Valera Notes

Silk Road Finance & Tech Forum Said, Daler, and I visited the Forum today. It was great connecting with old friends, partners, and students. Very solid for the first major FinTech conference in Uzbekistan.

The problem is not that you are socially awkward, lack skills or are lazy. Everyone is to an extent. The problem is that you let those weaknesses stop you from trying again and again until you get it right.

Mark my words. You will see a unicorn from Freshman alumni by 2036.

Question from an attendee at a recent Freshman event: —Hey, you also work here? —Yeah, sort of. —What do you do? —Helping here and there. Decoupling your personal image from the company brand has been one of the most challenging but rewarding goals. Keeping it low-key allows you to focus on things that matter.

My goddaughter flew from Armenia today and visited the Freshman office. A new generation is growing up.

💥Consultation Giveaway with Valera Valera, Founder of Freshman Academy, has consulted students admitted to Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Cornell, Columbia, UPenn, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Brown, and many more. Win 3 consultations with Valera, worth $360, by following the instructions and pressing the button below. Apply through the Freshman Bot: @FreshmanAcademy_bot

Sometimes I wonder whether we truly want something, or whether we merely hope to be the kind of person who wants it. Do we genuinely want, for instance, to drag ourselves to the gym in the morning? Or do we simply wish to see ourselves as the sort of person who strives for health and discipline? We implicitly believe that worthy people desire worthy things And regardless of how virtuous we actually are—especially when we are not—we desperately want to view ourselves as good. So we aim to protect that self-image. Ultimately, the longing itself becomes the goal. The feeling of wanting something, I am convinced, is often far more valuable to us than attaining it.

Dr. Toh Han Shih, author of Is China an Empire? and Chief Editor of Asia Bio Inc., presents a quote from Vladimir Norov, Uzbekistan’s former foreign minister and former SCO secretary-general, during a seminar at Freshman Academy. Huge thanks to Dr. Toh for joining us and to Nigel for facilitating the seminar.

AI agents can now help run dozens of social media accounts, including content creation, posting, comments, and more. Bots, fake accounts, and robots already constitute much of the internet. And this process will only accelerate. In the futuristic game Cyberpunk 2077, the Old Internet becomes dangerous and AI-infested. Authorities create the so-called Blackwall to separate the "dead internet" from the usable one. In this respect, we already live in Cyberpunk.

A much-deserved retreat for the Freshman team. Got 15 or so Freshman staff together at a dacha for the weekend. Super hyped for Makhachev-Garry tomorrow. Do join the Freshman team. I heard it’s fun.

How about independencemaxxing: financial, intellectual, psychological.

Fundraising is the easy part. Generating sustainable revenue is way harder. The latter is truly worth celebrating.

📢 Hipsters, workaholics, and everyone in between: we're hiring! Freshman Academy is hiring for two leadership roles: Operations Director and Marketing Director. We’re scaling across the Central Asia and these two roles sit at the center of that growth. 🎯 Operations Director You'll own day-to-day operations, manage departments, and drive strategic decisions across the company. We're looking for at least 3 years running business operations, ideally with international company experience in Uzbekistan. ✍️ Marketing Director We need someone who will lead our marketing strategy, digs into the data, and drives how we grow across Central Asia. Looking for someone with several years running marketing campaigns for education companies or products and services. Both roles are full-time, based in Tashkent. 📩 Send your CV to shakhzod@freshman.academy 💬 Or message us directly on Telegram: @kodirovshakhzod @freshmanblog

Speed. Speed. Speed. Don’t let perfectionism slow down execution.

“Valera, I am a student too. I am defending a PhD in gold weaving.” Baxshillo Djumaev, 70, sixth-generation Bukhara artisan

Any social scientist knows that many traditions, paradoxically, are deeply modern inventions.

🍽 Dinner with SAT & AP Mentors If you are an SAT or AP mentor based in Tashkent, join a free dinner hosted by Valera (Freshman founder) and Shohruh (Freshman SAT Director). We will discuss the latest SAT trends, academic preparedness for admissions, and the prevention of SAT leaks. This is your chance to exchange educational perspectives, discuss challenges within the SAT community, and connect with other leaders. Interested in joining? Register now. Our team will then reach out to confirm your participation and send more details. ❗️Registration deadline: August 12, 2026 (midday) @satfreshman

Using AI to write your university application is the surest way to ruin it.

When educators, not marketers, run education in Uzbekistan, we will see genuine progress.

📍meeting with Freshman Academy parents at CANA School