Alexandra Koptyaeva

Was planning on attending a jazz concert but got too excited about Y Combinator School for startup founders -- so ended up consuming one model after another, taking notes, and, well, ultimately working :)

Yess, 100% yes! I've been doing early morning yoga for quite a while now and definitely can see how it helped to improve my mood and overall mental health. I usually do Hatha or Vinyasa depending on how I feel :)

Yoga --> Early morning coffee --> Spanish/Japanese classes --> Work --> Evening concerts

Dreaming about coffee & fearing to be late for my Spanish classes :)

Thanks a lot, Karthik!

I honestly don't think a prior remote work experience should be among the main factors to consider when hiring someone. True, depending on the position and tasks, I'd try to evaluate the candidate's work environment when having an interview and if needed, ask to prove the internet speed. Otherwise, I wouldn't judge harshly and would never eliminate someone's CV solely based on the "absence" of...

Hmmm I'm currently working on a pitch deck that I'll be first sending via email. It has 18 slides, 2 of which include product screenshots and a video. I was following the recommended pitch deck structures by some VCs and tried to be as precise as possible when talking about the product -- really don't think there's an ideal number of slides.

First, I'd evaluate the feedback and its author. Is it a genuine user/customer, or someone trolling your startup? [happened to my team once; the more we engaged and tried to resolve a problem, the clearer it became someone was trying to muddy our reputation] Agree with the rest! Depending on the feedback, I'd also ask for clarifications, see what can be implemented asap, what's relevant, and...

I've been working remotely since 2020 while also traveling all around Latin America -- definitely can't complain. :) But at some point, I wouldn't mind a hybrid environment if I'm based in one place long-term.

Two things: - Canva basics for product design (have been using it for my app's LinkedIn) - It's not that easy to attract new users

Agree with Tyler! I check the discussions from the mobile app from time to time and always have a PH link open from the laptop. So, I engage in discussions whenever I get an opportunity.

Oh! He fired the entire Trust and Safety team (my expertise), which resulted in a massive spike of harassment, racism, child safety issues, etc. on X/Twitter. Now he wants to run the operations himself, which has been a disaster so far. Question: when is he going to quit?

I've been working remotely as a freelancer since 2020. As I travel around Latin America in parallel with work, one of my biggest challenges is finding a stable internet connection. In some places, it's non-existent or not strong enough to take calls. So I couldn't visit some towns because of that. In terms of payment, all my clients are coming through Upwork so the payment is released...

For one of my clients (I work as a freelancer myself): the entire team is mainly outsourced through Upwork. I don't think it's a bad idea but they gave everyone a part-time contract, so the work is going pretty slow, especially for the devs. For the startup I co-founded: we're a team of 3 and most things have been done in-house. We hired a dev via Upwork and had a very positive experience. He...

Personal brand (I as a professional): I started actively posting and networking over 1.5 years ago and grew my network from 200 to 3.7k. Now I have some brands reaching out to me and asking to promote them from my page. Depending on my mood & what's on the news, I post between 1-4 times/week. My startup page: I created it around 2 weeks ago and started by advertising it via my personal...

Great question, Anil! To be honest, I'd say it depends on your business vs your specialty. For example, I have been "growing my personal brand" on LinkedIn as a Trust and Safety professional for the past 1.5 years. I recently became a Co-founder of an app in the mental health space, which is something different. Thus, now when trying to promote the app to my LinkedIn network, I see a clear...

Yess, love the idea! I recently became a Co-founder and CEO of ClearMind Keyboard - an app in the mental health space (read more in my bio). Happy to connect here and/or via LinkedIn.

Personal story: while working in Athens, Greece back in 2019, I went for a 10-day group hike in Armenia. I made a huge mistake when I came back: I went to work on the same day when I landed. Going back to the open office space after being in nature was a stark contrast, I couldn't get used to work and the constant noise. I quit less than 3 weeks later and bought a one-way ticket to Mexico....