Friends of Max Chernov

Had a great almost 2 hours conversation with George Yeo, one of the most prominent politicians in Singapore. Tried to get him for an interview for almost a year!

I'm interviewing George Yeo and Kumar today. What shall I ask them?

Had a short trip to Malaysia this morning. Got back to Singapore and took a walk around my neighbourhood. It’s a pretty authentic old area, I love the character.

Asia is the future. This is my fundamental belief. Europe is nice, but the outlook is not strong. The Middle East is fragile. The US is extreme, great for making money, but not balanced. Africa still has a long way to go. Asia, on the other hand, has everything: energy, capital, proximity between countries, and a wide range of opportunities. It’s not perfect, but it’s one of the most dynamic regions to be in right now. Through my interviews, I meet people living and operating across Singapore, Thailand, China (mainland and HK), Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia. Many of them are building across multiple countries in the region. I started looking into private clubs and business networks here and noticed two main problems: They either optimise for scale, with thousands of members, which doesn’t feel private anymore. Or they originate in the US or UK and expand into Asia without fully understanding how this region actually works. That led me to build something different. A private membership for business owners and investors FOCUSED ON ASIA. Highly selective. Not huge, but large enough to have variety and strong network effects. Built for depth, not scale. To become a member your life / business should be in Asia. Operators in the US and operators in Singapore or Bangkok live in completely different realities. My internal criteria is simple: members should be within a 4–5 hour flight radius. Because this circle works only if people meet in person several times a year. Without that, everything fades. I tested this with a private trip to Phuket with 12 high-level operators. The response was very strong. So now I’ve opened the early waitlist for The Backstage Circle, a private membership for business owners and investors across Asia, where every person in the room is worth your time. A limited number of founding member seats are available. Apply, and I’ll get in touch if it’s a fit. https://forms.gle/huwR6NQNz5A4XgC78 ...

He Sold Everything and Left Britain for Thailand Meet Noah. Born in the UK, he moved to Thailand three decades ago and never looked back. Today he holds Thai citizenship, owns several houses in Bangkok, and runs a successful business there. Noah shared the hidden dangers of the Thai business life most foreigners never realize, how he learned to earn real trust as an outsider in Thailand and what it actually takes to succeed there long-term. Enjoy! 🍿https://youtu.be/Rtjiiw8Q2jI P.S. One of the rare stories of someone who doubled down on one location and won.

Found something very embarrassing. It’s one of my older videos. I went out to do street interviews in Singapore.

I used to go to a lot of networking events. Then I stopped. Not completely, but I became very selective about where I go and who I want to meet. Here are the main problems I see with typical networking events: 1. No curation You show up and are expected to meet “interesting people at your level.” In reality, mixed levels destroy the signal, and serious operators disengage. 2. Scale kills trust When there are too many people, there’s no safety, less trust, and more noise. People start performing instead of speaking honestly. It turns into status games, which I’m not interested in. 3. Wrong incentives People come to pitch, sell, and extract instead of contributing. You meet someone and get pitched within 30 seconds. 4. Surface-level interactions Short, fragmented conversations. No depth, no context, no outcomes. That’s why people say they hate networking. What they actually hate is noise. 5. No continuity There’s no system to build real relationships or compound value. At best, you have a follow-up lunch if you remember the person. Most of the time, it’s a one-off interaction. That’s the gap I’m trying to solve with The Backstage Circle, a private membership for business owners and investors across Asia, where every person in the room is worth your time. Apply, and if there’s a fit, I’ll reach out: https://forms.gle/huwR6NQNz5A4XgC78

Very tired today. So much going on. Plus got sick.

That Phuket trip that changed my perspective. In March I brought 12 high-level founders and investors from Singapore, Bangkok, Phuket, and Hong Kong together for a weekend. The goal was simple: build real relationships and have deep conversations about the future, business, and life principles. One of the experiences was visiting a billionaire’s home and spending a few hours with him in a private setting. What I realised after this trip: most people don’t need more information. The real leverage is being in the right room with the right people, spending enough time to build trust, and having that one conversation that shifts your perspective on something you’ve been stuck on for years. Funny enough, these shifts rarely come from your spouse or reading an article. You have to hear it from someone senior enough, at the right moment, in the right context. Then it clicks. For me as the organiser, it became very clear that this only works if three things happen at the same time: 1. You are very strict with selection. The group has to be at a similar level financially and in business. Otherwise, the balance breaks. 2. No agendas in the room. The moment someone is selling, pitching, or performing, the dynamic is gone. 3. The environment is structured, but not forced. You guide the conversations, but don’t turn it into a workshop. When all of this comes together, something different happens. That’s exactly what I have in mind with The Backstage Circle, a private membership for business owners and investors across Asia, where every person in the room is worth your time. I just opened the early waitlist. Founding members will be limited. Apply, and if there’s a fit, I’ll reach out. https://forms.gle/huwR6NQNz5A4XgC78

This Telegram channel is starting to feel like a proper community. Love it 😍 Thanks for your engagement. What topics would you like me to cover more here?

Just published a video with a very unique guest. He was a KGB spy in the US in the 80s. Crazy life story. He has deep experience and skills in blending into any social group, building relationships with high-level people, and operating under enormous pressure. A lot of it you can aply in your life and business 😇 Watch it now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LxyhHgvHzM

Which interview on my YouTube channel was the most memorable for you? Inspired you, shifted your perspective, or was just very fun to watch?

Just confirmed an interview with yet another billionaire. It’s going to be massive. An amazing gentleman, very down to earth and respectful, despite running one of the biggest firms in the global jewelry business. I’m excited. Hopefully it won’t slip (it can happen at this level). Interesting fact: I was introduced to him via email, but he initially refused the interview. I had to fly abroad to meet him in person for a 30-minute conversation. After that, he agreed.

Good news! Here is follow-up on the situation with the Hian Goh video. As I explained yesterday, the packaging was not right (it happens when you’ve done it hundreds of times and start overlooking things). We shifted to a completely new angle and tested three new titles. First, it affects CTR. If it increases, you start getting more views immediately. Then YouTube detects the improvement and starts giving the video more impressions (showing it more often), which leads to even more views. Views continue to grow as long as the video keeps outperforming competing content in the same niche. Tbh YouTube game is crazy! It requires mastering both the creative side and the analytical side, making precise changes while continuously experimenting lol

The Backstage Circle: https://forms.gle/huwR6NQNz5A4XgC78

A bit of the backstage of how we’re running this YouTube business. The last video with Hian didn’t perform well, so we brainstormed for two hours yesterday on what could be done about it. We all agreed the initial title and thumbnail combo was weak, and identified why. Then we analyzed other videos from the past year with guests similar to Hian and came up with a new packaging approach. We implemented it yesterday, and now you can see the result. CTR increased from 4.6% yesterday to 7.5% today. It’s a significant change. Now we’re waiting for the algorithm to pick it up and start giving the video more impressions. We’ll see in a couple of days how it performs. That’s the part the audience doesn’t see: how you run a large YouTube channel and what it actually takes.

Talked to one of my favorite people, Hian Goh. He built and sold a TV network for $65M, then co-founded a venture firm managing almost $1B in capital. Hian understands how the world and business work extremely well. We met a couple of years ago randomly at a friend’s private boat party in Singapore, and since then became friends and done a few cool things together. He also joined my The Backstage Circle trip in Phuket as a participant recently. Anyway, watch the video if you want to understand how the future (potentially) will look like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ha4cNZrdo_Y