and co-create a SEXY ACQUISITION FUNNEL (free giveaway + paid thank-you page offer), which you can use to build up your email list AND make money on day zero by turning new subscribers into buyers right away, plus... 4. I'm guaranteeing, with my two hands, that if you win this auction you will MAKE BACK 100% OF YOUR MONEY before I'm done endorsing and promoting you. Again, I will send out a dedicated email to endorse you and your offer, and to drive my audience to you. If you don't recoup all your investment with that first email I send, I will keep sending more dedicated emails, for as long as it takes, to promote and endorse you until you do recoup your winning bid. (If needed, we will also keep working together to tweak your funnel to make sure the right people sign up AND turn into buyers.) That's the little auction offer I'm making, for you to consider while you baste in my pool. I'm also offering a few POOL PARTY FAVORS if you happen to win the auction: 1. Wine and tapas on me whenever you get to Barcelona. (I know a good place around the corner from my new apartment, in the Gothic quarter. Once you finish with the pool and dry off, we can head over there.) 2. A list of newsletters you can run ads in, so they drive their own readers to you, and so you can keep growing your list at breakeven or at a profit, regularly, month after month. (And yes, you can approach these newsletter owners and tell them, "John Bejakovic already endorsed this offer... and his audience loved it.")

Like I wrote a couple days ago, I'm hoping to get your help in growing this community. I've picked a magic number — 320 members. (We're currently at 227, so it doesn't seem like such a stretch.) Maybe you want to help me spread the word about this group simply because you like me... ... or maybe you'd like to grow this group because you can see the value of having more connections and possible partnerships with like-minded people. But maybe you also need some kind of a bribe. So here's what I've got for you: - Prize just for participating - "Mystery bribe": a training I gave two years ago, which is particularly relevant if you want to use your email list to pay for a house — just to say thanks - Prize for referring 10 people who join - "$25 classified ads": A behind-closed-doors place to advertise and test out your offers, get clients and partners, grow your list for $25 a pop - Group prize when we get to 320 members - "Subtle lead magnet": A lead magnet I've seen two marketers using that gets better conversions and higher-intent leads than the usual free report/course/template etc. (If by some chance we easily and quickly blow through the 320 member mark, I'm willing to introduce new bribes and bonuses and parties and fiestas to keep this campaign going.) IMPORTANT: In order for me to know it was you who referred a possible new member, you will need to use the custom referral link that Skool provides. You can find this link on the right side of the screen of the main group page on the desktop site, under the group description, once you click the "INVITE PEOPLE" button... ... or on the Skool app, if you click the three dots next to the group name. IMPORTANT #2: In the interest of keeping this group healthy and valuable, I am not letting in just anyone who applies into the group. I make up my mind who to let in based on intuition, taking into account things like a person's answers to the questions I have set up at the door... to their past history on Skool as I can see it... and to what I know of them already (if they are on my email list).

What do you think about courses delivered through email? Love them? Hate them? Think they're too clunky? I have a product a wanna (re)launch as a gamma version. Basically a step after beta but not yet exactly what I want to do with it. Thing is — and this is what made me think about email-delivered courses — this product right now contains ~20 lessons. With each lesson being around ~700 words let's say (could be more after I retouche it before making it available again). 700 words is not that big for a lesson. And even though there are like 20 of it, the perceived value could seem low, potentially. On the other hand, 700 words is plenty for an email. So, sharing 1 lesson per day could potentially fit pretty well. Any reasons why this could be a horrible idea that would ruin my life and make me run back to the corporate world?