Сегодня мне 40.

Дальше по-английски. Переведете, норм?


Today I’m 40.

It sounds scary. This milestone has weighed on me for the past year. It feels like I’m not where I should be at this age.

I’ve always thought I was free from society’s expectations, and I’ve mostly lived my life doing what I wanted, not what others expected of me. But my own expectations are a different story. I often feel like I’m behind and need to catch up.

I need to make more money, achieve more in my career.

People are often surprised when they learn that I started my YouTube channel almost from scratch just two years ago, especially when they see how far we've come. But for me, there’s always that nagging feeling: we’re growing too slowly, we could be making more money, we could have a much bigger audience.

So, in the back of my mind, it’s always there: we’re not good enough, I’m not good enough.

But that’s the emotional side. Rationally, when I look back, I realize how awesome my life really is.

In terms of work, I feel like I’ve finally found MY thing, something I’ve been searching for all these years.

My career started at a pretty low level.

As a student, I worked as a waiter, cleaner, and mover. After graduation, I was an electrical engineer at a large Russian plant producing aluminum. I still remember standing outside at 6 PM on a Friday night, in -20 degrees Celsius, trying to fix a CCTV camera on the plant’s perimeter.

It was awful.

By Sunday, I was already dreading having to go back to work the next day.

But I was never willing to accept that this was how my life would be.

Step by step, I found jobs that were more suitable for me. At one point, I was a brand manager for Gucci, which was already pretty cool. But I was still searching, still experimenting. I knew I wanted MY OWN project instead of being a tiny cog in the big corporate machine.

So, 10 years ago, I left and started my own thing. Fast forward through countless ups and downs, and here I am. I get to interview super interesting people in different places, brands pay me for sponsorship deals (the biggest one so far was $24,000 SGD for a 1-minute sponsored segment), and I have a small team of four incredible people—the best teammates I’ve ever had!

But most importantly, I genuinely 100% love what I do!

Do I still have that “I’m not good enough” feeling? Of course! But now, on my 40th birthday, I can say with all my heart—it’s okay!

This Friday, I’m running a free online workshop where I’ll share my corporate and business journey and then teach you how to start, grow, and monetize a YouTube channel to generate passive income—and who knows, maybe even turn this side hustle into your main job.

We’ll discover your niche, explore its profit potential, learn the fastest way to get your first 1,000 subscribers, and help you overcome your fears and create your first video.

So, sign up for the free online workshop here: https://event.webinarjam.com/register/6/925q4ak

And for now, I’m off to celebrate and try to wrap my head around the fact that I’m 40! Haha. Hugs. See you on Friday!

Привет! Вы как там? Я тут поделился личной историей, как ютуб изменил мою жизнь. Она на английском, но если вы понимаете, то можете прочесть:)


In February 2019, I was at a marketing conference in San Diego, listening to a guy say he makes $15 million a year from YouTube. That moment stuck with me.

At the time, I had a small Russian channel with around 10K subs. It was a mess—vlogs, webinars, speaking gigs—all thrown together without any clear focus. Titles were too long, thumbnails were bad. I was using YouTube like Google Drive.

When I got back to Singapore, I decided to study YouTube seriously. I wanted to understand how the algorithm works, how influencers actually build businesses, and how content reaches people.

The funny (and sad) part is that once I learned how YouTube really works, I realized how much time I had wasted. I’d spent two years uploading without a clue, and the opportunity cost was huge. It still stings.

Things changed fast. By the end of 2019, I had 150K subs. In 2020, my agency tripled its sales and hit $1M in revenue—mostly thanks to YouTube.

Then I started earning from affiliate links. One partnership with Wix alone brought in $150K in commissions.

By 2021, I finally started feeling that financial freedom people talk about—I was able to support my family, travel more, and create content from anywhere with just a phone, a $15 mic, and WiFi.

Since then, I’ve helped a lot of people grow channels—in finance, real estate, IT, vlogs, cooking, and more.

In 2022, I started a new channel—*Max Chernov*. Six months in, it hit 50K subs. Two years later—300K subs and over 100 million views. It’s become the biggest expat-focused channel in the world, with an audience across Singapore, India, China, the US, and more. Because of that, we’ve landed paid sponsorships with brands like Revolut, BetterHelp, and NordVPN.

But it wasn’t always smooth. I had a lot of doubts. What if no one watches? What if I don’t know how to edit? What if people judge my content?

Once I figured out how the platform works, things got simpler and more enjoyable. The fears didn’t matter as much, and I started enjoying the process.

After seeing how much it’s helped me and my clients, I wanted to make it easier for others to do the same.

So I put together a free video lesson that breaks down my 5-step strategy for launching and growing a YouTube channel—especially if you’re starting from zero.

I also explain how to build a semi-passive income stream of $10,000 per month on YouTube, giving you both financial and geographical freedom.

Watch it now: https://courses.shym.sg/youtube-challenge

Max