who is the person behind this site?
My name is Vjekoslav Nemec. I am a 25-year-old, born and raised in Zagreb, Croatia. I have an electrical engineering degree and currently work in a private electrical engineering company.
In my free time, I love to play chess and table tennis. I have also tried a fair amount of hobbies in the last couple of years. Although I like to think this is the result of my open-mindedness, more likely than not it is a subconscious defense mechanism. The more activities I pursue, the more back up plans I have in case something wrong happens with one of them. Robert Glover, the author of the book No More Mr Nice Guy, would say:
If Nice Guys have much going on at once, they won’t have to do any one thing well. They might be jack of all trades, but they are typically master of none. This childhood conditioning ensures they will never be all they can be in any area of live.
But more on that later.
In any case, this blog is the result of the ongoing “Jack of all trades, master of none” policy. The only difference is that this time, I really DO intend to stick around for a while.
SO, YOU ARE AN ENGINEER? TELL ME AN ENGINEERING JOKE!
Customer: Do you have any two-watt, 4-volt bulbs?
Sales Rep: For what?
Customer: No, two.
Sales Rep: Two what?
Customer: Yes.
Sales Rep: No.
Uhm… where were we..?
What does popsychle mean?
Popsychle is a blog about life philosophy, culture, psychology and more. The name is a result of a wordplay; it is a combination of the words popsicle and psychology. I probably shouldn’t emphasize the popular psychology reference “hidden” in the title.
Then again, I also shouldn’t explain puns and jokes. Alas, most often than not I have to do it. Which tells you a lot about the quality of my puns and jokes in the first place.
DOES IT ALL mean you areN’T a psychology expert?
No, I am nothing of a sort. I don’t have a degree, I don’t have working experience, I haven’t attended seminars and I haven’t conducted any sort of research or a survey. Make sure you don’t confuse me with a certain Freud; it is much more appropriate to call me Fraud.
HOW DARE YOU WRITE ABOUT SUCH COMPLEX TOPICS THEN? WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO OPEN THIS SITE? what DO YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE WITH THIS BLOG?
When I was a kid, I developed decent reading habits. While other kids were playing their Playstations, socializing and going after girls, I visited bookstores and libraries and read one book after another. I still remember how we used to wait the whole summer for J.K. Rowling to finally finish the new part of the Harry Potter saga. Although the number of the books I read started dropping once I entered high school, I never become one of the “Why would I read” members of the millennial generation.
My first contact with the “self-help” / “popular psychology” came during the college in form of Dale Carnegie’s bestseller book, How to win friends and influence people. At a time, I felt rather pathetic; like, wtf, has it really come to learning how to become friends with people from a book? But still, from the moment I started reading it, I realized there might be something to it. That it is not just a stupid “do this and you are friends” with people manual. A huge number of business examples was really a food for thought because the complete “be good toward others and it will be repaid” philosophy made a lot of sense when interpreted by good old Dale.
From that moment onward, I have had an off and on relationship with similar literature. Here and there, I would read a book on a similar topic, but it would be an exception that proves a rule. I was also a regular reader of Mark Manson’s blog. I didn’t perceive self – help as something bad, but I wasn’t a self-help junkie (yet).
Everything started to change when after I finished college. Suddenly, I became responsible for my life. I had to take a number of decisions of my own. The educational system was done with me; there weren’t any external factors guiding me through life. The existential crisis of my mid-twenties fully kicked in. Suddenly, there were many questions, but zero answers.
Not quite knowing what to do, I tried searching for those answers. Since I have always believed in the “never stop learning” philosophy, I have embarked on a task of fighting ignorance and fear with knowledge. For the last year and a half, I have been reading different books on psychology, philosophy, economy, motivation, neurology and alike on a daily basis.
Needless to say, I haven’t come any closer to finding those answers. A year and a half later, I am arguably even more confused and left with even more questions and even fewer answers. Nevertheless, I have discovered one important thing – I really love reading and writing. I really like discussing ideas and life philosophies and am very passionate about discovering my own. Therefore, after boring everyone around me to death with endless discussions, I have decided I might as well try exposing myself in front of a broader audience online.
I had my fears. I had my doubts. But in chess, there is an old saying: “No one ever won a game by resigning.” I simply said to myself: What is there to lose? Let’s get done with it.
This is how this blog came to be. The idea is to have a platform where I will write my ideas and thoughts down. It is important to mention I don’t think I am right about anything. As mentioned before, I am by no means an expert on the topic. I simply thought presenting my ideas in front of a broader audience might have multiple purposes.
First of all, those of you misfortunate enough to stumble on these pages might have a different opinion on a certain topic. Some of you will hopefully let me know how wrong I am. I have nothing against being proven wrong; I believe it is the most effective way to learn something new.
Secondly, since I try to include a personal component in my articles as well, my writing might have a therapeutical effect as well. It took me years to admit I am full of flaws and imperfections. And it will take me years to realize there is nothing terrible about it. I think writing about my fears openly will accelerate the process of conquering them.
Thirdly, I can’t deny I was inspired by Mark Manson and his blog. The fact his writing has become so influential and actually HELPS people is so wonderful. If only one reader reports back with a similar feedback, I would be very very happy. The main drawback of my daytime job is lack of meaning; helping other people has been my wish for quite some time. Not sure if I will be able to achieve it, but there is no harm in trying, right?
Finally, I realized going around claiming I am a psychology author might piss off my friends who actually studied the field. So, if nothing else comes out of it, it is totally worth it!
Also, if I became a millionaire in the process, I wouldn’t complain. Which kinda brings me to the following point.
So, you make money out of this?
Well, I try. Although it is not a primary motivation behind this site, having an extra source of income is always handy. In my fantasies, I dream of giving up my daytime job completely and devoting myself completely to writing. I dream of doing the things I love for a living. But as they all say, one step at a time. I am getting carried away.
In any case, you will notice two more or less standard ways of monetizing the blog:
- Affiliate links
Throughout the blog, affiliate links are planted. If you are not careful while navigating through this “linkfield”, you might find yourself on the Amazon page. Once you are there, be a sweetheart and make that purchase you have been prolonging for a while. I will be quite thankful.
- Donations
Great, this is the part where I basically have to beg for money. And as every girl I have ever gone out with will confirm, I am terrible at begging. So let’s keep it simple and direct. If you read something interesting here, you want to support this blog and you think I deserved it, visit the donate page for more info about donations.
mAN, I CAN’T orientate myself around THIS SITE! WHO THE FUCK DESIGNED THE LAYOUT?
Yeah, yeah, I know, you wouldn’t believe how some people completely disregard the importance of the visual identity. Like, how are you supposed to find where the posts are when you have to click on the menu above for it to appear. And when there aren’t any widgets containing recent posts.
If only someone put a big button containing the link of ALL ARTICLES , it would be so much better.
Or at least someone could have given you the link to the “best of” compilation; blog authors FAVOURITE ARTICLES , you would know where to begin reading.
But some people will never learn.
i KINDA LIKE YOUR WRITING! DO YOU HAVE A MAILING LIST?
Yes, smarter people and more experienced bloggers have stressed the importance of email marketing. Since “go with the flow” has been my motto for a long time, I’ve decided to listen to their advice. I have included subscription form on the homepage. I have even made a separate page where you can subscribe. Last, but not the least, I have decided to add one slyly and surreptitiously below this paragraph as well.
They don’t call me Mr. Subtle for nothing.
i KINDA DON’T LIKE YOUR WRITING! CAN I CONTACT YOU DIRECTLY AND ELABORATE WHY?
Of course, I read all the emails and try to reply to most of them. As long as the tone is respectful, feel free to criticize me. You can send me an email at continents.obp@gmail.com, or visit our contact page and contact us via the contact form.
Do you prostitute on the social media?
Of course, it is a favorite hobby of mine!
Oh, sorry, it is not what you meant? Yes, I have made official Popyschle pages on different social media sites. Feel free to visit them!
