TTT 30: Why You Need To Sell 💰

Hi, I'm Janahan. What's your name?

It was by far the best thing I’ve eaten in Oaxaca - Memelas Don

Hi Team,

மாலை வணக்கம் (maalai vaNakkam), Buenas Noches, and Good Evening from Puerto Escondido, Mexico.

I’ll be sharing a thing I did, a tweet I loved, and a thought I had.

A Thing 🌶

Oaxaca is best known for tlayudas, but it should be known for memelas.

I met a dude in Ticuchu hostel who put me onto Memelas Dona Vale. It’s a breakfast spot that’s only open from 7am - 12pm. I had to weave through a labyrinth of stalls in the market to find it.

It was even featured on Netflix’s Street Food Latin America series.

Memelas are built on a slightly fatter corn tortilla. Then a layer of pork fat is spread on like butter (order “sin aciento if you’re vegetarian). It’s topped with salsa, queso fresco, and an optional protein.

I chose stewed pork rib with morita (⅘ spicy) salsa and egg on roja salsa (⅗ spicy).

Dona Vale’s execution is really what sets it apart. They seem to use a hotter comal than other spots which imparts a tantalizing char on the base. Contrasted with the complex, full-bodied salsa and mouth-watering stewed pork rib - makes for a texturally dissonant bite that satisfies all the cravings.

I’ve been documenting everything I ate here in Mexico and will be publishing a guide for each city I’ve been to.

If you know me in real life, you know I’m the guy that people trust for where to eat.

I’m excited to be that guy on the internet for you, too.

A Tweet 🐦

Kahani @appkahani

Don't sell facial wash Sell daily confidence boosting experience. Don't sell blankets Sell a calmer nervous system Don't sell milk Sell stronger teeth and bones Don't sell products. Sell transformations.

Last week, I chatted with Louie Bacaj about teaching engineers to write effectively.

We talked about giving things away for free vs. charging for them. He shared with me something unintuitive yet logical. Packaging up the things you give away for free and charging money for it builds your reputation.

People will see you selling things for money and assume you know what you’re talking about.

In a capitalistic society, the relationship between capital and lessons/credibility/reputation is more intertwined than I had realized.

So instead of writing blog posts on “Effective Writing for Engineers”, I will sell a digital product on “How To Get Promoted Beyond Senior Engineer”.

Don’t Sell Products. 

Sell Transformations.

If you respond to this newsletter with “I’m interested”, I’ll give you $5 off when I release :)

A Thought 💭

I can tell in 10 seconds if someone wants to talk to me.

I stayed in 4 hostels over the last 7 days in Oaxaca. They all had a different vibe with a wide variety of people. I selected these hostels because they were rated highly for “solo travelers” on hostelworld.

This is the power of being an extrovert. 

Most people are too shy to initiate conversation. They create stories in their heads about how people may or may not be. But I accept I won’t know until I talk to them.

Within 10 seconds, I can tell whether

1. Someone wants to talk to me

2. They’re introverted or shy OR They don’t want to talk to you

For me, if number 2 occurs - whether the conversation continues is strictly whether I am interested in them. 

It’s such a freeing feeling to focus on whether you like other humans rather than whether they like you. In my experience, if I meet 100 people, I’ll only like 5-8 of them. The more you stand for, the less you’ll put up with.

Once I accepted this, I was able to move through the crowd and find my people.

I’ve met 3 people here I’ll keep in contact with. I prefer the quality of people over the quantity of people. And I wouldn’t have met them if I hadn’t introduced myself.

I know it can be nerve wracking to introduce yourself to strangers. 

But I promise it’s worth it.

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I'd love to hear any feelings you felt while reading this and until next time - be easy. 

With Love,
Janahan

P.S. Thank you so much for reading the 30th edition of the TTT Newsletter.